Politics and views in the United States.

Harris says her campaign is prepared for Trump to prematurely claim victory, Pennsylvania election officials say safeguards in the system are preventing vote fraud, and Montana Senate race could hinge on the "political refugee" vote.

TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to 2024 Talks, where we're following our democracy in historic times.

We know that he is actually manipulating the press and attempting to manipulate the consensus of the American people based on fiction instead of fact.

We're prepared to respond.

Vice President Kamala Harris tells ABC her campaign is ready if former President Donald Trump prematurely claims victory on election night, just like he did in 2020.

Trump has spent months sowing doubts of election integrity and refused to commit to accepting the results, even hinting at political violence if he doesn't win.

Trump's most recent target is Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, where officials are investigating hundreds of fraudulent voter registration applications submitted by paid canvassers.

The applications were rejected, but Trump described it as organized election fraud.

They've already started cheating in Lancaster.

They've cheated.

We caught him with 2,600 votes.

Pennsylvania election officials say the system is working, including safeguards against fake names included to make a quick buck.

Secretary of State Al Schmitt says the nonpartisan election officials are doing their job effectively.

When you have cases like this, it should encourage people to have more faith in the system, not less.

A Pennsylvania judge has ordered an expansion of in-person early voting in a battleground county outside Philadelphia after long lines led to complaints of disenfranchisement.

Responding to a lawsuit from the Trump campaign, the judge also extended the application window for mail-in ballot applications in Bucks County.

During a campaign stop in Pennsylvania, House Speaker Mike Johnson said if Trump wins, there will be massive reforms to the Affordable Care Act.

He told supporters Obamacare could be eliminated as part of an aggressive first 100 days in office.

We want to take a blowtorch to the regulatory state, okay?

I mean, these agencies have been weaponized against the people.

It's crushing the free market.

Republicans repeatedly attempted to repeal the ACA during Trump's term, but never found a workable replacement.

Campaigns are spending record amounts to win control of the Senate.

Observers expect more than a billion dollars will be spent by Election Day in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Montana.

In Montana, incumbent Democratic Senator Jon Tester is hoping his support for reproductive rights could give him a needed edge.

But University of Montana journalism professor Lee Banville says Tester could be vulnerable to what he calls the political refugee vote, conservatives who moved from blue areas to Montana which had traditionally been independent.

If Tester loses, it's sort of a statement that actually party identification means more than anything else in the state of Montana.

And that is a change from where we used to be.

Recent polls show Tester's opponent, Republican businessman and former Navy SEAL Tim Sheehy slightly ahead.

I'm Catherine Carley for Pacifica Network and Public News Service.

Find our trust indicators at publicnewsservice.org.