With just two weeks to go, why is the race still so close?

To gain an edge, both campaigns are venturing further afield than is usual

- Bhagyashree Garekar

WASHINGTON - Confronted by a dead heat in opinion polls that show a frozen presidential race two weeks before election day, both camps are fighting for every vote.

Surveys show razor-thin gaps between Vice-President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump in the handful of decisive swing states, as well as nationally. All the polls are within the margin of error.

Why is this race even close? It is a question that frustrates both Democrats and Republicans, expecting their candidate to have a clear advantage.

“I don't have a good answer,” Virginia Senator Mark Warner, a Democratic heavyweight, told The Straits Times. “I've never seen a candidate like Mr Trump, who is so negative about America, so inward-looking that he will ruin our connections in Asia. And it feels like every day he is slightly more erratic,” said Mr Warner, in a short interview on the sidelines of an Oct 19 event to shore up support for Ms Harris in Virginia.

In July, Mr Warner, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, was at the forefront of efforts to mobilise Democratic senators to pressure US President Joe Biden to step down as the party's presidential candidate, after his faltering performance in a debate with Trump. It led to the emergence of Ms Harris.

Mr Warner cast doubt on the polls. “I think she's still going to win if the final days go well,” he said. “I know people are concerned about inflation, but it's coming down. And at the end of the day, I think people are going to turn up for Kamala. I'm not sure the polls reflect that.”

No independent analyst is brave enough to stick his neck out to predict the outcome. Flashy pollster Nate Silver said Trump had a slight edge, with a 50.2 per cent chance of winning, compared with Ms Harris' 49.5 per cent.