Electoral sprint to the finish • More snow this winter • Idling F-150 EV assembly
Last weekend of presidential race runs through Michigan
If Michigan thought it would escape the presidential election in the last weekend of the race, its going to be disappointed. With so much at stake, both candidates and their vice presidential nominees are stopping in the state with election day just days away.
FRIDAY NEWS HIT - The final days of the presidential race are here with election day next week. But in the candidate's eyes, there is still work to do and Michigan is one of the last states they will be spending their time in.
The 15 electoral votes are very much up for grabs in Michigan and both presidential candidates and their vice presidential nominees are treating it as such.
That's why three of the four nominees, Democrat Tim Walz and Republicans Donald Trump and JD Vance will be in Michigan on Friday, while Kamala Harris will be here on Sunday.
Collectively, they will make eight stops in Michigan between Friday and Sunday. Where they are campaigning is telling because it reveals the late-election strategies of both campaigns.
On Friday, Minnesota Gov. Walz will stop in Detroit, Flint, and Traverse City. Two majority-Black cities before ending outside of the metro region in one of the largest population centers up north.
Meanwhile, Ohio Sen. Vance is making one final bid in west Michigan, a former stronghold of conservative voters. Former president Trump will be in Warren.
Trump has made multiple visits to Macomb County in the final stages of the election as he works to lock down working class voters and boost turnout in the most populated spot.
Harris's final stops include Pontiac and Detroit before heading to East Lansing. In 2022, there were lines that stretched outside the polls in university towns - an energy the Democrat is hoping to tap in the final stages of the race.
More snow this winter?
It's been an exceptionally warm fall and with winter right around the corner, many are thinking - "Are we going to pay for it this winter?"
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released it's Winter Outlook for this upcoming winter season with La Niña influencing winter weather across the country.
Last winter was the fourth-warmest on record with temperatures of about 35 degrees. We also picked up only 20 inches of snow, which is 15 inches below the seasonal average.
Seasonal forecasts are always tricky, but with La Niña in place, we are likely to see a wetter winter. This favors the above normal range of snow during cold snaps. But again, timing is everything. We'll most likely pick up more snow than last year.
F-150 Lightning assembly to idle
Ford Motor Company lost $3.7 billion in its electric vehicle division just in the first nine months of the year.
While the demand has grown for more battery-powered cars and trucks, it has not increased fast enough to keep the Dearborn plant that makes them run uninterrupted.
Nearly a thousand workers at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Plant are facing a season of uncertainty on Thursday with the plant preparing to idle.
The usually bustling Rouge Electric Vehicle Plant is gearing up for a quiet winter with doors set to close temporarily starting November 18th. It will impact about 730 workers.
Detroit election turnout
Clerk Janice Winfrey expects 290,000 residents to cast votes by election day, either by voting early, mailing in their ballot, or filling it out on election day.
That's about 53% of the city's total registered voters. Detroit is the largest city in Michigan and with that comes a high level of scrutiny. Similar to 2020, the city is expected to play a significant role in Michigan's election results.
About 35,000 people are expected to vote early and another 90,000 will have their absentee ballot pre-processed by election day. Those results will be available by 9 p.m.
Around 11 p.m., election day results from the precincts as well as absentee ballots that are collected and tabulated on that day will be reported. About 160,000 votes are expected between the two.
Detroit clerk outlines when to expect results, including turnout expectations
Winfrey previously told FOX 2 that she is hoping for around 50-55% turnout among registered voters in Detroit.
Dearborn jewelry store robbery linked to spree
An armed robbery of a jewelry store in Dearborn last summer is linked to a network of thieves wearing Halloween-style masks. The same suspects apparently hit other cities in the Midwest and there’s a $15,000 reward from the FBI for a little help.
They could have wiped out a whole family working at Mariam Jewelry on Schaefer Road back in August. The cowardly robbers wore old man masks with gray wigs and even used female customers as shields.
"They come inside holding the gun with a bag. It was a blue bag with a hammer inside," said Ali Alasadi. the jewelry store owner. They cleared a wall of gold jewels – as much as $250,000 worth.
We learned on Thursday that the suspects are tied to three other robberies, two in Chicago and one in St. Louis, according to Christopher J. Hess, FBI assistant special agent in charge. One arrest has been made.
Live on FOX 2
Daily Forecast
Fall weather is starting to settle in this weekend after another round of warm temperatures. Plan on a drop in wind speeds as well as temperatures. Rain could also fall between Saturday and Sunday.
What else we're watching
- Even as the presidential visits pile up, FOX 2 will plan on streaming each trip as the campaigns wrap up their treks to the end of the election.
- An industrial fire broke out at a Livonia recycling center. The public safety department asked people to avoid Stark Road between Plymouth and Schoolcraft, Dozens of cars were seen on fire.
- With the Lions playing the Packers this weekend, control of the division is up for grabs. For info on watching the game, tap here. For an even deeper dive into what a punishment it is to play against them, check out our analysis here.
- The Michigan Catholic Tribune looks like a traditional newspaper - but according to the people receiving the mailings, ‘it’s political propaganda.' A closer look at the ploy that has right wing media network connections.
- Tour an historic mansion that has an estate sale going on this weekend in Detroit.
Americans are anxious, frustrated about 2024 presidential race, poll finds
It may come as no surprise that elections are fraught with stress and anxiety for many Americans.
A new poll from The AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 7 out of 10 Americans reported feeling anxious or frustrated about the 2024 presidential campaign.
A similar share said that they were interested in this year's presidential election. Only one-third said they felt excited.