Democracy Dies in Darkness
The massive early turnout is roughly 65 percent of the 139 million votes cast in 2016, and it essentially guarantees that, for the first time in history, a majority of ballots will be cast before Election Day. 
The candidates blitzed an expanded 14-state battlefield with ads and rallies that presented radically divergent visions for the nation.
Trump is rated high on the economy but low on coronavirus as case numbers rise. The polls were conducted during a week that saw the highest number of new daily cases of the novel coronavirus this year, with most states showing increases. 
Biden holds a small lead in Pennsylvania, and most Democrats expect him to win the state, where he will spend the last two days of the campaign. But their anxiety is growing, fueled in part by Trump’s shocking win in 2016.
The president holds narrow leads over Joe Biden in states he won handily in 2016, forcing the GOP to spend money to save Senate seats.
A campaign sign for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden stands vandalized on Oct. 21 near a sign for President Trump on a hillside in Monroeville, Penn. (Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)
Across the United States, political signs have been set ablaze, cars have been vandalized and neighborhood scuffles and shouting matches have proliferated in the waning days of the most toxic election season in more than half a century.
The nation's leading infectious-disease expert said, “We’re in for a whole lot of hurt,” and predicted a long and potentially deadly winter as infections and hospitalizations spike across the country.
All nonessential businesses were ordered closed for a month amid fears that cases could overwhelm British hospitals.
The White House directed the distribution of 23 million hydroxychloroquine tablets, setting aside mandatory safety controls.
Cemetery capacity has reached critical levels in the densely populated Indonesian capital, where Islamic custom forbids cremation.
More Top Stories
Strong waves batter the coast of Sorsogon province in central Philippines as the typhoon hit the country on Nov. 1. (AP)
The Joint Typhoon Warning Center estimated the typhoon’s winds at around 195 mph — as strong as any landfalling storm on record on the planet.
In pointing out falsehoods in a wildly popular story about niche sports, the Atlantic said it was wrong to assign work to Ruth Shalit Barrett, veteran of a 1990s media scandal.
listen-solidPost ReportsPodcast
Post reporter Maura Judkis explains 2020’s peculiar Halloween phenomenon: the mad dash for Home Depot’s decorative 12-foot-tall plastic skeletons.
play
Trending
Zoeann Murphy, Lindsey Sitz/The Washington Post
How the election is deepening divisions in a small Pennsylvania town
In the small town of Milford, Pa., neighbors with opposing political views live side by side. Some feel threatened, others are calling for more understanding.
Get the headlines from today's paper, and click on each one to read the story.
Browse the paper on your computer or tablet, just as it appears in the print edition.
The Post offers several ways to securely send information and documents to journalists.
Experience The Washington Post on your tablet and phone.
The Post has catalogued and organized reader questions about the 2020 election.

National polling average

Biden is leading (+9) the national polling average.

Illustration of Joe Biden

Biden

52%

Trump

43%

Illustration of Donald Trump

Average of national polls since Oct. 12 that meet Washington Post standards for transparency and quality. Includes polls by CNN, Economist-YouGov, Fox News, SurveyMonkey-Tableau and Quinnipiac University.

The family of the alleged Nice church assailant Brahim Aouissaoui — father Mohammad, right, sister Aida, left — at the family home near the Tunisian city of Sfax on Friday. (AFP/Getty Images)
Brahim Aouissaoui was described as part of a common story in Tunisia: Odd jobs, frustration and a migrant boat to Europe.
The earthquake, which injured more than 800 people, has led to a rare moment of comity between the leaders of Turkey and Greece.
The president’s first term has shattered the decades-long bipartisan view of immigrants as a pillar of the nation’s identity. His administration has issued scores of proclamations, regulatory changes, legal decisions and executive orders seeking to reshape immigration policy.
This is the first presidential election in which New York City is using early voting, and the city’s elections board has been plagued by problems.
The Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center in 2018, long before the pandemic forced productions to shut down. (Angela Weiss/AFP/Getty Images)
The already tricky business of contract negotiations has been complicated by the uncertainty of when venues will reopen.
Caseloads have risen since the start of October as part of a national surge that has lifted several states to record highs.
Isaac Smith says he left the alt-right and wants to help Anacostia. Many Black residents don’t buy it.
Perspective
The technology exists for people with visual disabilities to electronically vote from home, but the ability to do so differs from one state to the next. Virginia only started offering the option this year.
A rendering for an expanded station. (Akridge and Shalom Baranes Associates)
City officials say the federal plan is too car-centric, lacks good pedestrian and bike connections, and fails to provide adequate circulation and access, which would lead to gridlock on city streets.
RetropolisThe Past, Rediscovered
The 1864 vote was a cliffhanger, and in the end, 375 absentee ballots cast by Civil War soldiers made the difference.
In an election year like no other, bars and restaurants and planning candidate-themed food and drink specials to get you through election night.
Shibuya Eatery, from veteran chef Darren Norris, serves expert noodles, skewers and more
From a dog-friendly cemetery to nearby hiking trails, Mass Ave has a little bit of everything.
(Tara Hardy for The Post)
Perspective
From discussions with the man who killed Osama bin Laden to Nixon’s White House counsel John Dean, a soul-searching exploration of the delicate path forward no matter who wins.
Date Lab
Even in a pandemic, a virtual date was a good way for both to “get back out there.”
“A flawed election is not a failed election,” the scholar said.
The Washington linebacker was ejected for targeting in Sunday's win over the Dallas Cowboys.
Analysis
Nationals will ease into a long to-do list after a busy October.
The BSO is recorded for a performance in their online BSO Sessions series. (Courtesy of Baltimore Symphony Orchestra)
Perspective
Perspective
In their zeal to influence voters, filmmakers shouldn’t sacrifice art that endures.
Review
E. Faye Butler is magnetic as the titular voting rights activist in a production at the Wharf in Southwest.
We asked prolific author Stephen King about the best and worst adaptations of his work.
Gen Z musician Beabadoobee’s debut album is tinged with ’90s influences and adolescent heartache.