US election: Trump, Harris court Latino vote in swing states

Latinos make up around 15% of the eligible voters in the US and could play a key role in swing states. DW spoke with Latinos who said they didn't like being grouped as a voting demographic. Watch the report: 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban says he has wished Donald Trump luck in the upcoming US presidential election during a telephone conversation on Thursday.

"I wished him the best of luck for next Tuesday," Orban, who is among Trump's most vocal European supporters, wrote on social media platform X. "Only five days to go. Fingers crossed."

Trump and Orban share much political ground, most notably in their anti-immigration stance and opposition to the arming of Ukraine in its defense against Russia.

A long-time Trump supporter, Orban has previously quipped that he would "open several bottles of champagne" if the populist leader is returned to power.

A Philadelphia court has started hearing the case of the city's prosecutor seeking to shut down Elon Musk's $1 million-a-day sweepstakes in key battleground states.

The giveaways come from Musk's America PAC political organization, which seeks to bolster Donald Trump's presidential campaign.

Musk lawyers filed a motion late Wednesday seeking to move the case to federal court, saying it involved a federal election issue.

However, state judge Angelo Foglietta continued to hear the case at City Hall.

But Musk was not in the courtroom as the hearing got underway. He could face a fine if Foglietta holds him in contempt of court.

The sweepstakes are set to run through Election Day, open to registered voters in battleground states who sign a petition pledging support for free speech and gun rights.

Election law experts have raised questions about whether the draw violates a federal law that prevents an individual from paying others to vote, or to register to vote. 

 

US states bar an estimated total of 4.6 million people from voting because of prior convictions. Each state has its own law on who stays "locked out" of the process when their fellow citizens head to the polls.

In states such as California and Minnesota, only currently incarcerated people are not allowed to vote. People who have completed their sentences may return to the polls.

Virginia is the state with the strictest regulations. Anybody with a felony conviction is generally barred from voting. People who have completed their sentences and paid related fines can submit a request to the governor, currently Republican Glenn Youngkin, who decides on a case-by-case basis whose voting rights will be reinstated.

Read DW's analysis.

From sexism, to agism and racism, DW's factchecking team looks at what narratives and claims have been spread about Kamala Harris and Donald Trump ahead of the US presidential election in this video:  

Immigration remains a hot topic ahead of the US presidential election. During his campaign, Trump has blamed the Joe Biden administration for record migration numbers. Is that really the case? Watch DW's report: 

French Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Noel Barrot expressed hope for a peaceful US presidential election next week.

"This is an extremely important election and I hope it can take place in peaceful conditions, which does not appear to me to be entirely guaranteed," he told broadcaster BFM TV in an interview, adding that any violence could potentially have a global impact.  

US officials in key battleground states are bracing for misinformation, conspiracy theories, threats and possible violence. 

Barrot said France would cooperate with the winner, whether it was Trump of Harris. 

Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, is attending a hurricane relief benefit event with media personality Tucker Carlson in Arizona.

He is also set to hold a campaign rally in Albuquerque, New Mexico, before heading to Henderson, Nevada, for a second rally. 

Trump is likely to emphasize immigration and border security.

Arizona is a must-win for both campaigns, so Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris will also try and shore up support in the battleground state and later campaign in Reno and Las Vegas, Nevada. 

She will be aiming to woo crucial Latino voters. The latest New York Times/Siena poll showed Harris with 52% of support among Hispanic voters to Trump's 42%.

Pop singer Jennifer Lopez will bring her star power to the stage for Harris in Las Vegas.

Kamala Harris told reporters on Wednesday that she disagrees "with any criticism of people based on who they vote for," as she sought to defuse criticism of comments by Joe Biden during a fundraising call the previous evening, less than a week before the vote. 

"I will represent all Americans, including those who don't vote for me," Harris said on Wednesday. 

Dressed as a sanitation worker and even riding in a garbage truck, Donald Trump aimed to persuade Wisconsin voters on Wednesday that Democrats consider his supporters "garbage."

"This is in honor of Kamala and Joe Biden," Trump said.

The former president was himself facing criticism for a racist remark made at his rally. Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe had called Puerto Rico a "floating island of garbage."

The two candidates also crisscrossed several swing states on Wednesday, passing each other in Wisconsin.

lo/kb (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)