Election Day Live Updates: A Polarized Nation Has Its Say

Voters are choosing between Kamala Harris and Donald J. Trump, a decision that has divided a wearied electorate. Nearly every poll in the seven battleground states says the race is a tossup.

A grueling campaign season entered its final hours on Tuesday with voters deciding a divisive and chaotic presidential race that would give the United States its first female leader or return to the White House a former president who has shattered the norms of American politics.

The campaign has epitomized all the dysfunction and polarization in American politics. To the end, nearly every poll in the seven battleground states showed the race to be a tossup between Kamala Harris, the Democratic vice president, and Donald J. Trump, the Republican former president, who would be only the second president in American history to serve nonconsecutive terms.

As Election Day began, some voters and election officials were navigating challenging conditions, including the aftermath of natural disasters. Poll workers set up a temporary polling stations in tents in Yancey County, N.C., where communities are still recovering from Hurricane Helene. In Asheville, N.C., officials sent voters from two precincts to a center southeast of the city after hurricane damage compromised access to their usual polling place.

There were only scattered early reports of problems with voting. In Cambria County, Pa., a software malfunction prevented voters from scanning their ballots, the county solicitor, Ron Repak, said in a statement to a local television station, WJAC. The county has asked a court to extend the time for voting and has called experts to fix the issue, Mr. Repak said, adding that “all votes will be counted and we continue to encourage everyone to vote.”

More than 80 million voters cast an early ballot — either by mail or in person — in a weekslong early voting season that was relatively seamless. Besides the presidency, voters are set to decide control of the House, which is currently held by Republicans, and the Senate, which is now held by Democrats.

Ms. Harris, who voted early, told an Atlanta radio station on Tuesday morning that her Election Day focus was on “making sure everybody knows the power of their voice through their vote.”

“I think this is an inflection point in terms of this is the moment where we have two very different visions of the future of our nation,” she said, in an interview with The Big Tigger Morning Show on V-103.

Mr. Trump voted just before noon in Palm Beach, Fla., minutes away from his private club and residence, Mar-a-Lago. He told reporters he was “very honored” to find out the lines were long.

Asked if he expected this would be his last campaign regardless of the outcome, Mr. Trump said, “Yeah, I would think so.” Pressed by reporters on whether he might concede if he loses, he said that if he lost and the election was fair, “I’d be the first one to acknowledge it, and I think it’s, well, so far, I think it’s been fair.”

If the polls predicting a tight race are right, it could be days before the next president is known. If the polls are wrong, the nation could awake Wednesday knowing who will succeed President Biden in the White House.

Here’s what else to know:

• U.S. warns of foreign election interference: U.S. intelligence and law enforcement officials are closely monitoring for threats and expect a rise in false narratives suggesting the election is compromised, especially from Russia, but are not predicting cyberattacks on local voting infrastructure.

• Our Election Day coverage: The New York Times will have more than 100 reporters, photographers, videographers and data journalists across the country on Tuesday bringing live coverage and analysis.

• Making race calls: For the majority of races, The Times relies on calls by The Associated Press, which employs a team of analysts, researchers and race callers who have a deep understanding of the states where they declare winners. In some tightly contested races, The Times independently evaluates A.P. race calls before declaring a winner. In very rare circumstances, when The Times has significant additional insight into the race, we may make the decision to call a race independently of The Associated Press.

• The Electoral College returns to the spotlight: Election Day is a reminder that when it comes to the White House, who amasses the most votes nationwide is not assured victory. Americans aren’t actually voting for Ms. Harris or Mr. Trump. They are selecting electors for the Electoral College, which is made up of 538 elected members — one for each U.S. senator and U.S. representative, plus three for Washington, D.C. A presidential candidate needs to win a simple majority of electoral votes (270) to win the White House.

• When will we know? Counting the votes will extend beyond election night on Tuesday, and determining the outcome of the presidential race could, too. Here’s a look at how votes are counted in the seven battleground states — Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — and when to expect results.