It is the final day for Americans to vote on the new leader of the free world.
Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump hosted rallies in key battleground states over the weekend including Michigan and Wisconsin.
The election is generating a lot of buzz on the Canadian side of the border and the Downtown Windsor Business Improvement Association (DWBIA) is hoping to capitalize by holding a number of watch parties at businesses in the core.
There are nine locations that will have election coverage throughout the night, and some have special themed events planned to mark the occasion such as Craft Heads Brewing holding a comedy session.
DWBIA Chair Chris MacLeod told AM800's Live and Local that a lot of Canadians are very interested in who will be the next President. "This I think is just a cool opportunity to get together and be with neighbours as we, you know, see what the fate is of the U.S. election because there's no question that however it lands, it will be impactful to use in the community and in Canada as a whole."
He adds that this may be a cost effective way to get more people downtown. "This one is something that doesn't cost the BIA a ton of money, like when we do street closures for other events we do so we will see if this model works, see if the community responds to coming out and eating with like minded, or not like minded people and see how the experience goes and see if it's something we can build upon like other events we've done downtown."
MacLeod says the public can watch the election in a setting of their choice, such as a lively pub or a quieter lounge.
The participating venues include:
Cheetah’s (86 Chatham St W)
Craft Heads Brewing Co (89 University Ave W)
Eastwood’s Grill & Bar (63 Riverside Dr E)
Manchester Pub (546 Ouellette Ave)
On A Roll Sushi & Sliders (63 Pitt St E)
Panache Restaurant & Lounge (53 Pitt St E)
The Hustle 507 (507 Ouellette Ave)
The Loose Goose Restopub (126 Ouellette Ave)
Treehouse Bar & Grill (351 Ouellette Ave)
Democrat Harris and Republican Trump are locked in a razor-thin contest and we might not know the winner for several days.
