Supporters of former President Donald Trump drink beers as they watch him speak on television on July 18, 2024. As Americans head to the polls for a presidential election Tuesday, their compatriots and Canadian neighbours north of the border will be watching the results. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
As Americans head to the polls for a presidential election Tuesday, their compatriots and Canadian neighbours north of the border will be watching the results with hope and anxiety.
Polling shows Vice-President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump are neck-and-neck.
Watch parties and events are taking place in community centres, theatres, bars, restaurants and private homes across Canada.
In Ottawa, U.S. ambassador David Cohen will join politicos and diplomats at the Metropolitain Brasserie, just steps from Parliament Hill, and is expected to give brief remarks.
In Toronto’s west end, the Lithuanian House community centre is where Democrats Abroad will host about 150 Americans to celebrate the end of the campaign season with drinks, food, music and live election results on TV screens.
Organizer Colleen Mahaffie says the main focus is to give people a place to find some camaraderie on a nerve-wracking night.
“It’s just an opportunity for our folks to get together, to chat, to watch the results as they roll in and to discuss how we think things are going,” she said.
Tickets are sold out, but the overflow crowd is being directed to the Trinity Common beer hall in Kensington Market.
The VideoCabaret theatre company is throwing a watch party fundraiser in Toronto’s east end, including a buffet dinner and drinks, music performances and panel discussions.
Several events are planned in Vancouver – at the Pleasant, an eatery and social house on Main Street, and at the Rio Theatre, which will be projecting results on the big screen with buttery popcorn available.
The Canadian International Council is holding parties for its members in Ottawa and Victoria, with the latter to include a trivia contest about the U.S. election.
There will be several election hotspots in Montreal, including at Hurley’s Irish Pub, and the student union at Saint Mary’s University is hosting a pub gathering in Halifax.
In Windsor, Ont., between 70 and 80 people are gathering at the Bourbon Tap and Grill on Ottawa Street – many of whom were involved in a door-knocking campaign to get Americans living in the city to vote.
About 600,000 people who are eligible to vote in the U.S. election live in Canada, the largest number outside the United States, according to the Federal Voting Assistance Program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
