Pennsylvania Voters in swing state feel weight of the world on their shoulders

To celebrate his anniversary this year, Phil Haegele joined the back of a long line at a polling station with his wife on a warm autumn afternoon and waited to cast his ballot for Donald Trump.

- Sam Levine

It was the first time that Haegele, a 47-year-old plumber, voted early. But he had heard on the radio that a judge had extended early voting in Bucks county, a battleground in south-eastern Pennsylvania where he lives. He was then bombarded with "probably 50 text messages" encouraging him to vote, so he did.

"A lot of the news agencies that we follow, they were saying they were trying to get as many Trump supporters to vote early, to try and ward off as much fraud as they could," he said.

Haegele's decision to spend his anniversary waiting to vote underscored the stakes of every vote in Pennsylvania, which may prove to be the most prized of the seven swing states.

Pennsylvania has 19 electoral votes - the most of any swing state - and the pathway to getting 270 electoral votes to win the election is more complicated for the candidate who fails to secure it. Both Trump and Kamala Harris have crisscrossed the state during the final week of campaigning and on Monday held rival rallies about an hour apart in the Lehigh valley, one of the most competitive parts of the state. Harris dedicated the entirety of the final day of the campaign to Pennsylvania, making four stops.

"I'm quite terrified," said Sonny Berenson, 20, a student at Muhlenberg College who attended Harris's rally on Monday. "This is probably the most contentious election in American history and we're living in a state that can decide it. So I feel very powerful and very scared, but obviously I hope and pray Kamala wins."

Sitting on the bleachers a few rows away Danielle Shackelford, 68, a worker for the Pennsylvania lottery from Allentown, said she was optimistic Harris would win. She said abortion was a top issue for her and that there were many women who were silently supporting Harris over the issue.