Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump scrambled for votes in North Carolina yesterday as the final days of the presidential campaign became a fight for Mrs Clinton to hold on to battleground states where she safely led just two weeks ago.

With polls in several of the largest swing states, including Ohio and Florida, now frequently showing Mr Trump leading, the Democratic nominee appeared to be shifting strategy to hold on to states previously seen as a “firewall” against a Trump victory.

If the Republican billionaire is able to take both Ohio and Florida, Mrs Clinton must hold on to a clutch of bellwethers like Pennsylvania, Michigan and Colorado in order to fend off a late Trump surge that has gained momentum since the revelation that the FBI was looking at new evidence Mrs Clinton may have improperly used a private email server.