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    • Donald, Melania voted personally. Did Barron?
    Update Information

    Donald, Melania voted personally. Did Barron?

    Kathleen William Posted on

    Who is running in the 2024 presidential election? It's former President Donald Trump versus Vice President Kamala Harris.

    (This story has been updated to add new information.)

    Former President Donald Trump voted on Election Day at the Morton and Barbara Mandel Recreation Center on Seaview Avenue in Palm Beach.

    He was joined by his wife, former First Lady Melania Trump.

    Their son, Barron Trump, was not seen with them at the polling station and it is unclear where he voted. An email to the Trump campaign seeking comment was not returned as of Tuesday afternoon.

    Trump is running as a Republican for a second term in the White House, alongside his vice presidential running mate, U.S. Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, against Democratic nominee for Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

    Trump spoke for more than 10 minutes to members of the media gathered in the recreation center gym and said he thought this was the best of his three presidential campaigns.

    “I think we will have a very big victory today,” he said.

    The most important issue for voters is immigration, said Trump.

    “We want people to come to our country, but they have to come legally,” he said. “We want strong borders.”

    Asked whether he would discourage his supporters from violence, Trump declined.

    “My supporters are not violent people. I don't have to tell them that,” he said, adding: “I definitely don't want violence, but I definitely – they're great people. These are people who don't believe in violence.” “Contrary to your question, you believe in violence,” he told the reporter.

    Trump said he and Melania Trump would go to his campaign offices in West Palm Beach to thank workers there before returning to Mar-a-Lago.

    Trump said he had not yet written a speech for Tuesday night and noted that he had given several speeches in the past two days as he added last-minute rallies to his late campaign schedule.

    “We gave a lot of speeches. You can probably tell,” he said, referring to the hoarseness in his voice. “I am not a democrat. I can give a speech pretty quickly. If I win, I know what I will say. And I don’t even want to think about the losing part.”

    Trump reminded Republicans who may be in line to vote to stay in line.

    Security was tight around the recreation center Tuesday morning as a public parking lot on Royal Palm Way was closed ahead of Trump's arrival and a line of white tents formed a tunnel from that parking lot to the polling station's south entrance.

    More: Church in Palm Beach where Trump was married to hold election day prayer services

    City officials had said in a Recreation Department email Friday that parking in the city parking lot on the north side of Royal Palm Way near Seaview Park next to the recreation center would be limited on Monday and that the lot would be completely closed on Tuesday will in the afternoon.

    In the days leading up to Election Day, it wasn't clear exactly when Trump and his family would vote, so members of the media gathered outside the Recreation Center early Tuesday to catch a glimpse of the Republican presidential nominee. Media representatives included representatives from India, Portugal, Germany, Denmark and Japan.

    While Trump was at the recreation center, the media kept cameras focused on the facility's north entrance.

    Many of Trump's supporters, who had gathered for hours Tuesday morning to catch a glimpse of the candidate, lined the sidewalk. Some sat on a wall outside Palm Beach Public Elementary School, while others waited near the recreation center's tennis courts. Some tennis players paused their games for more than an hour as they waited for Trump to appear.

    Trump did not come out to wave and speak to the media as he had done in years past. Instead, he was quickly led by his motorcade into the recreation center through the south entrance on Royal Palm Way, on the opposite side of the polling station where hundreds were gathering. The Trumps then walked through the south entrance after speaking to reporters in the gym. Some on the recreation center's north lawn caught a glimpse of Trump's silhouette through a window.

    Voters who needed to cast their ballots on Tuesday were able to enter via the north side of the recreation center. Three parking lots on Seaview Avenue were marked with signs and traffic barriers as 30-minute voter-only parking spots.

    Many of the other areas along Seaview were occupied by the media.

    The Trumps planned to wait at Mar-a-Lago until about 10 p.m. Tuesday before heading to the Trump campaign's election night party at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach.

    Kristina Webb is a reporter for the Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at [email protected]. Subscribe today to support our journalism.

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    Kathleen William
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