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Clinton Makes Final Campaign Rounds Through Florida, Philly, Before Hitting Midwest

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Neither presidential candidate is wasting any time. They are flying from rally to rally, from state to state, making their pitch for every last vote they can muster. We're going to bring you inside the view from both campaigns - first up, NPR's Asma Khalid with the Clinton camp.

ASMA KHALID, BYLINE: Clinton made a final campaign swing through Florida on the last Saturday before the election to energize early voters. She visited a heavily Latino polling site in West Miami, in fact, the very location where Senator Marco Rubio voted last week. Clinton has been spending a lot of time visiting states where people are already voting. Yesterday, she went to Broward County for one quick final Florida rally.

(SOUNDBITE OF CAMPAIGN RALLY)

HILLARY CLINTON: How many of you have already voted?

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: OK. So that means you've got time to get everybody else to get out and vote, right?

(CHEERING)

KHALID: Early voting data in Florida shows there's a razor-thin margin between registered Democrats and registered Republicans. But it also shows huge Latino turnout among independents.

(SOUNDBITE OF CAMPAIGN RALLY)

KATY PERRY: (Singing) I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter...

KHALID: Last night, Clinton held a rally with Katy Perry in Philly.

(SOUNDBITE OF CAMPAIGN RALLY)

CLINTON: When your kids and grandkids ask you what you did in 2016, when it was all on the line, I want you to be able to say - I voted for a better, fairer, stronger America, where everybody has a chance at the American dream.

(CHEERING)

KHALID: Clinton's campaign manager, Robby Mook, says they're now focusing on states where most folks vote on Election Day, like Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ROBBY MOOK: Looking at Trump's schedule versus our schedule is pretty emblematic of how we're approaching this strategically. Trump is basically going everywhere over those last few days and just cramming in every single state.

KHALID: But the campaign is also putting a lot of resources into a state that's not usually considered a battleground, Michigan. In the next two days, Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton and President Obama will all visit Michigan. Mook insists they feel confident. But he also says...

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MOOK: I think we have seen, you know, tightening in the Midwest generally this cycle. And we're taking that seriously.

KHALID: Seriously because President Obama won Michigan twice by double digits. But the state is home to a large white, working-class population. And Donald Trump has been trying to court those voters.

Asma Khalid, NPR News, traveling with the Clinton campaign. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

Asma Khalid is a political correspondent for NPR who co-hosts The NPR Politics Podcast.
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