By james art Despite its size, Nevada is one of the least populated states in the US, with just over 3.1 million residents. Those voters, however, will play a significant role in next week’s election.
The outcome of the presidential race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will hinge on voter turnout in states like Nevada, which has become one of the most diverse in the country.
In Nevada, 40% of registered voters do not identify as either Democrat or Republican. However, the state has voted Democratic in the last four presidential elections. On Friday, Harris and Trump were nearly tied in the state.
A significant portion of the votes are expected to be counted by Friday morning, with additional ballots arriving in the mail over the weekend, according to Nevada Independent reporter Gabby Birenbaum.
Speaking to ABC News on Thursday, Birenbaum offered an analysis of Nevada’s role as a swing state in the 2024 election as both campaigns make their final appeals to voters.
“Republicans are looking pretty strong in the state right now,” Birenbaum said. “It’s a lot of cause for optimism for them. They have a lead of just under about five points in Republican registered voter turnout over Democratic registered voter turnout. This is very different from previous cycles.”
Although Republicans currently lead in Nevada polls, Birenbaum noted that the outcome will ultimately depend on how nonpartisans vote.
“Right now, registered nonpartisans are the largest group in the state,” Birenbaum said. “At the moment, in early voting, they are just over a quarter of the electorate. So if you’re on the Harris campaign, you really need those nonpartisans to swing in your favor to overcome some of that Republican advantage in early voting.”
Both candidates tried to woo voters in Nevada on Thursday, with Harris holding rallies in Reno and Las Vegas while Trump spoke to supporters in Henderson, southeast of Las Vegas.
“In many ways, people think Nevada might be a blue state because it has voted for the Democratic candidate in the last four elections,” Birenbaum said. “But it’s really purple. I mean, Biden won by two and a half points [in 2020]Clinton also won by two and a half points [in 2016].”
Nevada’s swing state unpacked as polls show close race originally appeared on abcnews.go.com