Plus: Abortion ban on the ballot in Florida, and a sound way to beat dengue and Zika ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
|
| Hello. As you receive this newsletter polls are opening in some states on the US east coast, officially kicking off election day. As we wait for the day to play out, it's a good time to take stock of the campaign with our North America editor Sarah Smith. You can also read our piece explaining when we will know who has won. We're also reporting on kissing in Japan, policing in Zimbabwe, and deaf mosquitos. | |
|
|
|
|
TOP OF THE AGENDA | Two visions collide on election day | | More than 82 million people voted before election day. Credit: Getty Images | After a frantic campaign, marked by two assassination attempts on Donald Trump and a late switch to Kamala Harris as the Democratic candidate, our North America editor Sarah Smith is taking a moment to reflect on what is at stake in this US presidential election. "America doesn't just seem remarkably divided," she writes, "it feels as though two separate nations are awkwardly cohabiting on the same land mass." Faced with warnings of doom if the other candidate wins, people on each side appear to be genuinely afraid of what the future holds if their vote is a losing one. Starting tomorrow, legal challenges and street protests are to be expected. "Whatever the result, roughly one half of the country is about to discover that the other half has a completely different sense of what America requires," Sarah says.
Tonight's the night: Here's what we can expect once the polls have closed.
The latest: Following its quirky tradition, the six-person community of Dixville Notch, New Hampshire, has voted at midnight and already counted its votes. You guessed it - it's a tie. Follow our live page for more.
Why it's so close: Never in recent US political history has the outcome of a presidential been so in doubt. Anthony Zurcher explains why. | |
|
|
|
|
|
| | | West Palm Beach, Florida, US |
|
| Abortion ban on the ballot | | A victoryin Florida would be viewed as a huge achievement for the abortion-rights movement. Credit: Getty Images | Alongside the presidential election, Americans are also voting for state-level legislation. Florida is one of 10 across the country that will have abortion on the ballot. If passed, Amendment 4 would overturn the six-week abortion ban currently in place in the state. |
|
| | | Jonel Jones, 37, is a former Democrat who decided to vote for Trump this year. She had been looking for a job for months, and felt the former president had a stronger handle on the economy. She personally did not believe in abortion, she said. But she had read stories from other states like Georgia and Texas about pregnant women who became sick or died after being denied abortion or miscarriage treatment, and did not want a similar situation in Florida. “I don’t think it’s right," Ms Jones said. After ticking the box for Donald Trump, she voted “yes” on Amendment 4. |
|
| |
|
|
BEYOND THE HEADLINES | A novel way to beat dengue |
|
| | | Mosquitos spread viruses to around 400 million people a year. Credit: Getty Images | Scientists believe they have found a creative way to fight mosquito-spread diseases such as dengue and Zika: turning the males deaf so that they struggled to mate. The experiment found the deaf males made no contact with females even after three days in the same cage |
|
| |
|
|
SOMETHING DIFFERENT | Paddington in Peru | The third movie in the beloved franchise had big shoes to fill - did it succeed? | |
|
| |
|
|
And finally... | It might only be the start of November, but London's shopping mecca of Oxford Street has switched on its annual Christmas lights display, becoming the first of the British capital's major illuminations to be turned on for 2024. If you’re ready for a bit of Christmas cheer, take a look at this festive video of the moment the lights switched on. | |
|
|
|
|
Six Steps to Calm | Discover a calmer future with this course of six science-backed techniques, weekly to your inbox. | |
|
| |
|
|
MORE BBC NEWSLETTERS | | World of Business: Gain the leading edge with global insights for the boardroom and beyond, every Wednesday. Subscribe. | | The Essential List: The best of the BBC, handpicked by our editors, in your inbox every Tuesday and Friday. Subscribe. | | Football Extra: Get all the latest news, insights and gossip from the Premier League, weekdays to your inbox. Subscribe. | |
|
|
|
|
Thank you, as ever, for reading. Send us suggestions for topics or areas of the world to cover in this newsletter. Tell your friends and family about it! They can sign up here. You can take a look at all our newsletters here.
By the way, you can add [email protected] to your contacts list and, if you're on Gmail, pop the email into your “Primary” tab for uninterrupted service. Thanks for reading!
– Jules | | | | |
|
| | You've received this email because you've signed up to the BBC News Briefing newsletter.
Click here to unsubscribe
To find out how we use your data, see the BBC Privacy Policy.
BBC Studios Distribution Limited.
Registered Number: 01420028 England
Registered office: 1 Television Centre, 101 Wood Lane, London, W12 7FA, United Kingdom | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
