Donald Trump gains ground in final days of US presidential race

Donald Trump has edged in front of Joe Biden in the key state of Florida, as poll margins tighten ahead of next week’s US presidential election.

US President Donald Trump addresses thousands of supporters during a campaign rally in Lansing, Michigan. Picture: Getty Images

Donald Trump has edged in front of Joe Biden in the key state of Florida, as poll margins tighten ahead of a frantic final cross-country push by both presidential candidates with just six days to go until the US election.

Democrat frontrunner Joe Biden has sharply stepped up his low-key campaign with two major speeches in the traditionally ­Republican state of Georgia, calling on voters to punish the President for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump had ­another barnstorming day across Middle America, speaking at three rallies in Michigan, Wisconsin and Nebraska, warning that the former vice-president would impose a socialist agenda on America.

As the race reaches its final frenetic conclusion, polls are moving in Mr Trump’s direction but not at the pace he needs to chase down Mr Biden’s lead.

The RealClearPolitics average of polls shows Mr Trump has edged past Mr Biden in Florida, a must win state for the President. Mr Trump is now 0.4 points up in the southern state after being 1.3 points down two days ago. Mr Trump is also narrowly ahead in Ohio (0.6 points) and Georgia (0.4) and has narrowed the gap in the key swing state of Pennsylvania to 3.8 points.

Nationally, Mr Biden still leads by 7.4 points, down from 7.8 two days earlier and down from 8.6 points a week ago. But with the election next Wednesday (AEDT), Mr Trump needs to find more momentum in the campaign’s final stages.

The President told his rallies on Wednesday AEDT that internal Republican polls showed he was ahead rather than behind.

“We’re going to have a great red wave people,” he said in Lansing, Michigan. “It’s happening in Florida, we’re up in Florida. The way they talk, they say we’re 25 down in Michigan. No, we’re going to win Michigan,” Mr Trump said of the state that he won against expectations in 2016.

First Lady Melania Trump at a Make America Great Again event in Atglen, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday. Picture: AFP

“We’re going to win the great state of Michigan and we are going to win the White House. There has never been a campaign in the history of this country — there’s never been a movement like this — that has had more enthusiasm.”

First lady ­Melania Trump joined the campaign for the first time, and defended her husband’s style and his record on the pandemic.

“For the first time in history the citizens of this country get to hear directly and instantly from their president every single day through social media,” she said in Pennsylvania. “I do not always agree with the way he says things, but it is ­important to him that he speaks directly to the people he serves.

“This administration chooses to keep moving forward during this pandemic, not backward.”

Mrs Trump also spoke about her family’s struggle with COVID-19, which infected her, the President and their son Barron.  “Like many of you, I have ­experienced the first-hand effects of COVID-19 — not only as a ­patient — but as a worried mother and wife. I know there are many people who have lost loved ones or know people who have been forever impacted by this silent enemy,” she said.

In Georgia, a state that has not voted for a Democrat for president since Bill Clinton in 1992, Mr Biden gave a speech saying the ­nation was in desperate need of unity and healing.

“(We need) a president who’s in it not for himself, but for others,” Mr Biden said.

‘I just want to remind you that America created 1.5 million more jobs in the last three years of the Obama-Biden administration than in the first three years of the Trump administration’: Former US President Barack Obama. Picture: AFP

“A president who doesn’t ­divide us — but unites us. A president who ­appeals not to the worst in us — but to the best. A president who cares less about his TV ratings — and more about the American people. A president who looks not to settle scores — but to find solutions. A president guided not by wishful thinking — but by science, reason, and fact.”

In Orlando, Florida, Barack Obama was campaigning for Mr Biden, giving a speech that mocked the President’s handling of the virus.

“What’s his closing argument? That people are too focused on COVID,” the former president said. “He said this at one of his ­rallies: ‘COVID, COVID, COVID’. He’s complaining. He’s jealous of COVID’s media coverage.”

Mr Obama also accused Mr Trump of exaggerating his record on the economy.

“Donald Trump likes to claim he built this economy,” he said. “But I just want to remind you that America created 1.5 million more jobs in the last three years of the Obama-Biden administration than in the first three years of the Trump administration. That’s a fact; look it up.”

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden during a drive-in campaign rally at Cellairis Ampitheatre in Atlanta, Georgia. Picture: AFP

It came as early and mail voting continues to reach record levels with at least 69 million Americans having already cast their ballots, well over one-third of the total votes cast in 2016.

Meanwhile the White House said it was monitoring the situation in Philadelphia as violence erupted for a second night following the fatal police shooting of an African-American man, who was holding a knife.

More than 90 people were ­arrested on Monday night after the death of Walter Wallace, 27, whose family said he had suffered mental health issues. On Tuesday night “a large crowd” was looting businesses, police said.

Cameron Stewart is also US contributor for Sky News Australia