The US election between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump is only days away. Photo: AFP
The US election is just days away, with most polling suggesting Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are neck-and-neck in the race for the Oval Office.
But according to political analyst, economist and Republican John Jordan, the polls are not a true reflection of where the votes are headed.
Election USA: A Republican’s View
He told Sunday Morning that he believed the story this week would be 'why were the polls so off?', and he thought that was for several reasons.
"A lot of the pollsters are clustered right now, none of them want to go out on a limb and say anything more than it's tied, and that's what they're all saying," Jordan said.
"But when you look at these surveys, 400 to 800 people, and you do the math on it, it's not possible every survey is saying the same thing, it's statistically impossible.
"I think right now the pollsters are being cowardly, and I think both campaigns want people to believe it's close, but I don't think it's going to be that close."
Election USA: A Democrat’s View
Former United States ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa Mark Gilbert joined Sunday Morning to give his take on how Harris was tracking, with Trump already suggesting the election could be stolen.
Gilbert said it would be a "free and fair" election.
"New Zealanders should be aware that the reason Americans are concerned about the vote is Donald Trump and the Republicans are running around, telling them they should be," he said.
"What they are trying to do now is set people up and [put] concern into their mind, so when they challenge the election, they have people saying 'oh, the election must have been stolen because we were told it was'.
"But I believe it will be a free and fair election."
Gilbert disagreed with some reports suggesting a potential Trump victory, and instead, saw Harris ahead in most instances.
"I think the race has been pretty stagnant the last couple of weeks," Gilbert said.
"It's my belief that we've either been tied, or plus one or two, maybe even three in some of the states. I feel really good about where we are today."
Gilbert said that some states may be as close as 5000 or 10,000 votes but backed Harris.
"I do believe she is going to win the election."
He said it was possible it would not be until after 5 November that there would be a clear picture of the election results.