It says traffic break heading southbound 880 to alvarado heading down through union city into fremont. That break, chp says just cleared. No major problems there. We do have the backup at the toll plaza. No surprises but its waiting for you, marcus. Laura . Thanks so much. Its 6 01. Those polls already open in other u. S. Time zones and were waiting at the top of the hour. Lets bring in tracie potts in delaware. I think its safe to say finally arrived, all eyes on the president ial race. Reporter absolutely. Its going to be a busy day, marcus and laura. We are tracking the polls as they open here on the east coast and tracking the votes including the millions of early votes and today we are tracking the candidates. Lets take a look at the president who has been out talking this morning. Last night he was wrapping things up at a final rally in michigan, a state he narrowly won four years ago. The president claiming that he will easily win michigan this time around. It was one of five states that the president visited on his last full day of campaigning, logging nearly 2,500 miles from florida, North Carolina, pennsylvania, michigan, and wisconsin on that final day. The president , while in pennsylvania, talked about a Supreme Court ruling that will allow that battleground state to accept ballots, mailin ballots, after election day. What a ruling. What a ruling. What a horrible thing that theyve done. Do you know that puts our country in danger . Reporter meantime we saw joe biden going to church. Hes off to scranton, pennsylvania, and then a couple of stops in philadelphia trying to get some lastminute votes in another state that was a narrow Trump Victory four years ago. Joe biden in his final event will rally in pittsburgh talking about the balloting and how its important for people to protect the vote and make sure all the votes are counted. I dont care how hard donald trump tries, theres nothing, nothing he can do to stop the people of this nation from voting no matter how he tries. Reporter so we will be watching what happens tonight as the polls close. We know the president is going to be spending Election Night at the white house. Joe biden will be back here in wilmington at some point, this is his Election Night headquarters, but we dont know what time hell be back here. We certainly dont know what time this election will be called, if it happens tonight at all. We are live in wilmington. Im tracie potts, today in the bay. A lot of long days for all these candidates, thank you, tracie. So now lets go to today in the bays Cierra Johnson live with a look at the key ballot measures hanging in the balance today. Cierra . Reporter yes, good morning. I want to start by setting the scene. Ive been here now for about an hour and a half and in that time weve seen folks coming and going, some of them poll workers getting their assignments for the day, others inside of the plastic tents putting the final touches on what could be a pretty busy day for this inperson Voting Center in downtown. There are several issues on the ballot. Starting with proposition 16. This is a hot state issue and requires a majority vote. Now if passed public universities and state and local governments would be allowed to consider race in government and admission. Government agencies could give preference to businesses owned by women and people of color when awarding contracts. This would repeal prop 209 that was passed in 1996 which banned affirmative action at public universities. Now opponents argue passage would lead to quotas on asian americans. They say those quotas would, in effect, punish excellent students because of their race. The next issue, prop 21, this proposition also requires a majority vote and focuses on rent control, hot issue here throughout the state. If passed it would allow local governments to establish rent control on Residential Properties that are more than 15 years old. Statewide 45 of the population are winners and that percentage is larger in San Francisco and oakland at 62 and 60 respectively. Opponents say this act could discourage from the private sector. In Contra Costa County voters are deciding on measure x. This deals with the general sales tax. If passed the sales tax would increase from 8. 25 to 8. 75 . The half percent increase in sales tax would generate an additional 81 million in fund. The additional revenue would help support the regional hospital, Emergency Services and Early Childhood services. This, of course, a lot to remember. Well be here all morning popping in, breaking down some of the hot ballot issues. Things here a little quiet but come 7 00 a. M. It will be quite a different scene. Live in San Francisco, Cierra Johnson for today in the bay. Thats right. As everyone wakes up on the west coast. Thanks, cierra. Bay area democrats and republicans doing their best to rally support right up until the last minute. Democratic volunteers took time last night to work the phones at mannys cafe and Community Center in San Francisco. Just a few hours earlier Trump Supporters held a rally in danville. Both sides say they feel excited and confident heading into today. It feels like its the night before my bar mitzvah and youve been preparing for it and youve done your studies and the day of you really cant turn back. You can see by my sign i love trump and i love free throw dom. You see all sides there. Speaking of mannys, volunteers not done manning the phones just yet. Theyre getting big name support. Video of Governor Newsom campaigning for joe biden in reno over the week. But hes one of several politicians expected to make an appearance at mannys today. And if you have any problems while dropping off ballots or voting today, let us know. You can head over to our website, nbcbayarea. Com votingproblems or tweet us using t the weinvestigate. And be sure to stay with us. All your local decision coverage on nbc bay area. We kick things off with a onehour midday newscast. Lester holt and the team will take over in new york. They will pick up the coverage. Well come back every 30 minutes with updates for you and make sure you join our special digital newscast at 8 00 through our stations website, mobile and our apps on roku and apple tv. Special newscasts will also simulcast on cozitv. Maybe you need to take your mind off the election a little bit, some mental health. Why not volunteer, give to others. San jose Sacred Heart Community kicking off their annual holiday drive. Volunteers are gathering donations to make holiday food boxes for more than 7,000 south bay families. Organizers say each bag includes three days worth of groceries and all the fixings for a holiday meal. This program is especially important this year. Covid19 has impacted lowincome essential workers and people of color more than others. It is not just about losing income or getting sick. It is about the fear of getting sick in highrisk jobs. Families will also get gift cards to buy toys. If youd like information on how to volunteer or donate, just head on over to nbcbayarea. Com. One south bay holiday favorite will be back with a twist this year due to the pandemic. The annual fantasy of lights in los gatos is still on track for december 4th. Thats the start date. But instead of being able to walk through the lights, cars will be able to drive through. Those tickets are 20 per car. Nbc bay area is an event sponsor, so it should be a lot of fun, laura. Thats always a nice event. Pile the kids in the car. Staying in the south bay checking out downtown san jose waiting for the suns arrival across the bay area this morning. Kari has a look at our forecast for today. We are starting out cool. Here is another Vantage Point looking out over the south bay as we see a lot of hues in the sky. We have about 20 more minutes until sunrise and were in the upper 40s to start this morning but then look at how we warm up. We go to 62 degrees at 10 00 and at 11 00 were at 71. We only make it into the 70s as we go into this afternoon as we are going to see temperatures cool down quickly again later this evening. Overall very nice across the bay area as we continue to cool off with highs today mostly in the 70s. How is it looking right now, mike . Things are moving smoothly, much smoother than a few minutes ago. I want to point out in the east bay, we had a crash and traffic break south 880 toward fremont and alvarado that has cleared. Now a crash in the northbound side involving a motorcycle. Doesnt sound like there are injuries, but still watching out for someone walking their bike on the northbound side. The bay bridge and san mateo bridge traffic is moving smoothly. The backup, the metering lights are on there. That slowing in hayward may cause more folks to take the san mateo bridge. Back to you. Thank you, mike. It is 6 10 right now. Coming up the big decision by walmart that may provide some relief for walmart workers. The future plans the retailer is now shelving. Plus we had a rough october on the stock market. November so far has been really good. A rally yesterday. Lets go out to the futures and see those big up arrows, a rally again today. Plus as we head to break, check this out. San Francisco City hall all decked out in red, white, and blue. This is our democracy. Hey, if you havent, go out and vote. A little bit of ray charles to inspire you this morning. 6 11. Go out and vote. Youre watching today in the bay. Come experience floor and decors grand opening in san leandro safely shop our wide aisles and be amazed with our even wider selection. Discover the perfect floor at the perfect price in whatever way is perfect for you. Floor and decors newest location is now open. Also open in milpitas and burlingame. Right now at 6 14 your election day forecast as you get ready to head out to work on the peninsula, looking pretty good. Starting out at 50 degrees and gradually warming up today as we head through the lunch hour. Expect it to be in the mid60s here. We are going to see some slightly cooler weather, and well talk about the possibility of some sierra snow in the forecast coming up. And tracking the possibility of more slowing across the san mateo bridge because of issues in hayward. Those crashes have cleared. I do see a little slowing on the flat section right here with the taillights. The bay bridge toll plaza has slowing at the toll plaza because the metering lights are on. Theyre supposed to slow you here. Traffic is moving, though. You see the middle lanes, theres visible movement. Traffic filling in off the maze. Well, good morning and a very happy election day tuesday to you. The stock markets are suddenly on a tear after last weeks terrible, terrible losses. Take a look at the futures board this morning where the dow is expected to gain better than 350 points on the open. You can stack that on top of yesterdays big gains where the markets gained 400 points monday as well. Now the stock market honestly doesnt really care which party is in charge, and you could make the argument it prefers republicans. There tend to be fewer regulations, but really, so long as one party is in charge, the markets are happy because things g get done. The focus is on the presidency but analysts over at cnbc say more and more investors are betting on the senate flipping, too. There are Crucial Senate races in arizona and georgia. Those may play second fiddle to the president ial race but it is something to watch. Facebook is watching the election very carefully and activated its socalled war room, though theres no room. Everybody is working at home. Theyre working hard trying to get ready if one candidate claims to win the race too early before he really has. Its also ready to paste a warning across any facebook posts that claim somebody has won if that post is made too early. Weve seen Record Numbers of mailin ballots. Some states cannot start counting until today meaning it may be days before we know the winner. President trump said its dangerous and twitter slapped a warning on that. The president s claims, it says, are misleading. Now were going to talk a lot more about the president s claims about pennsylvania as we talk politics at 6 45. Lets end on something nonpolitical. If you voted and just want to sit back and listen to some music, apple hears you and also hears your complaints about its new sound canceling airpods. Some of them crackle and apple says if you make an appointment at one of its stores it will replace them for free. This was a game changer for me as far as walking the dog, not having a cord was huge. I dont know how i would get tangled every time, but every time. Yeah. I love them. Theyre great. They dont stay in my ear so well. And thats why i dont wear them on airplanes. Can you get my oh, is this yours . I need a flashlight. Im wearing mine right now. See . Theyre handy. Very key. Very key for what i do. To be able to hear you, marcus. Can you hear me now . I can. Thanks, scott. 6 18 for you that morning. One job is not going away during the pandemic. Walmart is scrapping plans it use roving robots to scan shelves and keep track of inventory. The move squashs the retailers effort to have the automated task there. Walmart began rolling out the selfscanning robots in 2017. The company is saying now they have more workers walking the aisles to collect online and gather data on inventory issues if real time. New this morning amazon may be ready to change how it handles deliveries in rural areas. Instead of using the post office, amazon would use its own shipping hub to deliver packages. The company is calling the plan wagon wheel. Still no word on when or where it may start. Trending this morning, the boss is back and rocking some new records. In my letters to you i like that. It sounds good. Bruce springsteens new album letter to you debuting at number two on the new billboard 200 charts, and this has become the first artist with top five charting albums in each of the last six decades. So there you have it. Look, when youve got it, youve got it. No kidding. And the boss certainly does. Im so out of it, though, i didnt realize it was the billboard 200. I thought it was the top 100. Those are the singles. Im 100 off. Oh. The singles 100. Ive got you, brother. Ive got you. Thank you, sir. And kari has us covered with the forecast for us today. I know youre tracking whats going on with hurricane eta in the gulf. Yeah, weve seen that happening over the past couple of days really developing and strengthening and so this is, yeah, november and were still talking about hurricanes. Earlier it was a category 5. It is now a category 4 hurricane and expected to move into nicaragua later today as possibly a category 5 hurricane, really unusual to see hurricanes this strong this late in the season. So well continue to monitor that today especially as it moves inland and possibly could move back out over water over the next few days. And if it does so it may redevelop once again. Here at home weather is all nice and quiet, and were going to see more of that over next few days. As that High Pressure moves out of the way, its going to make way for some storm systems to move in. Were keeping our fingers crossed that we can get some rain out of these things because it is so dry. Were in an extreme drought. It looks like a lot of the rain will be limited for us but may be a limb bit better for parts of the sierra. It could bring in some snow this weekend. Let me show you what some of the models are putting down for us in terms of rain this weekend. Not showing a whole lot. A few hundredths of an inch. Well take it. We need every drop we can get. Then much more significant precipitation, the possibility of getting anywhere from 10 to possibly up to 16 inches of snow. It would be really great if we can get this and, headsup if you are going to the sierra this weekend, we are expecting some snow especially on sunday. Let me show your our temperature trend going from the mid70s to that fall drop in temperatures. Take a look at some upper 50s in the forecast that will probably feel more like winter for us and we will see that throughout the weekend into early next week. Our sevenday forecast shows spotty rain chances on sunday. More noticeable will be the return of some muchcooler temperatures. Mike, how is it looking now for the morning commute . Lets take a look out there. Traffic has been smooth. No major problems. The metering lights are on and thats where the arrow is. The span has cleared up and the earlier disabled vehicle cleared. Arrow pointing north, a disabled motorcycle, no injuries reported. I believe everybody has moved safely out of lanes. A little slowing into free mon and sunol, also out of the altamont. Back to you. Thank you, mike. 6 22 for you that morning. Going green. Theres a lot more than just the president ial election happening. Up next for you the latest state hoping to follow in californias footsteps and legalize Recreational Marijuana. Youre watching today in the bay. In the bay area, we believe in science. Traffic and air pollution will be even worse after the pandemic. Thats why we support measure rr to keep caltrain running. Which is at risk of shutdown because of the crisis. To keep millions of cars off our roads, to reduce air pollution and fight climate change. And measure rr helps essential workers like me get to work and keep our communities healthy. Relieve traffic. Reduce pollution. Rescue caltrain. [all] yes on measure rr. How can i, when you wont take it from me you can go your own way xfinity mobiles fast nationwide 5g network meets the first iphone with 5g. Get the new iphone 12 on xfinity mobile. And right now get 250 off. Learn more at an xfinity store today. Decision 2020 voters in several more states today weigh legalizing Recreational Marijuana which is now legal in 11 states including california. Voters in south dakota, arizona, montana and new jersey will all consider legislation measures. Recent polls show the Ballot Initiatives have support in arizona, montana and new jersey. A Sutter County judge ordered Governor Newsom to stop issuing coronavirus executive orders that may interfere with state law. The judges Decision Centers specifically around an executive order in june he says was an unconstitutional overreach of power. The order required Election Officials to establish hundreds of locations where voters could cast ballots. Because state lawmakers have already approved the same requirement, the decision will have no effect on todays election. California now has more than 930,000 confirmed cases with some 4,000 new cases in the past 24 hours. This is covid19. In the bay area confirmed cases now surpassed 118,000. Because the state Health Department is experiencing technical issues the count may be underreported. Happening today san jose Leaders Debate extending the citys expanded Outdoor Dining rules. The current order expires at the end of the year. You may remember last month some confusion led to San Jose Police closing down restaurants early one busy weekend. If councilmembers approve the plan it would extend Outdoor Dining through march and perhaps the end of june. Back to our top stories, all things election. Up next our live team coverage. Reporter im Cierra Johnson in San Francisco. In about 30 minutes these doors will open to voters. Ill break down what they can see on their ballot. Reporter concerns of possible civil unrest this election day. The precautions several businesses are taking throughout the bay area. Youre watching today in the bay. Woman after covid, my hours got cut. So we cant pay our bills. And now our Family Budget is gonna be hit hard with prop 15. The yes on 15 ads say it only raises taxes on big corporations. Thats not true were all going to pay. 11 billion in new property taxes will get passed on to Small Businesses and farms. Theyll raise prices. Higher gas, health care, food. Even day care. We cant make ends meet now. Families cant afford 15. No on prop 15. Right now at 6 30, the first votes on election day already cast in new hampshire. The town of Dixville Notch continuing its tradition of collecting ballots at the stroke of midnight. Less than 30 minutes to go before the polls open here in california as the bay area prepares for an election day like no other. Today in the bay continues right now for you. And a good Tuesday Morning to you on this election day. Im marcus washington. And im laura garcia. Well check with mike as you get out the door this morning. Maybe you want to get out the door early to go vote. Lets check the temperatures with kari. Yeah, if you are going to be standing in line make sure youre wearing something nice and warm. Weve had temperatures around the bay area in the 40s and 50s, even a few 30s in parts of the north bay. Overall youll notice it will be about five to ten degrees cooler compared to the past couple of days for our highs. The rest of the week is looking nice and seasonable, but then were going to have a big drop in temperatures this weekend and im watching out for some rain chances and the possibility of some sierra snow as we check out our high temperatures for the north bay if youre going to be heading out this morning once again its going to be cooler so were only looking at highs today that will reach into the low 70s. Well talk more about this coming up. Mike, how is it looking for the drive . Well, great voting weather, great drive as well as we look at the maps. More slowing shows up at the bottom of our map. Typical pattern there. A little easing through hayward. No major problems getting to the bay bridge toll plaza although a little more slowing shows up to San Francisco on the approach. Over tu. 6 32 right now. It is a start of a historic day in america. We have a live look at the white house this morning. President trump will hold an Election Night event. Ags for the first ballots cast in Dixville Notch, it was a clean sweep for biden. He traveled to scranton, pennsylvania, his hometown. Biden was there meeting with voters. All things election day. We begin with today in the bays Cierra Johnson live in San Francisco with a look at some of the pivotal ballot measures. K cierra . Reporter i want to set the scene here at the civic center in San Francisco things have really come alive. The center opens in 30 minutes. Getting prepared for what is to come in the next few minutes. Some of the issues you may see on your ballot if you are voting. Prop 22 focuses on appbased drivers. Not only is it one of the most expensive fights, nearly 185 million spent. The state issue has gained National Attention because of the precedent it could set. Appbased drivers food and ride share could be independent contractors. Drivers would decide when and how often they work. They provide minimum compensation subsidies, Vehicle Insurance and training. This issue sidesteps a law last year. Opponents say it creates a special exemption that eliminates basic work place benefits and replaces them with new lower earning guarantees. Next up rr, the sales tax increase of 1 8 cent in counties that carry cal train, San Francisco, san mateo and santa clara counties. 100 million annually and would expand service from 60,000 to 180,000 passengers each day. Another state issued proposition 18 if passed would allow 17yearolds to vote in the primary election if it will be 18 by the november 3rd election. If this sounds familiar its been proposed and rejected by the state legislature five times so far. A lot of issues on the ballot. Folks here in about 30 minutes will vote. Were live in San Francisco, Cierra Johnson for today in the bay. Thanks so much, cierra. Now lets go to check in with bob redell where some businesses are bracing for possible unrest once the results start to come in, bob. Reporter weve seen this in a number of cities throughout the bay area. Good morning. Were here in downtown walnut creek. Behind me you have the neiman marcus. You can see theyve boarded up. Macys, nordstroms have done the same thing. A number of Smaller Stores here in the downtown area that have boarded up windows and doors. This area and Business Owners are worried the same thing could happen tonight if they decide to protest. Walnut creek police indicated they have additional officers out tonight will have them out, to protect people and property and the rights to exercise First Amendment rights. Ive seen about four or five officers, only about an hour or two ago, on patrol in their squad cars in the downtown area. I dont know if that was normal for them or in anticipation of tonight. Last night chase bank installed plywood over its windows. Retailers in oakland and emeryville boarded up and marshalls and ross but daughters diner in oakland says he would rather board up than replace shattered windows. It just takes one bad apple. Reporter both oakland and San FranciscoPolice Departments have indicated they will be adding extra officers for today and tonight but they also stress no threats of direct violence. Reporting live here in downtown walnut creek, bob redell, today in the bay. Thanks. If you have any problems while dropping off your ballots or voting today let us know. Just head over to our website, nbcbayarea. Com votingproblems or tweet weinvestigate. Be sure to stick with us throughout the day. All of your election coverage for you throughout the night. Were following everything from the race to the white house to our state props to our bay area hot races. Our coverage begins at 3 00 p. M. Right here on nbc bay area. And then at 8 00 p. M. On our website continuing throughout the night. Coming up next, one race in the east bay is getting pretty wild. Plus reporter election workers will start processing a Record Number of ballots in just about an hours time cast by voters very motivated to vote early. A lot of things on there. A lot is at stake. Ive never seen voter enthusiasm, voter concern. Well show you how many votes are already in at our local Registrars Office and how soon we might know the results. It looks like california is far ahead of pennsylvania which is struggling to count those votes. Well take a look at that plus well take you out to the big board in new york city this morning where were seeing another rally. Youre watching today in the bay. Right now at 6 40 to the south bay and our Home School Recess for campbell, letting the kids get out later this morning, it will feel more comfortable with upper 60s. Lunch outside today with some low 70s. Well talk about a big cooldown in our weekend forecast coming up. President trump and joe biden wrapping up the long road to election day. Both campaigns cover lots of miles and battleground states. Just yesterday alone. Now lets continue with our team coverage. Today in the bays tracie potts is following the Biden Campaign in delaware. Lets begin at the white house with jay gray. And, jay, it really was a late night for the president. Reporter yes, marcus, laura, he didnt get back until early in the morning today. A slow schedule today. Only one public appearance thanking Campaign Workers in virginia. But it was a furious dash to the finish line overnight traveling close to 2,500 miles across four states and in pennsylvania again harping on the idea that votes shouldnt be counted after today, that those mailin ballots that come in late should be eliminated. Hes threatened a legal charge and says pennsylvania put itself in an awkward position. When the Supreme Court gave you an extension, they made a very dangerous situation, and i mean dangerous, physically dangerous. Reporter the president saying that as many cities across the country are boarding up, locking down, fearful of what could happen after the results tonight. Well keep watching from the white house. Back to you. Busy day ahead, jay. Thanks so much. Tracie potts is live in delaware outside joe bidens headquarters. Biden responding to the final rally, tracie. Reporter and hes talking about the point the president made about whether or not people who voted before november 3rd put their ballots in the mail, if they arrive later whether the votes should count. Biden says they should. Biden went to church and is in scranton, pennsylvania, the place where he was born. He greeted some folks there. He also had his last rally in pennsylvania, in pittsburgh last night, where he talked about whether or not those votes arriving late should count. I dont care how hard donald trump tries, theres nothing nothing he can do to stop the people of this nation from voting. Reporter biden has a couple of stops in philadelphia, not big rallies. Were not going to see that today. Just local stops to show his face, drum up support in a state that is going to be hard fought by both of these campaigns. Remember pennsylvania is the one the president narrowly won four years ago. Then back here to wilmington. That stage is is the for joe biden to speak one way or the other tonight. Tomorrow morning or whenever we have the results. Back to you. All right, tracie potts, thank you. And jay gray as well. Thank you. The polls are already open in other time zones. Polls open here in california in about 15, 16 minutes. The pandemic is proving to be an added challenge this election year, more than 100 million americans have already voted. And our Election Day Team coverage continues. Scott mcgrew, it will take some time to really count all those votes. It could take days, weeks in some cases. And that is certainly possible, the media will be very careful not to declare a winner, a projected winner, too early. You may very well go to bed tonight, you may wake up tomorrow, you may go to bed tomorrow night and still not know who has won, and thats okay. Particularly if pennsylvania turns out to be close. President trump was on a whirlwind tour of the midwest on election eve. He didnt get back to the white house until 3 00 a. M. Washington time. He was in wisconsin and michigan and North Carolina and, of course, pennsylvania. Hes very worried, as jay was talking about, the Supreme Court decision upholding pennsylvanias right to take the time it needs to count legal and legitimate ballots sent in on or before election day. What a ruling. What a ruling. What a horrible thing that theyve done. You know that puts our country in danger . Do you know what can happen during that long period of time, pennsylvania, the long period of time do you know what can happen . Number one, cheating can happen like youve never seen. This is their dream. And they are known for it. There is no evidence of cheating and as far as danger, americans do need to realize we wont know possibly who won for days. And it may be the person who appears to be leading, winning in the beginning of the race, may not win in the end. Weve talk about this before. Remember democrats are much more likely to participate in mailin voting. Republicans are much more likely to vote in person. So a state like, say, pennsylvania, where mailin ballots are sitting waiting to be counted, that takes time. So the walkin vote is electronic in most counties and counting that is very easy. Republicans may look like theyre winning. Pennsylvania is going red, only to have the mailin ballots finally come in. And its possible that would be enough to swing the state back towards the democrats. Arizona is the opposite. Its allowed to count mailin ballots early so that may start in the blue only to end up in the red republican as the walkin and totals are counted. So just be patient and trust the process. Joe biden stuck mostly to pennsylvania on election eve. Hes campaigned in that state more than any other. He made the first speech of his campaign in pittsburgh, and thats where he wrapped up his Campaign Last night. Im running as a proud democrat, but i will govern as an american president. There will be no red states or blue states. It will be the United States of america. And as youre on social media today, be careful of who you believe and what you retweet. Lets all stay calm out there and check our facts. How about that. Find me on twitter scottmcgrew. A full wrapup tomorrow morning as well. Thanks so much, scott. Today in the bays kris sanchez picks up our coverage live from Santa Clara County registrars. Kris, a lot more people are voting this time around. Reporter yeah, and those ballot sorting machines are going to start cranking at 7 00 this morning. Election workers are already starting to arrive to start processing that, and we will also we know we wont see those results until after the polls close tonight. But what we do know already is that a Record Number of people did vote early. Take a look at this. More than half of californians already resubmitted their votes. That is even higher here in the bay area. Santa clara county, where i am this morning. 59 of ballots were returned early. Six of the bay areas counties at more than 60 . Contra costa countys is the lowest, 54 , which is still higher than the state average. That could be because the governor ordered vote by mail ballots sent to all registered voters in the interest of public health. The voters also tell us theyre motivated by the National Climate and by local issues that affect their community. So plan for a bit of a wait as you head to vote in person or drop off your ballot. In San Mateo County you can check wait times. I did post a link to that in my twitter feed. Remember, if you are returning your ballot by mail, it has to be post mark november 3rd. These folks can count it for a couple weeks after that. Weve been picking up some of the swing states. Ive been watching georgia which could turn blue for the First Time Since 1992. Biden is up by 52 and, kris, i know youve been watching as well. Reporter florida is always fun to watch on Election Night and it is very right. At this point if donald trump will win the presidency again he has to win florida. If he does not win florida then that is not going to work for him. Much more circuitous to get to the 270 electoral votes. Both states up for grabs for the first time in a very long time, texas is seeing a huge turnout with voters. Scott mcgrew, weve all decided that youre tracking wisconsin, michigan and most importantly, pennsylvania. I get three of them. And we were just talking about how we have to be so very patient about whats happening in pennsylvania. But youre entirely right. If florida gets called early, that is going to be a game changer in this race. Again, we are going to have patience and unlike a lot of these elections you will not see projected winners right away. We have you covered. Or later. Well have to see what happens. You know what, we have our election dream team, kris and scott, thank you for your hard work keeping us up to date on whats going on. One local race in the east bay as well heating up. The race for the mayor in oakland. All the candidates are furry animals. The chronicle reports it started when a sign went up to reelect wally, the orange and white cat for mayor. Neighbors say wally doesnt have an owner but everyone just feeds it, takes care of it. After the sign went up, other owners put their pets in the running as well. Theres betty, macy and mmi all vying for that mayoral position. The owners say theyre up for a furry election if it helps bring the community together. Thats the kind of race we need right there these days. Thinking about wally, wally is like im not just one person. I belong to the people. Everyone feed me. I have many lives. Maybe they want change. Well have to see. We will be watching that, too. 6 51 for you that morning and, of course, kari is watching the forecast for you. A lot of people heading out to the polls this morning, kari. Yeah, in the east bay were starting out with some chilly temperatures. In fact, all around the bay area. Upper 30s in the north bay. If youre going to be standing in those long lines have on a nice, warm coat. Its going to gradually warm up but youll notice our high temperatures for today will be slightly cooler compared to yesterday. Were bringing it back to where we should be for early in november reaching up to 75 in san jose. 77 in martinez and in napa. San francisco will reach 65 degrees. We had that fog earlier this morning. Its clearing out. High pressure is moving away and its allowing for the storm systems to approach coming in from the northwest. As we go into the weekend there will be one dipping far enough into Northern California that could bring in some major changes for our weather. In fact, as we look at the winds coming in its going to bring in some cooling and possibly some rain for parts of the bay area. Mostly some spotty, light rain. We are looking for the possibility of stomaome sierra. Look at the change in temperatures from the upper 70s throughout thursday into the upper 50s for the weekend. Mike, how is it looking getting out the door right now . Kari, i was worried we had a problem on the bay bridge span. Look at the bay bridge toll plaza. The movement in the middle lanes stopped for a few minute. We should see things move a little bit better now. Theyve cleared disabled vehicle. The map points it out around the Treasure Island on ramp. Again, all lanes cleared so that should mean a better flow and then they should see metering lights up again. Everything else moves very nicely. No big surprises right now. Recovery at the bay bridge. Back to you. Thank you, mike. Happening now for you hurricane eta is turning to a potentially catastrophic storm thats heading for central america. It may reach category 5 before it comes ashore in nicaragua. Up next a quick look at our top stories including all eyes on the clock ticking down to the top of the hour when the west coast precincts open. Well take you live to San Francisco as workers prepare to open the polls. Plus, at the top of the hour good morning. Coming up on today, decision 2020. It is the start of an historic day in america and well walk you through everything there is to know. Our correspondents fanned out live across the country to gauge the mood of voters plus chuck todd will join us with what to watch for tonight as those results begin to trickle in. Also ahead, the election day concerns over millions of mailin ballots. What slowed their arrival in several key states. Well take a closer look. Plus, well help relieve some of the stress you may be feeling. The simple things you can do anytime to calm down when we see you in just a bit on this election day here on today. Welcome back. What can i say, today is about election day, marcus. Lets get a look at the headlines starting with today in the bays Cierra Johnson live in San Francisco. The polls open in just a few minutes. Reporter good morning, yes, three minutes from now those polls will officially open. Weve been out here for about three hours and i can tell you in the last maybe 45 minutes things out here have really come alive behind me. The poll workers have been coming in and out setting up signs and doing a lot of sanitation of the touch points so voters have a safe experience. So far millions of californians have already cast their vote. And thousands more expected to dough so right here. Ballot boxes are available. A couple people have come by to drop off the filled out ballots, make sure they have their signature and do everything correctly. Countdown is on just a couple minutes from now. Back to you. Thanks so much, cierra. To walnut creek and all things boarded up downtown. Many bay Area Business own remembers taking precautions preparing for possible civil unrest. Merchants in downtown walnut creek boarding up storefronts as a precaution there. The owners of this diner in oakland just opened a month ago. They say they would rather spend that money on plywood than shattered windows. Now live to a beautiful shot of San Francisco this morning as we get started with the day. Meteorologist kari hall has been tracking that forecast for today. Cooler today, kari. Yeah, were going to see inland temperatures reaching into the upper 70s and even cooler heading into the weekend. Whats the commute looking like, mike . Looking better now that the disabled vehicle is cleared from the bay bridge. Backup still at the toll plaza. Recovery already, things moving better on the observing side. Stay with us for all your Election Night coverage. Join us at 3 00 p. M. For a special edition of nbc bay area news and a special digital newscast, mobile and all of our apps. Well simulcast on cozi. Seconds away from the polls opening in california. Get out and vote. Good morning. Election day 2020. America heads to the polls. Its your responsibility as a citizen to get out here and vote. After nearly two years of campaigning, voters finally have their say, eager for their voices to be heard in the most consequential election in generations. Nearly 100 million votes already cast, as the candidates make their final pitches in key battleground states overnight. We want to do it just like last time, but lets give me a little bit more margin, if you