The US is set for a record turnout as Americans queued to vote on Tuesday in the presidential election between Donald Trump and Joe Biden.
Thousands of in-person voters at polling stations joined the more than 100 million Americans who voted early or by mail.
By Tuesday morning, 100,286,748 people had voted early, more than double the number of early voters in 2016, and 73 per cent of 2016’s total turnout.
There were long lines early in the day and sporadic reports of polling places opening late, along with equipment problems in counties in Georgia and Ohio. Conversely, other polling centres reported far fewer voters than usual.
Given that a few states, including Texas, already exceeded their total 2016 vote count, experts were predicting record turnout this year.
“Come hell or high water. It feels like that has been the attitude voters have needed to make sure their voices are heard this year,” said Kristen Clarke, executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.
The pandemic that has claimed more than 230,000 lives in the US cast its shadow over the election as the number one issue for voters, and also played a part in how they cast their ballot.
Even with Mr Biden favoured in polls by voters to handle the pandemic, the race remained competitive in swing states.
Queues of voters were reported in Florida as polls opened on the East Coast.
Guillermo Grenier, a professor at Florida International University, described Florida’s burden as the highest-value state that could plausibly swing either way in today’s presidential vote.
“I’m concerned, I think most Floridians are concerned. You can feel the anxiety that we’re all under,” said Mr Grenier, a Cuban-American academic.
“People are really worried because we all know that Florida is a critical state. But we also know that it’s a state that is very unpredictable,” said Mr Grenier.
The sunshine state is a dynamic melting pot of 21.5 million people and has a track record of delivering surprises on nail-biting election nights thanks to its diverse and fragmented electorate.
The first results to be reported were from the town of Dixville Notch in New Hampshire that has followed a tradition of voting first at midnight for 60 years. Mr Biden took all five votes available
But for the rest of vote counts across the US, no results will be announced until Tuesday evening, after the polls close. In Georgia, Florida, Indiana, Vermont, Kentucky and South Carolina, the polls close at 7pm ET.
Pennsylvania and Michigan, crucial swing states which could decide the winner, close at 8pm ET, while Wisconsin, Texas and Arizona don’t close their polls until 9pm local time.
Shenita woke up at 5.30 this morning to make sure she was the first in line at her local polling station in Detroit, Michigan.
“It worked. I was first in and first to cast my ballot. It was a smooth process,” she said.
About two million Michiganders are expected to vote on Tuesday today on top of more than three million early voters.
The candidates are making use of election day to push their final message.
Mr Biden and his Vice Presidential nominee Kamala Harris are heading back to Pennsylvania for a last round of campaigning in a state Democrats lost in 2016. Ms Harris later flew to Detroit on a last-ditch charm offensive.
“We want to remind everybody obviously that the polls close at 8 o’clock tonight and it’s important that everyone votes,” Ms Harris said.
“So I’m just here to remind people in Detroit that, that they are seen and heard by Joe and me, and also that they may actually decide the outcome of this race.”
President Trump visited his campaign headquarters, to cheers from staff and volunteers.
He predicted his victory, but acknowledged he could lose.
“I think we’re going to have a great night, but it’s politics and it’s elections and you never know,” Mr Trump said.
He said his campaign was doing well in states such as Florida, Arizona and Texas, and noted the importance of winning Pennsylvania.
“Winning is easy. Losing is never easy,” he said. “Not for me it’s not.”
The First Lady Melania Trump visited a polling place in Palm Beach Florida to cast her ballot on Tuesday, waving and smiling at reporters on the way in.
ill be spending the day at the White House, but called in to TV programme Fox and Friends to talk about the race.
"Well, we feel very good," he said of the campaign, adding he felt he had a "solid chance of winning" another four years in the White House.
Mr Biden also attended an early election-day mass on Tuesday in Delaware before visiting his son Beau Biden's grave.
TOURNAMENT INFO
Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier
Jul 3- 14, in the Netherlands
The top two teams will qualify to play at the World T20 in the West Indies in November
UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (captain), Chamani Seneviratne, Subha Srinivasan, Neha Sharma, Kavisha Kumari, Judit Cleetus, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Heena Hotchandani, Namita D’Souza, Ishani Senevirathne, Esha Oza, Nisha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi
Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Angela Bassett, Tina Fey
Directed by: Pete Doctor
Rating: 4 stars
What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
The biog
Age: 35
Inspiration: Wife and kids
Favourite book: Changes all the time but my new favourite is Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Best Travel Destination: Bora Bora , French Polynesia
Favourite run: Jabel Hafeet, I also enjoy running the 30km loop in Al Wathba cycling track
