‘Tinderbox America’: what papers around the world say as US votes

As Americans waited anxiously for the results in a knife-edge election, newspaper headlines around the world captured the uncertainty – and fears of unrest in the near future.

The Guardian’s headline is “Hope… and fear” over a photograph of Democratic presidential candidate and US vice-president Kamala Harris. The Guardian’s Washington bureau chief, David Smith, describes the feeling Americans have as “see-sawing between anxiety and hope”. A second front page story is headlined “Democrats dare to believe”.

The Times looks beyond the US to how people in other countries feel about elections in the world’s largest economy, with, “World awaits America’s fate”:

The International New York Times had two US election stories: an opinion piece with the headline “Trump’s fans should also fear a victory” and a piece headlined “Voters share a deep sense of anxiety at ballot boxes”.

The Daily Mail captured fears of what will happen if either candidate wins in a single word – “tinderbox” – as well as how close the polls are: “Tinderbox America on knife edge”.

The Financial Times leads with a demure “America decides”:

The i Paper: “America votes for its future – and braces for election unrest”. Instead of a photograph of either candidate, or both, the paper’s front page image was of security personnel wearing helmets and bullet proof vests and carrying guns.

The ellipsis makes its second appearance on the Daily Mirror’s front page with: “Pray for victory… brace for chaos’:

In France a play on “Après-moi, le deluge”, with Libération’s “Après l’election, la peur d’embrasement” – after the election, fear of unrest:

And “The world hangs on the choice of Americans” in Le Figaro:

Germany’s Süddeutsche Zeitung’s headline is simply, “Her or him”, while Tagespiegel’s headline is “A desk full of worries”, with a picture of the Resolute desk in the Oval Office with nobody behind it.

Frankfurter Allgemeine has a photograph of the Sesame Street character Oscar the Grouch popping out of a garbage bin, and the headline – a reference to a movie about the Vietnam war – “Good morning America”:

In Australia, the Sydney Morning Herald carries a reference to the tagline of the Melbourne Cup, a horse racing competition that happened on Tuesday, with the headline: “Real race that stops a nation”: