With less than 48 hours left until election day, basketball legend LeBron James made his most public display of support for Hillary Clinton at a rally in Cleveland on Sunday.

The Ohio native, a three-time NBA champion and small forward for the Cleveland Cavaliers, took the stage with Clinton before thousands of mostly young voters, to refer to the former secretary of state as the next president of the United States.

James also surprised the crowd of roughly 4,000 by bringing with him teammate JR Smith, who helped him bring Cleveland its first NBA title in June.

In brief remarks, James cited the work of his charitable foundation, which seeks to help inner-city children, describing his mission as “giving my kids an opportunity to feel like they are important”.

“And with my foundation, giving kids the notion that someone care[s] about them, that what they dream about, that someone like myself and JR and President Hillary Clinton can make their dreams become a reality is very important to me,” James said, placing an emphasis on the word “president” while cracking a smile and eliciting a round of cheers from the audience.

“I believe that this woman right here can continue that,” he said.

Clinton praised James for his charitable work before delving into her stump speech, though not without taking stock of the moment.

“I can’t tell you how exciting it is for me to have LeBron and JR as part of the team that is going to take us to the White House,” she said.

Even before the news on Sunday afternoon that the FBI had found no criminal wrongdoing in newly discovered emails relating to Clinton’s use of a private server while secretary of state, the Democrat’s campaign aides spent the day projecting confidence as a gruelling election cycle neared its end.

They did so by touting what they said was a superior ground game to that of opponent Donald Trump, saying such work was the key to propelling the former secretary of state to the presidency.

As Trump prepared to blitz the country in the final 48 hours of the campaign, with stops in at least 10 states, including Democratic strongholds, Clinton continued to target the handful of battlegrounds that offer her a path to victory on Tuesday. The appearance with James followed stops in Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.

The campaign also confirmed her schedule for the day prior to the election, with two stops in Pennsylvania – including a rally in Philadelphia with former president Bill Clinton and Barack and Michelle Obama – a visit to Michigan and a final rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, at midnight.

Trump unveiled an itinerary that resembled a mad dash for 270 electoral votes. The Republican was scheduled to hit Colorado, Iowa, Florida, Michigan, New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and even the Democratic stronghold of Minnesota.

Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook said the contrast was a testament to the many paths open for Clinton to clinch victory on 8 November, and a culmination of a ground game and turnout operation built over the last 18 months.

“This demonstrates the enormous amount of room we have to maneuver in the map,” Mook told reporters aboard Clinton’s campaign plane on Saturday. “We are slowly building up a lead that will be harder and harder for Donald Trump to overcome.

“I think looking at Trump’s schedule versus our schedule is pretty emblematic of how we’re approaching this strategically. Trump is basically going everywhere.”

Many of Clinton’s activities in the final days centered on galvanizing black voters and young voters. While African American voters overwhelmingly support Clinton, she is struggling to meet the turnout enjoyed by Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012.

The event with James, who endorsed Clinton in an op-ed last month, was one of Clinton’s highest-profile rallies yet. On Friday, she appeared at a get-out-the-vote concert with Jay Z and Beyoncé, also in Cleveland. Beyoncé appeared in a version of Clinton’s trademark suit to deliver a message focused on the candidate’s appeal to female voters.

“There was a time when a woman’s opinion did not matter,” she said. “Less than 100 years ago, women did not have the right to vote. Look how far we’ve come, from having no voice to being on the brink of making history. I want my daughter to grow up seeing a woman lead our country, and know that her possibilities are limitless. And that is why I’m with her.”

Clinton capped off Saturday at yet another star-studded event, this time a concert with Katy Perry in Philadelphia that also saw actress Debra Messing, director Shonda Rhimes and former secretary of state Madeleine Albright in attendance. Perry, whose hit song Roar is a staple at Clinton’s rallies, has campaigned in several critical swing states.

She told the roughly 10,000 fans in Philadelphia that her parents were lifelong Republicans. “But it’s not about where you come from, it’s about what you grow into,” she said.



Rhimes, creator of Scandal and Grey’s Anatomy, implored those gathered to translate their enthusiasm into action at the polls on Tuesday. “Y’all know I make a lot of TV. But here’s the deal,” she said. “America is not a TV show. America is real. And so is Hillary.”

The campaign said it had seen an increase in voting among African Americans, but also touted record early voting among another core Democratic constituency: Hispanic voters. In Florida and Nevada, both key swing states, turnout among Hispanic voters surged in recent days.

One analysis of voting in Florida said Clinton was poised for a historic 30-point advantage among such voters. In Nevada, early voting in one county remained open until 10pm on Friday night, to accommodate a mostly Hispanic crowd who queued up for at least two hours to cast their ballots. For many, it was an opportunity not simply to show their support for Clinton but also to block Trump, who has routinely made disparaging comments about Hispanic immigrants, from the White House.

During her final stop in Florida on Saturday, Clinton stopped by an early voting site in a West Miami neighborhood dominated by Hispanic voters to thank them for their support. She was accompanied by Jencarlos Canela, a telenovela actor and singer born in Miami to Cuban immigrants.

After shaking hands and snapping selfies, Clinton moved on to one of her campaign field offices, in an area known as Little Haiti. “Haiti has been close to my heart for a very long time,” she said.

Although she did not mention the Clinton Foundation’s work in the Caribbean island country, the former secretary of state expressed her desire “to work with leaders in the Haitian American community to really see the best way to be that good partner”.

Her final rally in the Florida battleground was brought short by rain. A torrential downpour in Pembrook Pines meant Clinton was only able to address the crowd at a park for less than eight minutes. The event, held in a county that is a Democratic stronghold, saw hundreds of supporters awaiting Clinton for nearly two hours prior to her arrival.

When Clinton took the stage, the sun appeared to emerge. But as she pressed on with her stump speech, the weather took another turn. Taking the events in her stride, Clinton laughed while gesturing in the air. Throwing up her hands at the clouds above her, she skipped her closing argument.

“I want to be the president for everybody,” Clinton said, as many in the audience fled for shelter under nearby tents. “So let’s get out, let’s vote for the future.”