In hot Arizona politics, Phoenix residents have thrown themselves into early voting on the campus of Arizona State University. The swing state is in the spotlight, with 11 electoral votes at stake, and voters are already locked in a crucial battle.
Carol Keane, a Phoenix voter, expressed her support for Donald Trump, saying it wasn’t his personality that influenced her decision, but rather her support for his policies over those of Kamala Harris. “The thought of Kamala Harris being president terrifies me because I disagree with her policies,” she said.
Arizona took the lead by becoming the first swing state in this year’s presidential election to offer in-person early voting, allowing residents to cast their ballots at regular polling stations before Election Day.
Another voter backed Kamala Harris, calling Trump a “big comic show.”
Arianna Welker, a voter from Phoenix, shared, “I voted for Kamala for a lot of personal reasons, because I disagree with Trump. As a person of color, I support reproductive rights, which is very important to me. There are personal reasons that I prefer not to discuss on camera, but yes, I am a Democrat, so I voted for Kamala.”
Both Republican and Democratic vice presidential candidates campaigned in Arizona ahead of the start of early voting in a state that could influence the outcome of the presidential election and power dynamics in the Senate.
As of July, Arizona had 4.1 million registered voters, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.
The actual number is likely higher as both parties worked to boost registration before Monday’s deadline.
Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate, will lead a rally in Phoenix on Thursday.
Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump will hold a rally Sunday in Prescott Valley, a Republican stronghold about 90 miles north of Phoenix.
In the 2020 election, President Joe Biden defeated Trump by a slim margin of just 10,457 votes.
That narrow victory fueled years of misinformation and conspiracy theories among Republicans who have not accepted Biden’s victory.
As a result, election workers have faced threats and harassment, prompting some polling places to step up security measures for their employees and on-site volunteers.
Early in-person voting has already begun in several states for weeks.
It will begin next week in four other key presidential states: Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina and Nevada.