Presidential voting underway in Florida
Published 9:33 am Tuesday, October 25, 2016
TAMPA, Florida — With the race for the White House speeding to an end, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are campaigning Tuesday in swing state Florida, where tens of thousands of voters are already flocking to the polls.
Trump, on the final day of a three-day Florida swing, has been denouncing the “disgusting” media that promotes “phony polls” showing him trailing Clinton in this and other battleground states.
“The media isn’t just against me. They’re against all of you,” Trump told cheering supporters Monday in St. Augustine. He added, “I believe we’re actually winning.”
Trump, who must win Florida to have any chance at the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency, is scheduled to attend three Florida campaign events. Clinton, who can win the presidency with or without Florida, is making just one appearance, in the southern part of the state.
Her confidence surging, Clinton is also eyeing a new Democratic majority in the Senate. Her campaign has been attacking Republican Senate candidates in Florida and New Hampshire.
On Monday, the Democratic nominee campaigned alongside New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan, who is locked in a tight Senate race against Republican incumbent Kelly Ayotte. They got an assist from Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who was merciless as she seized on recent revelations of Trump’s predatory sexual language and several allegations of sexual assault.
“He thinks that because he has a mouth full of Tic Tacs, he can force himself on any woman within groping distance,” Warren charged. “I’ve got news for you Donald: Women have had it with guys like you.”
Trump, in an interview with WGIR radio in New Hampshire, called the accusations “total fiction.” He lashed out at his latest accuser, former adult film performer Jessica Drake, who said Saturday that he had grabbed and kissed her without permission and offered her money to visit his hotel room a decade ago.
“One said, ‘He grabbed me on the arm.’ And she’s a porn star,” Trump said. He added, “Oh, I’m sure she’s never been grabbed before.”
As the war of words plays out, hundreds of thousands of Floridians are voting. Tuesday marks the second day of early in-person voting. Early voting by mail began two weeks ago.
Nearly 300,000 Florida voters showed up for the first day of in-person early voting on Monday, new totals from state election officials showed. Altogether, more than 1.6 million Floridians have voted so far.
Traditionally, Republicans have run up a large advantage in mail-in-ballots, while Democrats rely on early voting to boost their turnout numbers.