'Hug your loved ones': Windsor and Detroit watch and wait as the U.S. votes for a new president
Auto industry and cross-border trade - important for both sides of the river - are issues in this election
People in Windsor and Detroit are watching with anxiety, hope and resignation as Americans cast their ballots Tuesday in the U.S. presidential election.
Michigan is considered a key swing state in the tight race between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, who've been battling in a months-long campaign to control the White House.
In Warren, Mich., a traditionally Republican area of metro Detroit, signs urging people to vote for Trump dotted a lawn on one side of the road to the ballot box.
On the lawn directly across from that house, another sign urged people to select Harris-Walz.
A steady stream of voters moved smoothly through the station throughout the day, including first-time voters saying they wanted to make their voices heard.
One voter, James Noe, says he chose for Trump based on "the economy. That's the big thing. The cost of everything."
"I'll just state the last four years versus the previous four," he said. "That's my opinion. And the good thing about being here is we get to have an opinion of that."
"I lived better four years ago than I did the last four."
All he wants from a Trump win, he said, is "hope. That's really it."
"It doesn't matter who's in office. We just wake up tomorrow and continue to work."
Kwinton Williams, meanwhile, was casting a vote for Harris. This election, he said, was "my first time actually trying to pay attention to things."
"I tried to be informed as much as possible while working."
His main issue, he said, is women's rights. "I'm mainly thinking about my sister and God forbid something happened to her."
Michigan's secretary of state, Jocelyn Benson, said during a press conference that she expects preliminary results by midday Wednesday. She'll also hold a 9 p.m. media briefing at Ford Field that day.
In downtown Windsor, there are several watch parties, from local bar The Loose Goose to Cheetah's strip club. At The Bourbon bar and grill early Tuesday evening, people were watching intently while playing trivia.
Those interviewed along the Detroit River Tuesday afternoon said they were feeling anxious, and some planned to watch the TV all night for a result.
Tori Long, a Democrat from the traditionally red state of Wyoming, said she was having similar feelings to 2020.
"Impending doom a little bit," she said, "and I'm hoping that's not the forecast for this election."
Lawyer Bobby Russon said he doesn't think either Harris or Trump are a good option.
"I think it's bad or less bad," he said. "So hug your loved ones."
Issues relevant to Windsor and Detroit have been key issues for Democrats and Republicans, from continued electrification to protectionist tariffs.
"Donald Trump is the most provocative president in decades in terms of threatening and using tariff policy to push other nations into more favourable terms of trade with the United States," said Patrick Anderson, who runs a Michigan consultant firm that works with manufacturers.
Windsor's makeup could play a role in today's election, too, where it's estimated roughly 25,000 Americans with dual citizenship living in Windsor have a chance to have their say by smacking down their vote.
What does the election mean for Detroit and Michigan?
Much the same as Windsor, Detroit's reliance on the automotive sector will pin itself closely to who takes power in the U.S. out of the election.
Michigan has been called the state that put the world on wheels, but after weathering decades of decline the state's auto industry is now reckoning with the transition to electric vehicles.
In the crucial swing state, Arab-American residents of Dearborn, for instance, have usually voted Democrat but anger over the war in the Middle East has prompted some voters to consider votes for the right instead.
Michigan is also one of several states where the political balance of one or more chamber of the Legislature could flip, with Arizona, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin among the other targets for both parties.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
With files from Josiah Sinanan and Jacob Barker