hi, welcome to cnn. so coming up on the show donald trump has been officially cleared for travel. hear everything we know about the president's health. spoiler alert, it's not a lot. the coronavirus cases are spiking across the nation. one model says it's going to get much, much worse before it gets better. and the story of a family on the front lines risking it all to fight the virus. >> announcer: live from cnn center, this is "cnn newsroom" with robin curnow. >> great to have you along this

hour. so president donald trump's doctor has cleared him to travel, to give speeches and to start campaigning again. this just a little more than a week since he was diagnosed with covid-19. in a mem row dr. sean conley says mr. trump is no longer at transmission risks and meet cdc triteria to stop isolating. we still don't know if he's tested negative for the virus, we don't know what kind of tests he's been given to show he's no longer contagious. jeremy diamond breaks down the doctor's note for us. >> reporter: the president's physician is now clearing him for a return to public activities. he wrote in a new memo that the president is no longer considered a risk of transmission for this coronavirus to others. now, let me read you a part of this memory from dr. sean conley where he writes this evening i'm

happy to report in addition to the president meeting cdc criteria for the safe discontinuation it represents he's no longer considered a transmission risk to others. now at day 10 from symptom on set fever free for well over 24 hours, and all symptoms approved. the assortment of advanced diagnostic tests obtained revealed there's no longer evidence of actively replicating virus. and dr. conley also goes onto say he'll continue to monitor the president's health as he returns to a more active schedule. president trump, of course, didn't wait for this memo before hoeing an event on the south lawn of the white house on saturday. the president did stay quite a distance from the several hundred people who attended this event on the south lawn of the white house. but those folks while they were mostly wearing mask, therapy also not observing any social distancing, packed quite closely together just two weeks after that event in the rose garden of

the white house now considered a super spreader event and perhaps the origin point for any of those positive coronavirus tests that we have since seen at the white house. president trump needed this memo, though, in order to get more public confidence in his return to an active schedule. and that is exactly what he's going to be doing this coming week. the president hitting three battleground states -- florida, pennsylvania and iowa -- this coming week. jeremy diamond, cnn, the white house. >> president trump's white house appearance on saturday was his first public event since his coronavirus diagnosis, and he told the crowd he feels, quote, great. he's been upbeat about the trajectory of the virus in the u.s. mr. trump is saying the virus is already starting to go away, and he's using some racist language to make that point. >> through the power of the american -- the american spirit i think more than anything else, science, medicine, we'll

eradicate the china virus once and for all. we'll get rid of it all over the world. you see big flare-ups in europe, very big flare-up in canada. you saw that today. a lot of flare-ups, but it's going to disappear. it is disappearing, and vaccines are going to help and the therapeutics are going to help a lot. >> but a model that's often been looked at during this pandemic is certainly painting a different picture. the model is based on current conditions, so let's at the way those are right now. as you can see here most states are seeing an in crease in cases as compared to a week ago. john hopkins university has the number of lives lost in the u.s. at slightly more than 213,000. the university washington projects a total of almost 400,000 covid-19 deaths by february. that same model predicts if almost everyone in the u.s. wore

masks tens of thousands of lives would be saved. an internal medicine and viral specialist, joins me now from los angeles. doctor, lovely to see you again. i just want to get your take on these projections. i mean, they're stunning and desperately concerning. >> they are, but they're also right on the money. the university of washington's projections said that we would have approximately 214,000 cases by a few days ago, and we are there. i have no reason to doubt these projections. what i think is very important is that at the lowest if we continue doing as we are, we're going to have 390 or so cases by the end of february. and if we do not act even more responsibly it could go up as high as half a million. and they're projecting that in the world at that time we could have a total of 4 million

deaths, approximately 30,000 a day, which is really startling. and all we have to do to try to decrease that tremendously is to put on masks, to wash our hands and to respect social distancing. >> yeah, it's simple but those numbers again as you say it's just -- >> startling. >> startling. so i want to get your opinion as a doctor, as our colleague and correspondent was reporting from the white house this letter from the president's physician, rut the key take aways for you as you try and decode it? >> you know, i agree with a lot of my colleagues that are calling this a master class in medical deception because of its ambiguity. there's so many things in it that is sort of like medical speak but don't really get down to the point, which is does the president currently have infectious droplets? they measure viral loads and things like that that disappear

after six days, so we don't know whether he's infectious, but something that was interesting to me, the cdc says that if you have been ten days after your first symptoms, and you've been isolated then it's probably safe for you to go out. well, this changes the time line of the president having his first symptoms somewhere around the end of september or october 1st which would be that wednesday. and we know that he did public speeches and such on that thursday. so it's all so ambiguous. if nothing else the cdc also says that if you have a serious episode of disinfection that maybe you should isolate for 20 days. the fact that we don't, you know, know specifics tend to tell us that this is becoming more of a political decision than a medical recommendation. >> but also if you could give us a sense this president -- as you saw the president gave a speech at the white house today. he's planning public rallies over the next few days after

being hospitalized a week uh-ag. so based on the president's weight, his age, what we know about the severity is he out of the woods now? as a doctor would you recommend he stay in bed? >> yeah, absolutely i'd not recommend he go out and do all these rallies he's doing. if nothin else for his own speech, my patients sometimes are 4 to 6 weeks out and they're still feeling winded. you know, i think it's interesting that the president who usually gives these fidel castro type lengthy speeches only spoke for 18 minutes, and i think that's all, you know, his body can really tolerate right now. the weaker he makes himself by stressing his body, by flying, by taking long hours, the more likely he is to not only relapse but perhaps get very seriously

ill. >> thanks so much internal medicine and viral specialist george rodriguez there. so democratic presidential nominee joe biden slammed president trump on saturday over mr. trump's handling oof the coronavirus. he headed to campaign stops in pennsylvania. mr. biden revealed his latest negative coronavirus test, and he also called on the president to listen to scientists. >> before i came out again today to go somewhere i had another test this morning. and i'm clear. i think it's important the president make sure two things. one, that he is clear, he is not a spreader like dr. fauci said the super spreader event he had with the supreme court. and secondly i think it's important he make it clear to all the people that they should be socially distanced. they're on the lawn, that's fine, but in fact they should be socially distanced and wearing

masks. that's the only responsible thing to do. >> at his campaign event in pennsylvania biden reached out to independents and disaffected republicans. here's jessica dean with that. jessica? >> reporter: former vice president joe biden campaigning in the critical battleground state of pennsylvania on saturday. he traveled here to erie, pennsylvania. it's in a county president trump won narrowly back in 2016, and it is tailor made for biden's economic message he's been delivering specifically to white working class voters in towns like erie. notably biden touring a training facility at a union hall before giving remarks that can really be described as his bread and butter economic message. >> the top 100 millionaires in the middle of this pandemic, they made $300 billion additional dollar. hear me now, 100 individuals

made $300 billion this year. and what did the bottom half get? they got to slide down because the fact is the president can only see the world from park avenue. i see it from scranton. i see it from claymont, for real. you all know what i'm talking about. >> reporter: in the meantime vice president biden's campaign reported he underwent pcr testing on saturday and that test came back negative. the campaign has said joe biden will continue to be tested regularly and always when he travels. jessica dean, cnn, erie, pennsylvania. >> cnn politics white house reporter joins me now from washington. hi, good to see you. so talk us through these pictures we're seeing now on the screen. the president speaking from the balcony at the white house to a largely african-american audience today. it was a pretty dark message. what was the reason for this?

>> the president has been itching to get out on the campaign trail. originally he was even talking about going on out on saturday. we now know there are three rallies in pennsylvania, iowa and florida scheduled for next week. but it's all about getting pictures of the president back in the race. let's face it, there are three weeks and a couple of days left in this campaign. the president is behind. he needs to get himself on television. he needs to convince people that he's recovered and he's fit to campaign. the fact this was an event that was focusing on minority support is interesting. of course the president has been trying to peel away african-american male voters from the democrats who traditionally vote for the democrats. this could be important in some states like georgia which is unexpected close. and former vice president joe biden, the democratic nominee needs to get african-american voter turn out in cleveland and

pennsylvania and ohio, some of these swing states to offset the president's popularity in more rural areas. and that was something hillary clinton didn't do. you could say if you were a cynic that the real reason he started campaigning again with a minority event was to do a bit of clear up over that failure to immediately condemn white supremacy in the presidential debate. >> let's talk about vice president biden. what's his messaging? it certainly seems like he is trying to pick up disaffected voters, former trump supporters who might have changed their mind or still wavering independents. how successful is he being at that? >> well, if you look at the polls nationally and in swing states he's doing pretty well. you know, since that first debate in which the president behaved in an exceedingly belligerent manner biden appears to have stretched his lead in the polls. we don't know whether to trust the polls. some of the polls were wrong the

last time around especially in battleground states. but you have to say that the former vice president is ahead in this race. he's trying to lock in his gains. it's interesting he was in pennsylvania twice this week. he's really concentrating on consolidating that path to 270 electoral votes. if he were to win pennsylvania, a state where he currently leads, and he has been doing well among independents and perhaps more moderate nonpopulist republican voters, he would almost be assured of the white house. so that's what the former vice president is doing here. and the fact he now doesn't have to debate against donald trump again this week takes another area of risk off the table for him. and i would expect him to carry on this path of these visits to swing states over the next few days. >> okay, always good to speak with you. always good to get your analysis. thanks a lot. >> thanks. some polls are showing elderly voters flipping from republican to democrat in large numbers.

so in the next hour we'll speak with an expert about why that is happening. it's pretty fascinating conversation. and still to come, though, on cnn the fallout from the super spreader event, the white house rose garden. why the president of a top university is now facing calls to resign. and then this -- >> sometimes i do go to the break room and kick everything off and i break down and start crying. >> how front line workers in the u.s. are handling the pandemic now that a second wave of infection seems right around the corner even though the first wave isn't over. we made usaa insurance for this season. when being a fan on a budget gets tough... ...our agents do the legwork,... ...so saving on auto insurance is... easy usaa. what you're made of, we're made for. when i came to the u.s., my family was really poor.d. easy now, i've got fifty employees. when the pandemic hit, i was really scared about losing my business.

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it's 19 minutes past the hour. thanks for joining me. i'm robyn curnow. so there's new calls for concern in the u.s. when it comes to the coronavirus pandemic. john hopkins university reported the biggest number of daily cases in almost two months on friday. this is just some of the news. it's fueling fears of a second wave. dr. megan rainy, an maerns physician spoke to cnn about that. just take a listen. >> myself i'm an er doc, and my colleagues across the country, we are all seeing increasing numbers of covid-19 patients who are coming into our ers, who are

getting really sick requiring hospitalization and even intensive care. we did see those spikes in numbers about a month ago that were largely younger people going back to college, but what we're seeing now is it's starting to spread within the community. and we are all deeply afraid this is the beginning of that dreaded second wave. we still don't have adequate personal protective equipment for physicians and nurses on the front lines across the country. and as you and have discussed we still don't have a cure. >> a lot of people placing their hopes on a potential vaccine. many are concerned how safe and effective a vaccine developed in record time will actually be. >> we don't yet know whether we are going to have a vaccine that's safe and effective. the studies haven't been completed yet.

we're guardedly optimistic because it looks like there's a strong immune reaction, and there are many different vaccines being tried, and the trials are progressing. but for a vaccine to actually work it's got to not only be safe and effective but also be accessible and trusted. and that's why it's so important that it not get politicized and not be seen as from any political party or political figure. vaccines are already an area where there's a lot of suspicion, a lot of rumor, and so we need to be completely transparent about the information. we need to see vaccines go through the standard procedures. they can go through them very quickly, but they need to go through all of the standard procedures. no cutting corners on safety. given all that, if there is a vaccine they are manufacturing, if they do work out, they are safe and effective, yes we could have hundreds of millions of doses in the first quarter or two of next year.

but that doesn't mean they're going to be in peoples arms. you have to work with state and local gumps, with providers, with communities. you have to address concerns. it's a big job to get a vaccine out there. and remember even with vaccine there's no fairy tail ending to this pandemic. we have to chip away at the risk even with a vaccine spotes it's 75% effective which would be great and supposed 75% of people take it, that's only half of people being protected. we're still going to need to adjust our lives, reduce risk. we have to chip away at that risk so we can get to a new normal as soon and safely as possible. >> well, for front line workers and their families a spike in covid cases means having to cope with even more pressure. many say it's compounded by the president's cavalier attitude towards the attitude. miguel marquez has the story how one family of front line workers is coping.

>> reporter: julia humimen ez, front line worker in the fight against coronavirus. she's part of a family of health care workers. her mothers, cousins, aunts, all working as nurses or in hospital administration. he's lived mainly in hotels since march isolated from her parents and son, worried about their health and economic well-being. what is the level of stress in your life? >> i don't know. i don't sleep very well. i'm very, very stressed. it's not an easy time. >> reporter: on a scale of 1 to 10 if 10's the worst? >> i'm at 11. >> reporter: stressed at work, at home, stressed at not seeing others take the pandemic seriously. >> i hope he'll change his message to people saying they really need to take it seriously and not make so many jokes about not wearing the mask.

now you see first-hand how serious it it is. >> it's going to disappear. >> reporter: the president -- >> every time you see him he's got a mask. he could be speaking 200 feet away from you and he shows up with the biggest mask i've ever seen. >> reporter: the number one driver about misinformation about the pandemic, in the report mentions of donald trump made up nearly 38% of the misinformation conversation. while researchers call an infodemic. where is this country right now? >> i think we're in big trouble and that it's going to get worse, a lot worse before it gets better. >> reporter: she knows too well. part of a large mexican-american family living across several states. 17 members of her own family have been sickened with the virus. her aunt once the life of the party she says is on a ventilator for more than a month now. >> i look at my patients every day like i would hate it if

that's my family member, and now it is. >> reporter: the coronavirus does not discriminate. from a mexican-american family to the first family. >> i think our country is in bad shape right now, and they're getting really bad advice. >> reporter: this front line worker's hope, all americans will now understand. covid-19 is a killer and isn't going anywhere anytime soon. miguel marquez, cnn, los angeles. >> thanks, miguel. powerful report there. so coming up on cnn, the pandemic has devastated employment in the airline industry as we all know. well, we'll show you one flight attendant's tearful good-bye. and the outlook for another round of stimulus checks to struggling americans. why there's no relief in sight before election day. ♪ the lexus es now available with all-wheel drive. this rain is bananas. ♪

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welcome back to cnn newsroom. i'm robyn curnow live from cnn world headquarters in atlanta and 29 minutes past the hour. thanks for joining me. drms in the house and republicans in the senate both blasting president trump's latest stimulus proposal but for different reasons. as u.s. house speaker nancy pelosi calls the $1.8 trillion offer insufficient and one step forward two steps back while senate republicans ibdicating they think the amount is too high. the stalemate almost ensures congress will not pass another stimulus package before election day. as that skaubl continues in washington millions and millions of people are now being impacted

especially airline workers now facing furloughs by the tens of thousands. >> the airline industry has been impacted greatly on this global pandemic. >> reporter: one flight attendant briana ross addressed the passengers on her airlines flight. she didn't expect to leave them with a tearful good-bye. >> this means we'll be furloughed october 1st, and unfortunately this was my last working flight before that day comes. >> reporter: airlines say they will recall ross and the roughly 50,000 workers they cut last week, but only if they get $25 billion in a new stimulus bill. new tweets from president trump have thrown a deal into disarray. its the latest break down in talks with house democrats that airlines call disheartening. >> people see numbers on tv, but we are real people that are really struggling right now. >> ross says she's living on savings from her last few months

on the job. just furloughed workers say new federal help is their best hope. 8,000 flight attendants at american airlines alone are now looking for jobs. >> it's been a roller coaster. we've been high, low, been on the verge of making this happen for so long, and then for it to all just fall apart. >> reporter: airline unions are urging congress to pass a stand alone stimulus for airlines. president trump tweeted his support, but house leaders stress the bill failed in the senate. airline unions say lawmakers must end this stimulus standoff with workers caught in the middle. >> these are people who have been on the front lines since the beginning of this virus. >> reporter: there could be more furloughs if congress does not act. delta says it will furlough 1,700 pilots starting november 1st. southwest says its employees

could face pay cuts without federal help. pete muntean, cnn reagan national airport. >> just about every industry has been impacted by this pandemic, you know that but especially the entertainment industry as movie filming hasn't largely ceased since the pandemic started. and that leaves artists wondering how she will pay her bills. she wrote an opinion piece criticizing president trump for how he's handled the stimulus negotiations. she wrote, we are in the month of october and i'm still figuring how to pay for the second half of june's represent. trump's actions and inactions are a blatant attack on the american people. i'm angry and tired and grieving. well, cheryl joins me now from brooklyn, new york. good to see you. that was a very powerful piece you wrote on cnn.com. you're angry, you're tired, you're grieving. and you also say you don't know

how donald trump can sleep at night. why? >> because here we are. we're in this pandemic. the man does not believe in science. he's calling it a hoax. meanwhile i've -- my career that i love is gone. i have friends that have died, friends that have died, friends that have lost their -- you know, people who have lost their children, their brothers, their husbands. some they didn't even get to say good-bye. and this -- the games, it's really just a -- it feels like it's nothing but a game. we're living his reality show, and he acts like a spoiled child. and i think he did this flip-flop with the whole -- with the whole stimulus thing the other day because of the

embarrassment he made of himself and we have to pay for it. >> how are you paying for it, because there's the broader political ecosystem. we're weeks away from the election. certainly people are making political choices based on a health crisis, but also the very direct economic and financial crisis people like you are having to go through. how have you managed being a freelance make-up artist who hasn't been able to do make-up? >> so the first thing i did when i started losing my jobs, i said to her as soon as i get things setup, unemployment and the stimulus thec comes in, i said i will pay the rent, i will pay the rent. that was back in march. i didn't get my stimulus -- my stimulus check didn't come in for three months. and as you know the d.o.l. i

believe nationwide crashed and along with it my account crashed, so that was another three months. so i basically -- i was fortunate enough that my last couple of paychecks were fairly big ones, and then i had a tiny bit of number trickling in. and that was it. i didn't pay my rent. i didn't pay any of my bills for about three months. >> how optimistic are you that things will get back to normal once there's a vaccine or perhaps if there's a new president across the industry, especially for freelancers where you are in new york? >> for freelancers, i mean i'm in -- i work in film and on television, and production has started up slowly. however, there's still about 90% of us that are not working.

at this point there is not enough work for myself and my colleagues to go back to work. sometimes i'm really optimistic. some days i'm not, and as we hope that a new administration takes over, there are -- there's so much damage done from this current administration that is going to have to be fixed. i just feel like there's so many mountains for them to climb back up and repair once they get there. i'm really trying to stay positive. every time i think that one little click has gone in my direction it's quickly gone. >> tough times. thank you for sharing your story. good luck, and yes, i think that's the one thing. we all have each other and we

need to stay positive. cheryl, thank you. good luck. >> thank you. just ahead on "cnn newsroom," it wasn't expected to be close. why republican senator lindsey graham is fighting for his political life in south carolina. that story next. olay faced expensive serums and won.

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if you're living with hiv . . . . . . keep loving who you are. and ask your doctor if biktarvy is right for you. outrage is growing at the university of notre dame. the campus university community is furious that the school's president tested positive for coronavirus after ignoring the rules they have to follow. it all started in the white house rose garden. >> reporter: for college campuses in 2020 coronavirus protocol is a delicate balance. and the university of notre dame is no different. requiring masks, avoiding crowds, social distancing, which is why these images of their president cut so deeply.

father john jenkins at a white house garden event for supreme court justice nominee and notre dame alum amy coney barrett without a mask shaking hands and ignoring distancing protocols. >> a few days before that happened we'd gotten an e-mail from him detailing the protocol we're supposed to follow, and he says this is what everyone needs to do to make sure we're still on campus here together. so to see him breaking his own rules, it made us feel like we were disrespected as a student body. >> reporter: jenkins released a statement shortly after. but the damage was done. webber helped organize a petition pushing for father jenkins to resign. the student newspaper published an editorial headlines, frankly, this is embarrassing. then father jenkins became one of the many who attended that rose garden event to test positive for covid-19. >> i felt vindicated. i was like i was correct. you did the wrong thing, and the

consequences of your actions that we have predicted came true. >> in the wake of his diagnosis the faculty senate debated going forward. they narrowly decided to postpone further action. the president's office declined to comment. in general the stakes for maintaining protocol at colleges and universities are saz high as nearly any aspect of life. when notre dame students began returning to campus they had to quickly return to all virtual classes after the school said more than 100 students tested positive in nearly two weeks. >> it was really scary. a lot of people started to notice the severity in having a spike of 147 cases after just being back on campus. >> reporter: other schools saw similar outbreaks. both among those also having to move to online learning at

points to save their semester as they've each now seen coronavirus cases top 1,000 total. and at notre dame their president's diagnosis is just the latest reminder of that high stakes balance. >> i think a lot of people were taking this seriously because people got sick. >> reporter: now campus wide the university has been able to get their coronavirus positivity rate to under 1%. as for father jenkins university officials say he's been experiencing mild symptoms and has continued to work remotely throughout his recovery. omar himenez, cnn, south bend, indiana. so to politics now. a comment made by a prominent republican senator lindsey graham friday night is certainly raising some eyebrows. at one point graham was asked about the civil unrest sparked by a police killing of george floyd earlier this year. graham said he did not believe there is systematic racism

within the police and went onto say this. quote, if you're a young african-american or immigrant you can go anywhere in this state. you just need to be conservative, not liberal. graham, a three-term incumbent is facing a strong challenge by his democratic rival. and as manu raju tells us graham is change his tune to president trump apparently in an effort to win his tough race ahead. >> reporter: he's gone from outspoken trump critic to a staunch trump defender. and now lindsey graham is battling to keep his senate seat in south carolina and trying to convince voters he should be rewarded for his loyalty to the president. >> we're going to kick your -- >> reporter: despite attacking trump years ago. >> he's a race baiting xenophobic religious bigot. >> reporter: he now says this. >> i think we're a team.

>> reporter: and pushed to confirm his choice of amy coney barrett by months end will win over voters in this conservative state despite what he said in the past. >> i've been helping trump and nearly pissed every liberal in the country off, but we'll be fine. >> reporter: suddenly making him among the most endangered republican. democrat jamey harrison, a former congressional aide, state party chair and lobbyist is raising a staggering amount of money and bombarding the airways with ads like this one. >> one of the reasons our political system is broken is politicians who have been in washington so long. >> reporter: harrison has already spent $40 million in advertising compared to roughly $14 million by graham. harrison has let his ads do the talking, doing little public campaigning and speaking sparingly to the media. >> they've been blitzing us with

ads. >> reporter: as a father of two young sons and prediabetic harrison has been cautious in the age of coronavirus, even insisting on large plexiglass be placed beside him in the debate. his aides would not provide a list of his virtual events despite many requests by cnn. mr. harrison, manu raju at cnn. do you have a quick minute to talk before the debate? we've been trying to talk to you for this -- your campaign hasn't been responding to our questions. do you have a quick second to talk about the debate, how it went? any questions from cnn. will you take them? at the debate harrison attacked graham over his repeated promises in 2016 and 2018 not to advance a supreme court pick in a presidential election year. >> you can use my words against me. >> just be a man of it and stand up and say i changed my mind.

>> reporter: graham was unapologetic about his reversal. >> amy coney barrett will be a buffer. >> reporter: yet it's that kind of shift that may cost graham this voter in myrtle beach. >> i kind of liked him until he flip-flopped on the supreme court thing, and that kind of turned me off. >> reporter: but graham thinks most voters will ultimately reward him in his quest to keep the court and senate conservative. are you worried voters may have lost trust in you? >> not at all. i think voters can trust me to be fair. >> thanks to manu for that. now the united states isn't the only nation about to hold a national election. new zealand will also be going to the polls, and prime minister jacinda ardern is hoping her popularity carries her into another term. here's ivan watson with that story. >> reporter: fierce loyalty for

jacinda ardern. new zealand's 40-year-old prime minister has led her country through three once in a generation crises. >> we've had a terrorist attack, a natural disaster and global pandemic. but in those tough times we've seen the best of us. >> reporter: now an election looms and ardern is running on her covid-19 record. a virus that killed over 1 million people around the world only claimed the lives of 25 new zealanders, and after shutting down early new zealand is now almost completely back to normal. but a double digit hit to gdp and the question of how to pay for the recovery has given ardern's election opponent an opportunity. national party leader judith collins says she would be a better steward of the economy, and people are listening including in the town where the prime minister grew up. >> well, i guess we'd have to be

proud of her. i mean, she's a pretty special popular. we could probably ramp up and send her over there. >> reporter: the ruling labor party won't be banking on many votes from the nearly 8,000 people here. this is safe conservative seat. many here say new environmental controls are too tough on formers and that ardern is loose with the country's purse strings. >> the spending is just too much. it's going to send the country broke. >> reporter: but others here who knew the young jacinda say they understand what drives her. >> i think she's always had this beef that she needs to try to help people who have a tough life to have better life. >> reporter: not many countries are led by a relatively young woman from a modest background. but whoever wins this election

new zealand's next prime minister will be a woman. >> this is globally extremely rare. but i don't think new zealand is fueled as rare any longer. the public want to see new zealand. we want to see who we are reflected in their >> polls have ardern in the lead. ivan watson, cnn. ahead on cnn, people along the u.s. gulf coast are picking up the pieces from yet another devastating storm. we'll bring you the latest on the damage from hurricane delta. when being a fan on a budget gets tough... ...our agents do the legwork,... ...so saving on auto insurance is... easy usaa. what you're made of, we're made for.

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destruction and devastation. these are images out of the u.s. state of louisiana after hurricane delta made landfall on friday night. it's now categorized as a post tropical cyclone. at its worst the storm knocked out power to a quarter of the state's residents. it downed power lines, trees, and homes. fortunately, though, no fatalities have been reported. but heavy rains and flooding were a big, big problem as you can see from these images. delta dropped more than a foot of rain on louisiana. the storm also impacted other u.s. states along the gulf

coast, leaving millions under flash flood watches. thousands of national guardsmen are in louisiana helping emergency crews. residents of the state are reeling from these back-to-back storms. as martin savidge now reports from lake charles. martin? >> reporter: it turns out that hurricane delta was not the destructive killer that had been feared. still, the governor of louisiana, john bel edwards says it had a greater impact on the western part of louisiana than they had expected. primarily on the issue of knocking out power. in fact, more people lost power during hurricane delta than they did during the much more powerful hurricane laura six weeks ago. in fact, the governor says at the height of the outages during delta 25% of all electricity customers in the state lost power. the good news is it's not expected to take weeks to restore. the other good news? so far no deaths have been attributed to the storm, although i'll underline so far. the awful irony here in lake charles is this community was so devastated by hurricane laura at

the end of august it's really hard to tell where the damage of one hurricane ends and the destruction of the next storm begins. but we do know there is additional damage here. you know that by the blue tarps. which were an indication of the families and homeowners starting to make the basic repairs. now you will find blue tarps torn, shredded and ripped and strewn all over lake charles, which means that homes have been damaged again and the home owners and people who live in them will have to start all over again. which there are signs they're already doing. relying on the help of their friends and neighbors and their community again. martin savidge, cnn, lake charles, louisiana. >> and if you're looking for ways to help the victims of hurricane delta, the impact your world team can show you how. take a look at this. go to cnn.com/impact. we will continue updating your impact your world page as more

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hi. welcome to our viewers here in the united states and all around the world. thanks for joining me. you're watching cnn. i'm robyn curnow. coming up, donald trump has officially been cleared for travel. everything we know about the president's health. spoiler alert, it is not a lot. we are seeing record-breaking spikes also in europe. we'll bring you the latest on that. and the virus has changed so much about the world we live in today, including hollywood love scenes. meet the new stand-ins.