CNN also found that Americans are angry and dissatisfied. The poll found 43 per cent of voters were dissatisfied and 29 per cent were angry. Only 7 per cent said they were enthusiastic.

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Polling into the favourability of presidential candidates by CNN found that 46 per cent had favourable opinions about Harris, while 42 per cent felt the same way about Trump. Two per cent had liked both candidates, while 8 per cent liked neither.

The same polling also showed that 47 per cent of voters thought Trump was too extreme, and 36 per cent felt this of Harris. 50 per cent of polled voters were either concerned or scared about Trump becoming president again.

What are the states to watch?

The seven key swing states likely to produce a path to the presidency for either Harris or Trump are Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Both candidates have campaigned consistently in these states, but particular focus was placed on Pennsylvania in the final weeks of the campaign. The state is the biggest prize of the seven swing states, carrying 19 electoral votes, which could be a deciding factor in a tight race. Joe Biden won the state at the 2020 election with 50 per cent of the vote, and in 2016 Donald Trump won the state with 48 per cent.

Trump has held numerous rallies in the state, including a rally on Monday AEDT where he said he “shouldn’t have left” the White House in 2020. It was also in Butler, Pennsylvania, that Thomas Matthew Crooks attempted to assassinate the former president.

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Harris held her final rally in the Democrat-friendly city of Philadelphia on election eve, Tuesday AEDT, with performances from Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and Christina Aguilera.

When will we know?

Results in some states will be known fairly quickly, while other counts could drag on for days. We’ll probably get the first results from some eastern states within hours of the first polls closing about 11am today (AEDT). The results will keep rolling in through to Wednesday evening from the east to west coasts.

The slower counts that could delay the result by days will be in the tight swing-state races.

The first results from a swing state will probably be from Georgia, where state law requires that all early votes be counted and reported by 8pm on election night (US time), or noon Wednesday (AEDT).

We’ll probably have results from North Carolina and Arizona by the pointy end of election night, or from about 3pm (AEDT).

Nevada has updated its vote-count rules but could still face a multi-day delay in delivering a result, as it did in 2020. It’s a similar situation in Michigan.

In Wisconsin, pundits are predicting delays that will see the first results delivered on Wednesday (US time), making it Thursday in Australia.

The crucial vote in Pennsylvania is likely to take a lot longer to deliver a result, possibly several days. It is one of a few states that do not allow election workers to begin processing mail-in votes until election day.

Considered the tipping-point state that could win the election for either candidate, we could see a repeat of 2020, where the election couldn’t be called until the Pennsylvania vote was confirmed, four days after the poll.

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