US election battleground state polling stations hit by bomb threats

A series of bomb threats against US election polling places that appeared to have originated from Russian email domains have been found to be a hoax, according to the FBI.

The bomb threats in parts of Arizona, Georgia and Pennsylvania forced evacuations and some polling places to extend hours.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro confirmed there had been multiple bomb threats but said there had been "no credible threat" to the public.

READ MORE: US election 2024 LIVE updates as America decides between Trump and Harris

Mr Shapiro, a Democrat, added: "Every legal, eligible vote will be counted and counted accurately, and the will of the people in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania will be respected.

In Georgia's Fulton County, which includes Atlanta, 32 of 177 polling places received bomb threats and five were briefly evacuated. Bomb threats also were reported at three voting locations in Navajo County, Arizona, according to the secretary of state's office.

The FBI on Tuesday afternoon said it was aware of multiple hoax bomb threats to voting locations in several states and said many of them appeared to originate from Russian email domains.

Meanwhile, voting has now ended in several key US states as Donald Trump and Kamala Harris both look to become the next president.

Both candidates were predicted to win in reliably Republican and Democrat states as the first results came in. The Associated Press called Mr Trump to win in Kentucky, Indiana and West Virginia, and Ms Harris in Vermont.

Former president Mr Trump appeared ahead in the early hours of the race, with predicted wins in Florida, Tennessee and other solidly red states outnumbering Ms Harris’ in Maryland, Massachusetts, Connecticut and others.

Crucial battleground states of Georgia, Pennsylvania and North Carolina are yet to be called.