at ten — we're live in washington as america chooses its next president. cheering in a knife edge race right up to polling day, kamala harris�* camp says it's confident of victory. while donald trump, having voted in florida, claims he's going to win, and it won't even be close. we'll be live at the headquarters of both candidates on this momentous day. and we'll bring you the very latest as we prepare for the polls to close and tell you everything you need to know, to keep up to date across the bbc as the results come in. also on the programme... as olympic champion sir chris hoy undergoes cancer treatment, the health secretary says he will review guidance

for prostate cancer screening. and a special report with lebanon's civil defence force rescuing those buried by israeli missile strikes. and on bbc london, thursday's tube strike has been called off. and stay with us here on bbc news for continuing coverage and analysis from our team of correspondents in the uk and around the world. good evening to you from washington, as millions across this nation choose their next president. in the coming hours the votes will be counted in a race that's been on a knife edge for weeks. but what many people have been telling us here, notjust in the capital, but where we've been in wisconsin

and arizona and elsewhere, is that whatever the result, it must be clear and definitive and draw a line under what's been a vitriolic and at times crimonious race. the stakes couldn't be higher. whomever wins, kamala harris or donald trump, will chart very different courses for the future of this country. we'll be watching all the results as they come in throughout the night, and do keep an eye on the tally at the bottom of the screen. 270 electoral college votes are what's needed, to win the white house, that's the magic number. tonight we'll be hearing from voters across the key swing states likely to decide the winner. but first, sarah smith, our north america editor, takes a look at how this momentous day has unfolded so far. everybody, let's go, kamala! into the early hours of this morning, the stars came

out for kamala harris. it is obviously not a victory party, but the harris campaign is sending a deliberately optimistic message. tonight, when we finish as we started, with optimism, with energy, with joy. she is said herself to be "nauseously optimistic," which doesn't sound comfortable, and there are still menacing warnings about re—electing donald trump. if we don't show up tomorrow, it is entirely possible that we will not have the opportunity to ever cast a ballot again. today, ms harris thanked campaign workers and joined their efforts on the phone to remind people to get out and vote. voting in florida, donald trump said he does not expect any major disruption from his supporters.

there will be no violence. my supporters are not violent people. donald trump has been battling for four years to get back into the white house ever since he was evicted after the last election. kamala harris has delivered soaring prices and economic anguish at home, war and chaos abroad, a nation—destroying invasion on our southern border like nobody has ever seen before. she's actually a disaster. his campaign managers worry he could lose himself this election with his loose talk, like this attack on democrat nacy pelosi last night. she's a crooked person, a bad person. evil, she's a sick, crazy... oh, no! it starts with a b but i won't say it! i want to say it! the polling stations are now open and busy in all 50 states and six

time zones across the us. voters are making their choice in what many say they think is the most consequential election of their lifetimes. i woke up and i was crying this morning, i was in tears and i feel like i will be sick all day. i haven't been able to have breakfast but i voted and that's the most that i can do, right? i am here to get trump re—elected. the man needs to bei back in office because four years now i have been suffering under this administration. _ i voted for kamala harris and i think it's especially important because all the ridiculous and outrageous things trump is saying and he's trying to make america a fascist state again. in the state of georgia, two polling stations were briefly disrupted by bomb threats that were deemed non—credible and thought to have come from russia. they picked on the wrong georgia,

they need to pick on the one in the black sea because we won't be intimidated. amidst fears they could be attempts to intimidate voters, the authorities have a succinct message. anybody who thinks it's time to play militia, eff around and find out. anybody who thinks it's time to insult, to deride, to mistreat, to threaten people, eff around and find out. the first results are already in from tiny dixville notch where there are only six voters. they were split evenly, three for harris and three for trump. the results from the first of the key swing states will be known in the next few hours. sarah smith, bbc news, washington. so all eyes will be on the seven so—called swing states overnight and into tomorrow and in these key battlegrounds, where it's difficult to predict the outcome, the polls appear particulary tight. if you look at arizona for instance, you can see donald trump's edge there is down nearly a point since yesterday.

in some of the other swing states, the race is even closer. neither candidate can bank on a win, and the final result could come down to just a few thousand votes. so what is the path to the white house? well, who becomes president is decided by something called the electoral college, with each of the 50 states having a certain number of electoral college votes depending on the size of their population. so, for example, california, which traditionally backs the democrats, gets 5a votes. that means all 5a of those votes will go to kamala harris. whereas texas, which is largely republican, gets a0 votes, so all of those votes go to donald trump. overall, the total number of votes up for grabs is 538, and the magic number to get to the white house is 270. so keep that important number in mind — 270 electoral college votes. with the seven crucial swing states the main battlegrounds,

because we simply don't know which way they'll go. in most of them — georgia, north carolina, pennsylvania, michigan and wisconsin, we could have a result by the end of tomorrow. pennsylvania is the biggest prize with 19 electoral college votes. nearly 13 million people live in pennsylvania, but in 2020, joe biden won byjust 80,000 votes. other states like arizona and nevada could take some days to count their mail in ballots, so we might not know who's become the 47th president for some time. now you know why we have been going on about pennsylvania for weeks and weeks. so, pennslyvania with its 19 electoral collage votes, could be the key to victory. and let's go there now, and join anna foster, who's in philadelphia. what have the voters been telling you? what have the voters been telling ou? , . ., ., ., .,

you? they have had a lot to say, i was here at _ you? they have had a lot to say, i was here at this _ you? they have had a lot to say, i was here at this polling _ you? they have had a lot to say, i was here at this polling station i was here at this polling station before the doors open, and there was a queue that stretched for a city block, early this morning, and people queued patiently, waiting to cast their votes, and ten hours later, with the sun setting, we are back here again, there is the sound of a teenage marching band encouraging people to cast their votes in the final few hours but so much time and effort and energy and money has been lavished on the state of pennsylvania by both campaigns. it is the place where donald trump survived an assassination attempt a few months ago and the place where kamala harris held herfinal rally in the city of philadelphia last night, and it is the big prize, that they both want. they have been issues across the state, in the west, close to pittsburgh, the officials put in a petition to strengthen the voting hours because the electronic voting machines were not working when people turned up to

cast their votes this morning so they want extra time for that. people are out on the streets, the anticipation and the nerves are building, but all eyes will be on pennsylvania because it is very difficult to win the white house without taking this date. indeed it is. -- without taking this date. indeed it is- -- without _ without taking this date. indeed it is. -- without taking _ without taking this date. indeed it is. -- without taking this - without taking this date. indeed it is. -- without taking this state. i so, a nation waits with the first of the polls about to close, i should say there has been concern about the possibility of unrest in some areas after the result. here in washington, we came across some people boarding up their businesses. and the national guard has been put on standby in some states. so on this momentous day, what's the mood like in the two camps? gary 0'donoghue is with donald trump's team in florida, and sarah smith is at kamala harris hq in washington. sarah, kamala harris said that they

had the momentum going into polling day, how are they now feeling? i'm getting messages from people inside the harris campaign saying they are seeing anecdotal and statistical evidence suggesting they are going to outperform the polling, but we can take that with a pinch of salt, because they would say that, and they are likely to interpret any anecdotal evidence in a positive way because the truth is, nobody knows. can you imagine how anxious they both are at this point? it is highly unusual to get to polling day to have everything on a knife edge, so nobody can be sure who is going to win this election and it all comes down to who has turned out at the polls and some of them are still going to be open for several hours yet, it could still change who wins the election depending on who walks into the polling stations in the next few hours.— into the polling stations in the next few hours. ., ., next few hours. sarah, thanks. the former president _ next few hours. sarah, thanks. the

former president has _ next few hours. sarah, thanks. the former president has come - next few hours. sarah, thanks. the former president has come out - next few hours. sarah, thanks. the former president has come out and j former president has come out and said he is going to win and it is not even going to be that close, are they that confident? i not even going to be that close, are they that confident?— they that confident? i don't think they that confident? i don't think the are they that confident? i don't think they are that _ they that confident? i don't think they are that confident _ they that confident? i don't think they are that confident about - they that confident? i don't think. they are that confident about what he said _ they are that confident about what he said when he voted this morning is that— he said when he voted this morning is that he _ he said when he voted this morning is that he would accept the election result_ is that he would accept the election resuit if— is that he would accept the election result if the election was fair. he sounded — result if the election was fair. he sounded pretty tired and pretty of course, _ sounded pretty tired and pretty of course, unsurprising with the multiple _ course, unsurprising with the multiple events through multiple swing _ multiple events through multiple swing states over the last few days, and he _ swing states over the last few days, and he has — swing states over the last few days, and he has spent the last few hours doing _ and he has spent the last few hours doing telly— and he has spent the last few hours doing telly rallies where he has tried _ doing telly rallies where he has tried to — doing telly rallies where he has tried to persuade young male voters in particular— tried to persuade young male voters in particular where he has a significant advantage, to get out and vote — significant advantage, to get out and vote on election day. we are hearing _ and vote on election day. we are hearing that some elements of his campaign — hearing that some elements of his campaign are urging him to come out and claim— campaign are urging him to come out and claim victory early, and this stage _ and claim victory early, and this stage behind me would be the place, if he is _ stage behind me would be the place, if he is leading in some of the swing — if he is leading in some of the swing state, but others say that could _ swing state, but others say that could end — swing state, but others say that could end up with him looking

foolish. — could end up with him looking foolish, and we know that donald trump _ foolish, and we know that donald trump will — foolish, and we know that donald trump will make his own decisions on that one. _ trump will make his own decisions on that one. and — trump will make his own decisions on that one, and it will be an unpredictable night. thanks for “oininu unpredictable night. thanks for joining us _ and victoria will have more on the election on newsnight, over on bbc two shortly. america is deciding and the world is watching. will it be harris or trump? and how will this divided nation respond, whoever wins? join us for a newsnight us election special live at 10:30pm on bbc two, bbc news and iplayer. that is coming up. more from us here in washington a little later, but for now it's back to fiona in the studio, with the rest of the day's news. clive, thank you. two weeks ago, 0lympic cycling champion sir chris hoy, who's a8, revealed that his prostate cancer is terminal. both his father and grandfather had the disease, but currently men can't ask for the test on the nhs

until the age of 50. there are around 12,000 deaths from prostate cancer in the uk each year. the government now says it will review the guidance. here's our medical editor, fergus walsh. sir chris hoy was the epitome of peak physical fitness, but a year ago, what he thought was a gym injury led to a scan showing he has stage four advanced prostate cancer. completely out of the blue, no symptoms, no warnings, nothing. all i had was a pain in my shoulder. i remember the feeling ofjust absolute horror and shock. how on earth am i going to tell, are we going to tell the kids? i think the key was telling them about the treatment and saying, look, i'm about to get chemotherapy, it's going to make me quite unwell. it's not the cancer that is making me unwell, but this is going to knock me back but it's medicine that is going to push back the cancer for as long

as possible and make me feel better for a while. even for someone used to pushing themselves to the limits, chemotherapy was tough, especially wearing an ice cap to prevent hair loss. it was excruciating. it's like torture, basically. i rememberjust thinking, i'm sitting here in a warm hospital room with a cold cap on my head. come on, i know this is going to end, it's going to end in a couple of hours' time. this isn't that bad. it seems horrendous when you look and think, it's two more hours, i can't cope! don't do it for two hours — do it for one minute. the strategy was, just take it one step at a time. men over 50 can request a blood test, known as psa, which can detect prostate cancer. sir chris wants men tested earlier. if you have got a family history of it, like i have, if you are over the age of a5, go and ask your doctor. just get the test a little bit earlier, catch it before you need to have any major treatment. to me, it seems a no—brainer, you know. why would they not reduce the age, bring the age down? the health secretaries in england and scotland have asked for the nhs to review the evidence. that may depend on a major trial

which will compare the accuracy of blood and saliva tests and mri scans, which could eventually lead to a national screening programme. fergus walsh, bbc news. protestors in israel have taken to the streets to demonstrate against the sacking of the country's defence minister. prime minister benjamin netanyahu fired defence minister yoav gallant, saying there is a "crisis of trust" between them. mr gallant had been pushing for an end to the war and a hostage deal. israel's war in lebanon with the iranian backed hezbollah continues, with the bekaa valley, the militant group's heartland in the east of the country, coming under attack. israel says it only targets hezbollah sites, with hezbollah still firing rockets into israel. but in a special report, quentin somerville and camera journalist darren conway have been out with lebanon's civil defence force, who say a large number of civilians, including women and children, are being killed. i should warn you, you may find

this report upsetting — it contains images of distressed and injured children. lebanon's descent into misery has been swift and all—encompassing. families, fearful of israeli bombs, dare not sleep at home, and beirut�*s shelters are full. in the last month, more than a million people have been displaced — a fifth of the population, in a state that could barely take care of them before the war. and the conflict is creeping deeper into lebanon. daybreak in the east, in the bekaa valley, and a rare moment of respite for the men of the civil defence force. they're underpaid, overstretched and exhausted. the sound of an israeli drone circles ominously overhead.

explosion. the bekaa is being hammered by relentless rounds of israeli air strikes. hezbollah holds sway and from here still launches weapons attacking israel's north. there's just been another strike. this one down the road from the cdf station in zahle. all they know is that an apartment block has been hit. in command is samir el chekieh. israel says these are targeted strikes. are they targeted? they are targeting civilian buildings. that's against the humanity. that's genocide. we're seeing kids dead. kids torn into parts. what, what did they do wrong in life? despite the risk of another airstrike, rescue workers flood the scene. a woman pleads to be let in to search for her family. they're still bringing out casualties.

we don't know how many yet, but what we do know is that the families that were in that building — and we believe there were a number of civilians — had been displaced already from the south of the country. they come here because they thought they were safe, and now they're looking for their loved ones. but samir and his crew know that there are people trapped inside the rubble. amid the chaos, they listen out for signs of life. and then, success. a young man is found buried deep inside. only his leg is broken, as samir helps him to safety. but as the clear—up continues, an eight—month—old boy is still missing. the hearing of that child crying, it gives you strength. you get stronger. the head was on the side. there were no rocks on the head. there was a block on his back.

the child was on his stomach. we tried to take out the child the way that we got in between the rocks. the boy survived. how do you feel after that? devastated. sad. angry. it's, it's. .. some of the pictures are stuck in our head. they will never go away. only the gentle kisses from his mother will quieten kayan's suffering. the two—year—old's skull was fractured in an israeli air strike. they both survived the bekaa's deadliest day. 63 people were killed, mostly women and children. translation: i heard them shouting,

"we cannot find kayan.�* _ so i started running and looking into the distance, wondering where my boy was. i screamed, "where's my son?" i couldn't see him. then i saw somebody carrying him saying, "he is alive, he's alive." i thank god that my son is next to me. across the corridor, in agony, three—year—old selin grasps for comfort, but there is none to be found. she calls for her mother and father, but they were killed in the israeli strike she barely survived. her doctors say she'll recover. but if neither hezbollah nor israel relent, then lebanon's daily torment will endure. quentin sommerville,

bbc news, baalbek. harrowing images there from the conflict in lebanon. the father of sara sharif has been giving evidence at his trial for her murder. the ten—year—old's body was found with dozens of injuries at her home in surrey last year. urfan sharif told the court the child's stepmother was "the true villain". urfan sharif, sara's stepmother beinash batool, and uncle, faisal malik, have all denied murder. a man arrested at manchester airport by the national crime agency and extradited to france is one of 18 people who have been given lengthy jail sentences after being convicted of people smuggling offences. more than 100 boats and 1,000 life jackets were seized, as part of a europe—wide operation targeting a gang thought to be behind more than 10,000 small boat crossings to the uk. the prince of wales has described south africa's community of park rangers as risking their lives every

day from illegal poachers. this afternoon in cape town, prince william announced a series of measures to better protect park rangers and their families. his four—day tour will culminate with his earthshot prize award ceremony — an annual award that gives a million pound prizes to the best environmental innovations. that's all from me. back now to clive in washington with all the developments there in this most important of us elections. clive. thank you, fiona. there have been some early indicators in the last few minutes about what voters care most about. our north america editor sarah smith can tell us more. what have you been hearing from these exit polls? this what have you been hearing from these exit polls?— these exit polls? this is really interesting. — these exit polls? this is really interesting, these _ these exit polls? this is really interesting, these polls - these exit polls? this is really interesting, these polls are i these exit polls? this is reallyl interesting, these polls are not necessarily how many people have voted democrat or republican but what is at the top of their minds when they cast their ballots in the

most important issues they have been saying our democracy and the economy. that is what people had been thinking about most. who does that favour? of course people could have different views about the economy and vote one way or another but in general, people unhappy about the state of the economy are more likely to vote for trump and people worried about the state of democracy in america are probably more likely to vote for kamala harris. the next issueis to vote for kamala harris. the next issue is that they cared about most were immigration, which has come up a great deal in this campaign, and abortion, which is the other thing we have been talking about a lot in the campaign. and once again you can see are pretty evenly split, people concerned about immigration more likely to vote for trump and those worried about abortion restrictions are more likely to vote for harris. this tells us that the issues we have been talking about for the last few months are the ones that voters are most concerned about but i don't think it gives us that many clues about who necessarily will win the election. interestingly, 53% of the electorate so far appear to be female voters but again, that does

not necessarily tell us that advantage is for one or other candidates. advantage is for one or other candidates— advantage is for one or other candidates. ., , , ' , ., , candidates. that is up 1% last time and the exit _ candidates. that is up 1% last time and the exit polls _ candidates. that is up 1% last time and the exit polls here _ candidates. that is up 1% last time and the exit polls here are - candidates. that is up 1% last time and the exit polls here are very . and the exit polls here are very different to the ones in the uk in elections, this is more about intention rather than what the actual results might turn out to be. this election has shown how divided this country is and how irreconcilable both sides seem to be. is your sense that if there is a clear result, a definitive result, as some people have been clamouring for here, that perhaps we could see more of a unity coming to the country when this whole thing is over or are both sides split for the foreseeable future? i over or are both sides split for the foreseeable future?— foreseeable future? i think there are two issues. _ foreseeable future? i think there are two issues. a _ foreseeable future? i think there are two issues. a definitive - foreseeable future? i think there | are two issues. a definitive result would obviously be useful in terms of convincing people that this was a

free and fair election because after what happened four years ago there are a lot of people who have significant doubts about whether or not the electoral process is fair. for the sake of democracy in general, it would be a good idea to have a clear—cut result and one that a lot of people believe in all though just because there is a clear—cut result does not necessarily mean that some people will have total faith in it. but then you come down to the fact that a choice will be made between two extremely different visions of the future for america. about half of 14