Key swing states to watch out for in the 2024 US Election – and why they matter

3 November 2024, 07:00 | Updated: 3 November 2024, 07:31

TOPSHOT-US-VOTE-POLITICS-EARLY VOTING
A number of "battleground" states will play a key role in determining US election's outcome. Picture: Getty

By Flaminia Luck

A handful of states will play a crucial role in determining the outcome of the 2024 US election.

Listen to this article

Loading audio...

These are the "swing states": so called because they will help swing the overall result either towards Democrat candidate and current vice president Kamala Harris, or away from Ms Harris and towards her Republican opponent - and former president - Donald Trump.

Most states are not swing states and will not change hands at this election - but safe states alone are not enough to get either Ms Harris or Mr Trump to the White House.

Here are seven swing states to watch.

All but one were won by President Joe Biden for the Democrats in 2020, but all are being strongly contested at this election by Mr Trump.

Attendees at a Trump Vance campaign event in Glenmoore, Pennsylvania
Attendees at a Trump Vance campaign event in Glenmoore, Pennsylvania. Picture: Getty

Pennsylvania

Donald Trump won Pennsylvania in 2016, confounding those who assumed this was a Democrat stronghold, as had been the case at every election since Bill Clinton won the state in 1992.

Joe Biden regained it narrowly for the Democrats in 2020, but polls suggest the outcome this year is on a knife's edge.

A total of 270 electoral votes are needed to win the US presidential election, with each state allotted a fixed number of votes based roughly on the size of its population.

Whoever wins the popular vote in a state also wins all of that state's electoral votes (with two exceptions, Maine and Nebraska, where the votes are split on a district and state-wide level).

With 19 electoral votes up for grabs in Pennsylvania, this is a key target for both candidates.

But due to the huge number of postal and early votes cast, which will need to be sorted and counted, the outcome is not likely to be clear for some time.

In 2020 the state was not called for Mr Biden until four days after election day. -

Michigan

Like Pennsylvania, this was part of the "blue wall" of states that voted Democrat at every presidential election from 1992 to 2012.

Mr Trump's victory in 2016 was tiny - by just 0.2 percentage points - but symbolised the scale of his success in wooing working-class voters away from his opponent Hillary Clinton, particularly in a state that Barack Obama had carried by nine percentage points in 2012.

Joe Biden won back the state for the Democrats in 2020 by a gap of nearly three points over Mr Trump, but opinion polls suggest it will be much closer this time.

There are 15 electoral votes in play here.

Kamala Harris at a campaign rally at the Wisconsin State Fair Expo in West Allis, Wisconsin
Kamala Harris at a campaign rally at the Wisconsin State Fair Expo in West Allis, Wisconsin. Picture: Alamy

Wisconsin

This is another "blue wall" state that flipped narrowly to the Republicans and Donald Trump in 2016, before switching back - by a similarly narrow margin - to the Democrats and Joe Biden in 2020.

As is the case with Pennsylvania and Michigan, the result in Wisconsin might not be clear for several days, thanks to the volume of postal and early votes that will need to be sorted and counted.

Ten electoral votes are available here.

Arizona

In 2020 Joe Biden was the first Democrat to win Arizona since Bill Clinton in 1996.

This represented a major turnaround from 2016, when Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton in the state by more than three percentage points.

Mr Biden's victory was very slim and this year the state once again looks like being a nail-biter, with polls suggesting the outcome is too close to call.

Arizona is worth 11 electoral votes.

Vice President Kamala Harris hold a campaign rally in North Las Vegas
Vice President Kamala Harris hold a campaign rally in North Las Vegas. Picture: Getty

Nevada

Nevada has been won by the Democrats at every presidential election since 1992, but often by close margins - and this year, it could be closer than ever, with polls suggesting the race is effectively tied.

Joe Biden won the state in 2020 by just over two percentage points.

Nevada does not offer a huge number of electoral votes - six - but in a close contest, a victory here could be decisive in helping either Ms Harris or Mr Trump get to the White House.

North Carolina

This is the one swing state on the list that was won by Donald Trump in 2020, though the result was close, with Mr Trump picking up 49.9% of the vote and Joe Biden 48.6%.

North Carolina has not been won by a Democrat since Barack Obama took the state in 2008 - the first Democrat to do so since Jimmy Carter in 1976.

Once again, opinion polls this year point to a close contest, with a valuable 16 electoral votes up for grabs.

North Carolina is the swing state most likely to report prompt results on election night, and as such will give an early indication of how both Ms Harris and Mr Trump are faring.

Donald Trump holds rally In Atlanta
Donald Trump holds rally In Atlanta. Picture: Getty

Georgia

Joe Biden in 2020 was the first Democrat to win Georgia since Bill Clinton in 1992.

Barack Obama never came near to a victory, and Donald Trump won it by more than five percentage points in 2016.

The result in 2020 was so close that a recount was conducted, with the outcome not confirmed until more than two weeks after election day.

Read more: Kamala Harris makes surprise appearance on Saturday Night Live

Read more: Donald Trump brands Kamala Harris a 'low IQ person' during Salem rally

Just 0.3 percentage points separated Mr Biden from Mr Trump.

Like North Carolina, the state gives its winner 16 electoral votes and opinion polls here, as elsewhere, point to another incredibly close contest.

But polls are only snapshots, not predictions, and ultimately the outcome in places like Georgia may come down to which side manages to get more of its supporters to turn out and vote.

More Latest News

See more More Latest News

Exclusive
Gordon Brown pays tribute to "working class hero" John Prescott.

Gordon Brown pays tribute to 'colossus' John Prescott after his death aged 86 following battle with Alzheimer's

(L) British lawyer Simone White, 28, is seriously ill in hospital. (R) Bianca Jones, 19, has become the fourth person to die after consuming alleged 'methanol-laced' drinks in Vang Vieng, Laos

London lawyer fights for her life and Australian backpacker dies after drinking 'methanol-laced' shots from bar in Laos

Russia is threatening to use new missiles in Ukraine after US and UK rockets were used in their territory

Putin 'to retaliate with new Frontier missiles in Ukraine' after US and UK give green light to fire rockets in Russia

Smaller drones, costing a fraction of Watchkeeper’s £5.2 million unit price, are being used to great effect in Ukraine for reconnaissance and precision strikes.

The British Army’s £1.35bn Watchkeeper drone programme: From ambition and innovation to delays, failure, and abandonment

GERMANY-TRANSPORT-TRAFFIC

Hundreds of drivers left stuck in vehicles in freezing conditions on M2 after serious crash between pedestrian and lorry

TV host Ellen Degeneres and her wife Portia de Rossi are reportedly planning to move permanently to rural England

Ellen DeGeneres and wife Portia de Rossi 'to flee US and move to England' after Trump's election win

Exclusive
‘The storm of war is gathering’: Defence cuts leave UK critically unprepared for a 'bumpy decade', warns ex-minister

‘The storm of war is gathering’: Defence cuts leave UK 'woefully unprepared' for a 'bumpy decade', warns ex-minister

Tony Blair leads tributes to John Prescott

'Devastated' Tony Blair leads tributes to John Prescott after former deputy PM dies aged 86

North Korea Deepens Russian Alliance: Troop Deployments Prioritise Advanced Weapons Technology Over Financial Gains

North Korea deepens alliance with Russia, trading troop support for advanced weapons technology to fuel nuclear programme

Former deputy prime minister John Prescott has died aged 86

Former deputy PM John Prescott dies aged 86 following battle with Alzheimer's

Exclusive
Soldiers are being trained in trench and urban warfare

'Kill him before he tries to kill you': LBC visits Ukrainian troops being trained by British soldiers

Rolf Harris has died aged 93

Paedophile entertainer Rolf Harris died penniless after 'wiping out £16m fortune to make it harder for victims to access'

Exclusive
Captain Sir Tom Moore's daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore

Money 'reasonably expected' to reach Captain Tom's charity never did, commissioner tells LBC

Which? has revealed the best and worst deals for Black Friday. (stock image)

Black Friday 2024: Which? reveals deals to avoid - and the best alternatives

File photo dated 16/04/20 of the then 99-year-old war veteran Captain Tom Moore, with (left to right) grandson Benji, daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore and granddaughter Georgia, at his home in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire

Salary demands, book payments and a doomed spa block: Key findings of the Captain Tom Foundation inquiry

Captain Tom's daughter is facing questions about a hefty book payment

Captain Tom's daughter faces questions over £1.5m book payment after none of the money went to charity