Our live coverage has ended. Read more about the 2020 election here.
President Trump was asked whether Vice President Mike Pence should come off the campaign trail since he was in close contact with his chief of staff, Marc Short, who tested positive for coronavirus and the President said, “you have to ask him.”
A statement from Pence’s press secretary Devin O’Malley released Saturday night said Pence would continue to campaign because he is considered “essential personnel.”
“While Vice President Pence is considered a close contact with Mr. Short, in consultation with the White House Medical Unit, the Vice President will maintain his schedule in accordance with the CDC guidelines for essential personnel,” the statement said.
Pence held two events in Florida yesterday where there was not any social distancing and based on pictures Pence tweeted, it appeared many in the crowd were not masked. He’s holding another event in North Carolina on Sunday night.
Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris will campaign in Texas on Friday, according to a personal familiar.
This will be Harris’ first time in the Lone Star state since joining the ticket.
When asked earlier by a reporter where Texas and Georgia fit in the campaign’s path to victory, Harris said, “The bottom line is we’re focusing on every state and we are working to earn the vote of every American regardless of where they live.”
The New York Times was the first to report on the campaign stop.
Joe Biden released a statement on Mark Meadows’s comments this morning on not publicly disclosing positive Covie-19 test results at the White House, calling it a “candid acknowledgment of what President Trump’s strategy has clearly been from the beginning of this crisis: to wave the white flag of defeat and hope that by ignoring it, the virus would simply go away. It hasn’t, and it won’t.”
Biden says that Meadows “admitted this morning that the administration has given up on even trying to control this pandemic, that they’ve given up on their basic duty to protect the American people.”
The Senate advanced Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination in a key procedural vote on Sunday, paving the way for a final confirmation vote, which will likely take place Monday evening.
The vote comes roughly a week before the Nov. 3 election where control of Congress and the White House are at stake.
The Sunday vote was held to break a Democratic filibuster of her nomination. Senate Republicans needed only a simple majority to break the filibuster and the vote was 51-48.
Two Republicans crossed party lines to vote with Democrats in opposition to the procedural vote – Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska.
Collins, who is facing a competitive reelection fight, has been expected to vote against the nomination due to concerns that it’s too close to the election to consider a nominee. Murkowski announced on Saturday that she will ultimately vote to confirm Barrett in the final vote, but said that she would vote no on the procedural vote on Sunday. Murkowski has previously voiced opposition to taking up a nominee to fill the open seat so close to the election.
Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris made a surprise stop to a polling place at the Northwest Activity Center in Detroit, Michigan, to promote early voting.
She was joined by Rep. Brenda Lawrence, whom she greeted warmly after getting out of her motorcade.
When Harris pulled up, some of the people who came in their cars got out with their mail-in-ballots in hand and raised them up as she exited her vehicle. The campaign said there were 65 cars in total.
Harris mentioned the narrow margin that Trump won Michigan by in 2016.
“In 2016 they won by just on an average two votes per precinct. Think about that! The power of the vote. Two votes per precinct. So let’s make sure that doesn’t happen again, shall we?” Harris said.
Harris spoke wearing a mask while standing in front of a Biden-Harris campaign bus.
More than 7.1 million people cast their vote in Texas, including the first 12 days of early voting, according to data posted on the Texas Secretary of State website Sunday morning.
That represents 42.31% of registered voters. In 2016 overall, 59.39% of registered voters voted.
The last day of early voting in Texas is Oct. 30.
The Senate is expected to hold a procedural vote ending debate over the confirmation Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. The vote is expected to pass, setting up a final vote for Monday.
On Monday: The Senate will convene at noon when we expect opening speeches from Sens. Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer.
At 1 p.m. ET, senators will have a roll call vote to break the filibuster of Barrett. A majority vote is needed to break it, not 60 votes.
After the votes, Democrats are expected offer a motion to adjourn — as they have a couple of times this week, arguing the nomination should be put off until after the election.
NASA astronaut Kate Rubins voted from space this week, using a secure electronic ballot and a makeshift voting booth on the International Space Station, according to a tweet from NASA Astronaut’s verified account.
Rubins said simply “I voted today,” in Thursday’s tweet.
“It’s critical to participate in our democracy, we consider it an honor to be able to vote from space,” Rubins said in an Oct.16 NASA video.
Some context: Rubins, who is a flight engineer, also cast her ballot from the International Space Station during the 2016 election, CNN reported.
“I think it’s really important for everybody to vote and if we can do it from space then I believe folks can do it from the ground too,” Rubins said in October.
Astronauts registered to vote in Texas got the right to vote from space in 1997, when Texas lawmakers ruled they could electronically cast their ballot off-planet if they’d be on a spaceflight during the early-voting period or Election Day, CNN reported.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez would not directly criticize Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden for his commitment not to ban fracking, saying she is not worried about his position on the issue.
Ocasio-Cortez introduced legislation to get rid of fracking by 2025, and she told CNN that it would be a “privilege” to lobby Biden to take more progressive policy positions on issues like fracking.
She emphasized the importance of focusing on getting progressives into key cabinet positions in the Biden administration. Ocasio-Cortez did not answer directly whether the Obama administration was progressive, saying that it wasn’t the former president’s fault that many progressive demands weren’t met during his term because he was working with a Republican-controlled Congress.
When asked if he thinks Vice President Mike Pence should quarantine after being in close contact with his chief of staff Marc Short and others in his orbit who have tested positive for coronavirus in recent days, Trump campaign senior adviser Corey Lewandowski did not directly answer the question, saying he’s sure the vice president will “do what is necessary and what is appropriate.”
Lewandowski compared the situation to an incident two weeks ago where two people close to Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris’s campaign also tested positive, saying she took the necessary precautions.
Upon learning of the positive diagnoses, Harris cancelled a planned campaign trip and stayed off the trail for multiple days. Pence plans to proceed with his scheduled trip to North Carolina even though he was traveling with Short on Thursday and Friday.
Lewandowski said he had not spoken with Pence or his team within the past 24 hours.
The Trump aide also deflected when asked about the Washington Post’s report that the President privately told donors it will be “very tough” for Republicans to keep control of the Senate, namely because he refuses to support some senators.
Lewandowski said the President has been campaigning “aggressively” for Republican senators and believes keeping the majority in the chamber is important, pointing to his own trip to Arizona last week to fundraise for vulnerable GOP Sen. Martha McSally.
Both Vice President Mike Pence and his wife tested negative Sunday for coronavirus, a White House official said.
Sen. Kamala Harris said Sunday that Vice President Mike Pence “should be following the guidelines” when it comes to mitigating the spread of Covid-19.
Additionally, CNN has confirmed three other staffers, as well as outside adviser Marty Obst, have also tested positive.
The Democratic vice presidential candidate cancelled travel a week ago “out of an abundance of caution” after two people in her orbit tested positive for the virus.
Harris, speaking shortly after arriving at the airport in Detroit, Michigan, also responded to White House chief of staff Mark Meadows claims on CNN that “we are not going to control the virus.”
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows told CNN Sunday that the US is “not going to control” the coronavirus pandemic, as cases surge across the country setting national records.
Nearly 225,000 Americans have died from the virus.
When asked by CNN’s Jake Tapper why the US isn’t going to get the pandemic under control, Meadows said: “Because it is a contagious virus just like the flu.”
He added that the Trump Administration is “making efforts to contain it.”
“What we need to do is make sure that we have the proper mitigation factors, whether it’s therapies or vaccines or treatments to make sure that people don’t die from this,” Meadows said.
Watch:
During an interview on CNN, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows refused to disclose the extent of a Covid-19 outbreak in Vice President Mike Pence’s orbit, and he said Pence will be wearing a mask and social distancing when he resumes campaign travel today despite his direct exposure to the virus.
Meadows said such disclosures are only appropriate in the case of the President, vice president or those in their inner circle.
“Anytime there’s someone in harm’s way, we have an obligation to let people know for contract-tracing,” he added.
More context: Pence’s office announced Saturday evening chief of staff, Marc Short had tested positive for Covid-19. CNN has confirmed three other staffers as well as outside adviser Marty Obst have tested positive as well.
Pence’s office said the vice president will continue with a scheduled trip to North Carolina today after he and wife Karen Pence tested negative for the virus Saturday.
CNN’s Daniella Diaz contributed to this story.
Three staffers in Vice President Mike Pence’s office have tested positive for the virus in addition to his chief of staff Marc Short and outside adviser Marty Obst, according to a source familiar with the situation.
This brings the total number of people in Pence’s orbit who have currently tested positive to five.
There are concerns that more will test positive in the coming days, the source said.
“They’re scared,” the source said regarding staffers in Pence’s office
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows defended the vice president’s decision to stay on the campaign trail despite members of his staff — including vice president chief of staff Marc Short — testing positive for the coronavirus.
The White House is claiming that Vice President Mike Pence is an “essential worker” so it is not necessary for him to follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines and quarantine due to his close colleagues’ positive tests.
When asked by Jay Tapper on CNN how campaigning is essential work, Meadows said that Pence is “not just campaigning.”
The vice president’s office said that Pence plans to hold a rally today in North Carolina. On Saturday, he held two events in Florida.
When asked how many people at the White House have tested positive for coronavirus, Meadows said, “We don’t give out that kind of information.”
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows wished the staff of Vice President Mike Pence well after some tested positive for Covid-19.
Several aides to Pence, including his chief of staff, have tested positive for coronavirus, CNN confirmed.
More context: The vice president’s office announced Saturday evening that chief of staff Marc Short was diagnosed with Covid-19. Sources told CNN that Marty Obst, a senior adviser to Pence who is not a government employee, and another aide in Pence’s office also tested positive for the virus.
The vice president’s office has not commented on Obst or the staffer in Pence’s office who tested positive for Covid-19 in recent days.
Former President Barack Obama will continue to stump for the Biden-Harris ticket, announcing he will travel to Orlando, Florida, on Tuesday.
The former president has made stops in Philadelphia and Miami this past week on behalf of his former vice president’s presidential run.
Several aides to Vice President Mike Pence, including his chief of staff, have tested positive for coronavirus, CNN confirmed.
The vice president’s office announced Saturday evening that chief of staff Marc Short was diagnosed with Covid-19. Sources told CNN that Marty Obst, a senior adviser to Pence who is not a government employee, and another aide in Pence’s office also tested positive for the virus.
The vice president’s office has not commented on Obst or the staffer in Pence’s office who tested positive for Covid-19 in recent days.
The developments raise new questions about safety protocols and transparency within the White House as the pandemic has killed more than 224,000 Americans.
Some context: The news comes just over a week before election day amid a blitz of campaign stops for Pence, who leads the White House coronavirus task force, including the vice president’s trips to Florida, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire in the last week.
With less than two weeks to go before Election Day, many voters around the country have still not received their mail-in ballots.
Printing errors, mail delivery delays and the sheer volume of requests have left many states across the country scrambling to get ballots into the hands of voters ahead of the fast approaching deadline.
Voters in Ohio have seen delays thanks to a ballot printing backup. In Michigan, a state that has already seen 3 million absentee ballot requests, 20,000 absentee ballots have yet to be sent out. In addition to printing and mail delivery delays, some counties had to reprint and re-send ballots, including Pennsylvania’s Allegheny County – further squeezing the window for voters to get their ballots returned in time.
Voters who say they requested their absentee ballots in a timely fashion are frustrated and confused to find themselves still waiting, just a week before the recommended US Postal Service deadline for getting ballots back in the mail.
Lee Zacharias, 75, from Greensboro, North Carolina, never received her absentee ballot. She wanted to vote via absentee because of her compromised immune system, but ended up risking her health, and voting in-person because she felt that it was getting too close to the deadline.
According to BallotTrax, a new tool North Carolina voters can use to keep up with their ballot status, Zacharias’ initial ballot was outbound on September 11. When that one didn’t show up, she called the Guilford County Board of Elections on September 28. Zacharias said she was told BallotTrax isn’t always accurate, but to be safe the county would cancel her original ballot and send her a new one. When that ballot didn’t arrive, Zacharias decided to cast her vote in person because she was nervous that it would never show up.
“The fact that I know that mine is not the only case. That there are a number of other people that have not received absentee ballots they applied for, who had ballots that disappeared, like mine did and have been voided and have not receive replacement ballots makes me angry,” Zacharias said.
Read the full story here and visit CNN’s Voter Guide to see deadlines in your state.
