‘We have the momentum’: Kamala Harris makes final pitch as America goes to the polls

“We will win!” was Kamala Harris’s upbeat and confident rallying cry to her supporters at her final campaign stop on the eve of this historic, knife-edge election campaign.

Thousands upon thousands of people had queued for up to five hours in a cool autumn evening to attend the event held in the shadow of the famous “Rocky steps” of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

And, in a punchy, energetic performance from Harris after a day of campaigning across the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania, she urged supporters to vote and to ensure all their family members, neighbours and fellow workers do the same.

It was almost midnight before the Vice President appeared on stage after live performances from Will.i.am and Ricky Martin, and speeches from Oprah Winfrey, state Governor Josh Shapiro and Senator Bob Casey had fired up the enthusiastic crowd.

“We have the momentum,” she cried, and there certainly appears to have been a recent shift in favour of the Democratic candidate in the last few days.

The polls appear to have moved slightly back in her direction after a number of weeks when Donald Trump looked to be closing the gap in the national vote, and further missteps from the former President following his disastrous Madison Square Garden rally in New York that so insulted Puerto Rico voters, has put him on the defensive for the first time since the televised debate in September.

Harris and the Democrats also feel buoyed by the party’s ground campaign that is engaging millions of voters in these final days of the campaign to maximise turnout and bring still wavering independents on board.

Harris’s pitch “for a new generation of leadership in America” is one that worked for her adoring supporters last night and may also be working for the public at large too.

The night’s entertainment was rounded off by Lady Gaga performing her hit song, The Edge of Glory, and most Harris supporters left feeling confident and hopeful of a positive result in the election today.

It remains far too close to call and this election looks set to be decided by extremely narrow margins. But even the most cautious of Harris supporters are starting to feel a confidence and optimism they have not felt since the Democratic Party National Convention in August.

There is less than 24 hours to find out if they are right.

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