ANNANDALE, Va. (7News) — Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris gave their closing arguments this week as part of their final push for commander in chief.

“I think this is an election where the real impact is not so much how much you like your side as it is how much you dislike the other side,” said Steve Farnsworth, a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington. “I think we live in a time where campaigns are much more effective at demonizing the opposition rather than defending their side.”

Farnsworth thinks the candidates’ recent speeches were more energizing for the Harris wing than Trump’s team.

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“Trump’s rally created a controversy, and so there was all kinds of advantage for Trump as well as backlash,” Farnsworth said.

“The reality is there is no real movement in the polls,” he said. “As we go day by day, you can’t imagine a closer race than we have right now, both nationally and in the swing states.”

So how do local voters view the speeches?

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Harris supporter Linda Ivey of Falls Church told 7News the rally Tuesday night re-energized her. That’s why he decided to vote early Wednesday instead of waiting, he said.

“I believe, I absolutely believe, that he is the best candidate at this time, and I can say that with certainty because we have already passed No. 45,” he said.

Trump supporter Paul Potter of Falls Church said he voted for the 45th president on the first day of early voting. He said he caught highlights of Trump’s rally this week but did not watch it in its entirety.

“He hit the high spots,” Potter said. “Obviously at this point we’re getting to the final week, where they have to throw some mud at each other and say, ‘Our program is good, their program is bad,’ and why.”