US election: 'We need every vote,' Romney says on last day of campaign: live 17.08 (12.08) The breakout star of the 2008 campaign, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin, has (unsurprisingly) endorsed Mr Romney on her Facebook page. Mrs Palin electrified running mate John McCain's White House bid, but four years is a very long time in politics. Slate political reporter Dave Weigel sums up just how much influence she's had on this campaign: Twitter: daveweigel - Who? RT @POLITICO2012: RT @politico: Sarah Palin has endorsed Mitt Romney - via Facebook: http://t.co/QBdMShak]]> 16.45 (11.45) Bruce Springsteen has taken the stage in Wisconsin now. Peter Foster writes: The Boss is on stage, strumming his six string, harmonica the only other accompaniment."No retreat, baby, no surrender" he rasps. Springsteen had breakfast with Obama at a local diner, we are told, and will be hitching a ride on Air Force One to Ohio later. 16.42 (11.42) CNN are floating the possibility that Sandy could force officials in New York to extend voting for an extra day. As this morning, stories on the election remain prominent on the websites of the New York newspapers - but, from the New York Daily News to the New York Times, they continue to play second fiddle to stories on Sandy. Meanwhile, Mother Jones has this from a New Jersey voter: Twitter: Mother Jones - VIDEO: NJ voter, post #Sandy: The election is the "furthest thing from our minds." http://t.co/OLlJD1iE]]> 16.13 (11.13) The impact that Superstorm Sandy will have on the ability of many in New York and New Jersey to vote is becoming less clear as time goes on (see 13.24). Michael Bloomberg, the mayor of New York, has been asked if he thinks the city will be ready for the election. "I have absolutely no idea," he replied, according to the Associated Press. The new storm that we mentioned earlier is also likely to affect both voters' ability and desire to get to the polls. From AP: A new storm was expected to hit the New York-New Jersey region still shivering and cleaning up after last week's Superstorm Sandy, bringing the threat of 55 mph (89 kph) gusts and more beach erosion, flooding and rain by Wednesday. Temperatures dipped toward freezing early Monday, and tens of thousands of people without power along the ravaged Atlantic coastline faced the growing certainly that they would have to find somewhere else to stay. Especially hard hit were the thousands in public housing, who often have no place to go and barricade themselves in darkened apartments for the 12 hours of night. 15.52 (10.52) The Telegraph's US editor Peter Foster is with Mr Obama this morning. He sends us a picture of his view in chilly Wisconsin: Spectacular backdrop to Obama's rally in Madison, Wisconsin. Air Force One rolled in from Vegas at 3.08 local last night, so if the president is a little bleary-eyed, that'll be why. U2 is blasting out over the PA but Bruce Springsteen, aka The Boss is the live warm-up act this morning. He'll need to get the crowd moving, if only to avoid frost bite. Perishing cold here. 15.37 (10.37) According to the Associated Press, Mr Romney, who has just left Florida en route to Viriginia, is considering visiting Ohio - where 18 electoral votes are up for grabs - one more time on election day. The Republican's final campaign rally was supposed to be late tonight in New Hampshire, before he was due to head home to Massachusetts in time for election day tomorrow. AP outlines why he may be making the last-minute change, despite a planned visit to Ohio later today also: Such a visit would be a last-ditch attempt to win a state that is critical to Romney's presidential hopes. Without it, he would have to win nearly all the other contested states. Polls in Ohio have been stubbornly close, showing Democratic President Barack Obama holding a slight but consistent edge. In their own story on the rumour, Agence France-Presse notes that Romney aides did not deny a potential election-day dash to Ohio. 15.12 (10.17) The Telegraph's hard work on the US election has not gone unnoticed in America, with none other than the LA Times publishing an entire feature on our team's coverage of the tiny town of Dunkirk, Ohio. According to the newspaper, our readers now know as much about the "cast of characters" in Dunkirk as they do about the cast of Downton Abbey. The reporters, it seems, were also a hit with the town's population. "It was like Beatlemania," Washington reporter Raf Sanchez - one of our "people with accents" who invaded the town - was quoted as saying after he was asked to autograph a copy of the Telegraph. The Foreign Desk has a collective "!!!" in response. 15.07 (10.07) As we move into the home stretch of this election, BuzzFeed's Andrew Kaczynski has a tweet to make hearts sink everywhere: Twitter: Andrew Kaczynski - Only 2107555 minutes until election day 2016.]]> Hopefully the world can unite to keep this headache-inducing news away from little Abigael Evans. 14.36 (09.36) Mr Romney has appeared on stage in Florida this morning, urging a chanting crowd to get out and vote as both candidates agree that this will be a "turnout election" - that is, the candidate who can get the most voters to the polls will win. "We have one job left," Mr Romney told a crowd outside Orlando. We need every single vote in Florida... We ask you to stay at it all the way to victory on Tuesday night," he said, to chants of "One more day! One more day! The President has also been on Twitter this morning, emphasising the same thing: Twitter: Barack Obama - It was up to you then, and it's up to you now. Let's do this: http://t.co/z81sO3If]]> 14.11 (09.11) Speaking of the role of women in this election (see 12.46), right-wing aggregator Matt Drudge raises an interesting point: Twitter: MATT DRUDGE - Hillary this week: Has anyone ever disappeared so completely?]]> As we've noted elsewhere, Hill's husband Bill Clinton has been deployed to head off what the Obama team fears is a late Romney surge in Pennsylvania. Mr Clinton has spent some significant time with Mr Obama on the campaign trail, while Mrs Clinton - who lost the Democratic nomination to Mr Obama in 2008, and who many are still hoping will try again in 2016 - has stayed very much in the background of this campaign. She did not attend the Democratic National Convention and she has not been particularly outspoken in favour of Mr Obama. Mrs Clinton has been ranked Most Admired Woman every year for the past decade. More importantly, she also consistently scores among the highest approval ratings of the top members of the administration. Were she to join her popular husband at Mr Obama's side, it stands to reason she could rally many to Mr Obama's cause. Of course, what Drudge fails to note is that Mrs Clinton is America's top diplomat, who has a punishing schedule that means she spends most of her time overseas. With the attack in Benghazi that claimed the life of a US ambassador still fresh in most people's minds, not to mention America's other overseas commitments, the sight of Mrs Clinton spending her time on the campaign trail rather than at work could well have backfired. As we've also seen elsewhere (12.46), Mr Obama already seems to have the female vote, meaning that Mrs Clinton's ability to draw women voters is somewhat redundant - and the less politics she plays, the more she is admired, both at home and abroad. At any rate, with Bill to campaign for her - I mean, for Mr Obama - and her popularity growing whether she's in the US or not, it may be wise for Mrs Clinton to stay away. 13.48 (08.48) A new YouGov poll - one of the most extensive ever conducted, using data from 36,000 likely US voters - will not have either candidate sleeping well tonight. The poll, which included voters in 27 states (including the battleground and largest states) and which was conducted from October 31 until November 3, has Mr Obama winning the election - but by breathtakingly narrow margin of 2%. Perhaps most alarmingly, YouGov president Peter Kellner himself raises the spectre of the Bush-Gore debacle of 2000 - a legal nightmare that more and more are citing today. Mr Kellner is quoted: We are predicting that Obama is going to hang on to the presidency, but by a smaller margin than in 2008. It's even possible that Obama will narrowly lose the nationwide popular vote and still win the electoral college. Mitt Romney could win one million more votes than Obama across American and still lose the election... In such a tight race, no doubt the Democrats are not only concerned about losing the White House, but are also worried about the cloud that could hang over Obama's second term if he does not win the popular vote. Whatever happens tomorrow, this will undeniably be an historic election. 13.24 (08.24) As I noted earlier, the New York newspapers have given the continued fall-out from Superstorm Sandy the place of pride on their websites, with the election - though still prominent - in second place. Now it seems the US morning shows - many of which are based in New York - are going one step further, looking ahead to a new storm that is forecast to hit the areas already ravaged earlier in the week: Twitter: Chris Birkett - Day to go - and US breakfast shows leading with another fierce storm heading for NE coast. Election playing second fiddle. #Election2012]]> Officials are already scrambling to make sure that, in the midst of the disaster relief and massive logistical challenge of aiding and rehousing many of Sandy's victims, voters can get to the polls. The threat of a new storm will complicate that already nightmarish-job. Twitter: Craig Fugate - Significant Storm Appears Likely for Latter Half of the Work Week in the Northeast U.S. http://t.co/xd8PHxtp http://t.co/t6STLbK3]]> 13.09 (08.09) It may not be the support he was hoping for, but according to Agence France-Presse, the majority of France's extreme-right is backing Mr Obama: Sixty-one percent of voters from the far-right, anti-immigrant National Front party headed by Marine Le Pen said they favoured Obama, while 14 percent backed Romney. Well, at this stage, support is support... 12.46 (07.46) Much has been made of the women's vote during this election campaign. Rows over abortion and rape played a central role during the debate on social issues, spawning accusations of a Republican "war on women" that was only highlighted by Mr Romney's "binders full of women" debate gaffe. Meanwhile, polling data shows just how much sway women have, with some numbers from earlier in the campaign suggesting that we could see a historic election in which one of the most disenfranchised groups in history - unmarried women - have a powerful say in the vote to re-elect a black man (who also represents a disenfranchised group) to the most powerful office in the world (an office historically held by white men). Now the Telegraph blogger Indu Chandrasekhar has broken down exactly why Mr Obama deserves support from half the electorate (and the workforce) - women: The truth is that women's rights have everything to do with the economy, the middle class and family. A woman's right to choose when she wants to have children has everything to do with what kinds of jobs she chooses, how aggressively she climbs the ladder and how she can provide for her family... Romney's plan to help women economically extends only as far as giving them flexible work schedules, so they can be home to cook dinner for their families... Mr Obama's record tells a different story... At stake are your rights to choose when you want to have a family, your ability to advocate for yourself in the workplace and the respect you deserve from politicians who understand that you know what's best for you. 12.30 (07.30) In their latest wrap on the campaign, news agency Reuters have described the race as "essentially deadlocked." The New York Times' influential Five Thirty Eight blog's election tracker now has Mr Obama ahead almost everywhere: Twitter: Jim Roberts - Latest from @nytimes/@fivethirtyeight Swing State Tracker shows Obama ahead in all but Fla. & NC. http://t.co/8JsAdtNZ]]> 12.20 (07.20) Mr Romney's sons have been talking to ITV News: Twitter: ITV News - Mitt Romney's sons tell ITV News: "Win or lose, we're very excited. It's been a long campaign. He's still going strong" http://t.co/L76xpAgH]]> Matt Romney is quoted as telling the programme that his father has "got so much energy, I would have been dead by this point," while brother Josh adds: "We're seeing more enthusiasm and energy in the Republican Party than we've seen in decades." 11.43 (06.43) Historian Tim Stanley claims in a new Telegraph blog that Mr Romney still has the X Factor. Watching last night's X Factor results show, he explains, he put out a prediction on Twitter: "If Rylan wins, Romney wins," adding: "Blow me if Rylan didn't win!" Taking a more serious tone, however, he analyses why "you don't have to be partisan, or mad, to acknowledge that there are gaps in the mainstream narrative that says Obama will coast to re-election," only returning to his X Factor analogy at the end of the piece: Recall that whenever a singer belts out an 80s power ballad in the sing off, everyone at home says, "Aw, he did that well. He deserves to go through. But do they actually get up, go into the kitchen, pick up the phone and pay the enormous charge to vote for him? No - because people lie as readily to their TV sets as they do to pollsters. 11.08 (06.08) Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, has written a typically colourful piece informing Mr Romney that while Planet Earth is rooting for Mr Obama, he, Boris, has the key to the election: Look at the world, rather than Ohio, and there is nothing remotely close about this race... The world as a whole is leery of Republican foreign policy, because it is associated - rightly or wrongly - with a general willingness to bomb Middle Eastern countries... Or else he could say something that shows America is listening... So what does Boris propose? I won't spoil the end of his piece... but rest assured, it is a very Boris proposition. 10.45 (05.45) A quick scan of the world's media proves that the US election truly is a global event. The South China Morning Post's website is currently splashing on how the election fascinates the Chinese, who are set for their own very different power transition later on this week, while the Shanghai Daily has a general news piece on the final push for the candidates. Japan Today is running a poll that shows that both Japanese and Chinese citizens are backing Mr Obama. Al Jazeera's website is leading on the candidates' dash through the swing states, while Israel newspaper Haaretz is leading with an article declaring that in the election, Israeli Americans are from Mars while Jewish Americans are from Venus. Al Arabiya is also running prominently a general news round-up on the final hours of the campaign. The All Africa website's most read story is an opinion piece declaring that Mitt Romney will win the election. Australia's Daily Telegraph has a homepage piece about Mr Romney's car trouble. In South America, the Buenos Aires Herald has a general news piece on the closeness of the election, as does Brazil's O Globo website. On the websites of the New York papers, the fallout from Hurricane Sandy continues to dominate, followed closely by the election. 10.15 (05.15) The US polls may be split almost down the middle, but Telegraph readers have Mr Obama significantly in the lead, according to the poll we posted just a little while ago (see 09.49). Assistant Foreign Editor Chris Irvine tweets: Twitter: Chris Irvine - Obama way in the lead in our poll - wonder if people want him to win or just think he will win http://t.co/i6BceRV8]]> 10.10 (05.10) Telegraph blogger and investigative journalist Willard Foxton has done an extraordinary and slightly alarming post on how the Obama campaign was able to guess his income from his mobile number: From nothing more than a phone number, the Obama campaign could divide us up by rank and disposable income, within five hours of getting our data. This is targeted ads at a new level, looking to bring in donations at the amount each of us individually consider pocket change. While Romney has the Koch brothers and Karl Rove onside, he has nothing approaching this level of digital sophistication 09.49 (04.49) The latest RealClearPolitics national average poll has the President in a slight lead of 47.9 per cent to 47.4 per cent. So who would you vote for? Who will win the US presidential election? Agence France-Presse has a round-up of the other national polls that proves once again that no one really knows what's going to happen on election night: The two candidates are effectively tied in national polls of the popular vote but Obama appears to have a stronger claim to the battleground states, and if the polls are accurate, seems to be in position to win re-election. The latest ABC News/Washington Post survey showed the race tied, with both Obama and Romney receiving 48-percent support among likely voters. In a new CNN/ORC poll of likely voters, Obama and Romney stood at 49 percent each. A survey by the Wall Street Journal and NBC News gave Obama 48 percent support and Romney 47 percent - a statistical dead heat. And only a Pew poll found that Obama led 48 percent to 45 percent among likely voters who already have made up their minds, with four percent saying they remain uncommitted. 09.40 (04.40) Both candidates are due to be racking up the frequent flier miles over the next few hours as they fight to win the hearts and minds of those all important swing states. The Associated Press has broken down why these states in particular are important for the candidates under America's electoral college system, where they need 270 electoral votes to win the White House: If the election were held now, an Associated Press analysis found that Obama would be all but assured of 249 electoral votes, by carrying 20 states that are solidly Democratic or leaning his way - Iowa, Nevada and Pennsylvania among them - and the District of Columbia. Romney would lay claim to 206, from probable victories in 24 states that are strong Republican turf or tilt toward the Republicans, including North Carolina. Up for grabs are 83 electoral votes spread across Colorado, Florida, Ohio, New Hampshire, Virginia and Wisconsin. Of those, Republicans and Democrats alike say Obama seems in slightly better shape than Romney in Ohio and Wisconsin, while Romney appears to be performing slightly better than Obama or has pulled even in Florida and Virginia. In perhaps the most interesting late-campaign development and with Obama sustaining his lead in Ohio, a virtual must-win for Romney, the Republican has opened a surprise, last-minute gambit in next-door Pennsylvania. The state has voted Democratic in the last five presidential elections and has long been counted in the Obama column. Romney made his first visit to the state of the fall campaign on Sunday, taking along running mate Rep. Paul Ryan. Diplomatic correspondent Alex Spillius, meanwhile, explores a potentially uncomfortable scenario: how a President Romney could be forced to work with a Vice President Biden: Twitter: Andrew Kaczynski - Why even hold the election?