Emma Watson pens open letter urging women to vote: 'It would swing this presidential election'

The actor encourages voters not to be disheartened by the fact politics can seem disillusioning and shrouded with 'rhetoric and smokescreens'

Watson refrains from mentioning the names of either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump in her letter but urged voters to recognise the power they have to dictate the future of generations to come (GERARD JULIEN/AFP/Getty Images)

After an unrelenting stream of bitterly exchanged words, the most ferocious presidential debate in recent history is finally drawing to a close. In a fortnight’s time, Barack Obama will be able to kick back and wear his "mom jeans" and dance to "Hotline Bling" in peace and America will have a new president.

But it is not over yet. As such, Emma Watson has urged US citizens to vote on 8 November. The Harry Potter actor, who is also the UN Women Global Goodwill Ambassador, argued the votes of women could change the course of the election outcome.

Watson encouraged voters not to be disheartened by the fact politics can seem disillusioning and shrouded with “rhetoric and smokescreens”. Instead, she emphasized the impact the election result would have on the wider world and people’s everyday lives and concrete reality.

“Regardless of our personal beliefs, it can’t be denied that the result of the upcoming US presidential election will have ripple effects around the world and impact, in one way or another, the lives of millions and millions of people,” the 26-year-old wrote in a statement posted on her Twitter account.

“America is my second home. I have friends that I think of as family.”

She said it had been excruciating to be forced to sit on the sidelines in the run-up to the election and said she wished she was able to cast a vote. Watson went on to say one of the most reliable indicators of peace and prosperity in a country is how it treats women and girls.

“The next president will be able to make decisions about women, about their bodies, about how they are treated at work, on university campuses and at school, about how men treat women and about their rights as citizens”.

Watson refrained from mentioning the names of either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump in her letter but urged voters to recognise the power they have to dictate the future of generations to come.