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As Election Day Closes In, Clinton Bets Heavily On A Win In South Florida

With less than one week to go before the November 8  presidential election and polls showing her rival Donald Trump closing in, the democratic candidate Hillary Clinton hit the gas pedal looking for a win in South Florida that will help carry the state. 

"You know what happened in 2000. Every vote counts, especially here in Broward County," said Clinton Tueday evening during her second visit to Fort Lauderdale in two days, this time for a rally at the Reverend Samuel Delve Memorial Park in Fort Lauderdale. 

Clinton and her campaign have been a constant presence in South Florida during the last two weeks, hitting up the JLo concert in Miami Saturday night, and spending Sunday afternoon at the ‘Community for Unity’ rally in Wilton Manors, a known LGBTQ enclave. 

On Tuesday evening, close to 4,300 people -according to organizers- gathered in the park to see her; some even signed up to canvas on her behalf. The fact that the candidate showed more than an hour late wasn't enough to damper the enthusiasm of the crowd. 

The crowd is singing, dancing and getting excited as they wait for #HillaryClinton to arrive in Fort Lauderdale @wlrn pic.twitter.com/uD6x1rrUAm — Katie Lepri (@katielepri) November 1, 2016

The location of the rally was not coincidental. According to a CNN analysis of the latest early voting numbers, participation in Florida's early voting by black voters fell from 15 percent in 2008 to 12 percent this year. The Reverend Samuel Delve Memorial Park is located in a historically black neighborhood and adjacent to at least two polling places that drew big crowds in the 2008 election. 

Clinton supporter Tonya Walden says she is happily choosing to vote next Tuesday. “I’m one of those die-hard Americans that’s going to stand in line on Election Day,” said Walden, a Sunrise resident. “Make sure my vote is counted.”

If Donald Trump becomes president, Marla Press says she may just pack her bags and move out of town. Serious or not, the race to the White House has become tighter in the days leading up to November 8th.

Democratic Presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is neck-to-neck with her Republican opponent. The latest Real Clear Politics poll has her 2.2 percentage points ahead of Donald Trump.

But Press wasn’t worried. She said if everyone went out to vote, as Clinton’s campaign has urged for the last week, it will be Hillary, not Trump, who will move to the White House.

As part of her effort to win South Florida, President Barack Obama is expected to campaign for Clinton on Thursday. Former president and husband of the candidate, Bill Clinton, was also campaining in Florida on her behalf on Tuesday. 

Donald Trump will be participating in rallies in South Florida on Wednesday and Thursday. 

 

 

Katie Lepri Cohen is WLRN's engagement editor. Her work involves distributing and amplifying WLRN's journalism on social media, managing WLRN's social accounts, writing and editing newsletters, and leading audience-listening efforts. Reach out via email at klcohen@wlrnnews.org.
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