How Biden's election victory played out, in figures
US 2020 election
As Joe Biden is declared the President-Elect, he did it by securing victory in the one state Donald Trump needed to forge his own path to a second term — Pennsylvania.
As the US presidential election entered its final stretch, rivals Trump and Biden had very different routes to claim power.
For three days, a handful of states continued counting ballots, gradually overturning Republican leads of hundreds of thousands of votes.
By the time election night drew to a close, Trump had an uphill battle, needing to win almost all the states remaining to declare.
President-Elect Biden — who had been widely tipped to win comfortably — needed to win just two of the six states available (except Alaska) — Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. Trump needed all five of them.
Trump’s path to victory
The President needed to take Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia and Nevada on his arduous route to victory.
And as the days drew on, his hold on the remaining states steadily slipped away.
As of Saturday morning, he only led in North Carolina, after hundreds of thousands of mail-in ballots heavily favoured the Democratic former Vice President.
Alaska, with only three votes in the electoral college, is expected to back Trump.
Possible routes to power for Joe Biden and Donald Trump
Biden’s path to victory
Biden’s chances of victory were significantly boosted after taking Michigan, with the 20 electoral college votes of Pennsylvania at last handing him victory.
By Saturday morning he led Trump in Pennsylvania by almost 29,000 votes, having overturned an election night deficit of around 700,000.
Many of the votes remaining to be counted there were mail-in ballots from Philadelphia and its suburbs, where Democrats have historically enjoyed an electoral advantage.
When his lead had extended to more than 34,000 votes, Pennsylvania was the state to put Biden over the line and to deprive Donald Trump of his second term, after the incumbent refused to concede and baselessly alleged voter fraud.
US 2020 election table
After Pennsylvania was declared for Biden he stood on 273 electoral college votes, and moments later Nevada followed suit, putting his tally at 279.
How election night played out
With Florida claimed by Trump, and Biden on course to pick up the historically red state of Arizona, the contest was too close to call by the time election day drew to a close.
The contest rested on as yet uncounted votes in battleground states, with Trump sowing seeds of mistrust among his supporters over mail-in ballots and threatening to go to the Supreme Court.
By the time a victory speech could have been expected, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, Nevada and North Carolina were still up for grabs, with Trump leading in all but Wisconsin and Nevada.
Alaska, a solid Republican state, had not yet declared, and questions remained over the count in Arizona, which the Associated Press and Fox News declared for Biden but others were more cautious.
A key turning point in the night was Florida declaring for Trump, with its 29 electoral college votes, at around 6am GMT.
It was a clear indication of how the polls had once again underestimated Trump’s support base, with Biden expected to take the state in late polling.
But fortunes began to reverse for the Democrats as millions of mail-in votes started coming in, and when Michigan turned blue — one of the few states to change colour after Trump’s shock win in 2016 — Biden’s chances of securing the Presidency heightened.
How election day played out
After Trump declared no more votes should be counted, supporters have been picketing polling booths and calling for a halt to the count.
Many pundits anticipated the tactic in the event of no clear winner emerging on election day — and it remained all to play for in the key battleground states which have not yet seen a winner declared.
As the hours dragged on Biden toppled Trump’s leads — first in Georgia where he is now just a few hundred votes ahead, then in Pennsylvania — a huge turning point in the race.
By 4.30pm GMT on Friday, Biden’s lead over Trump in Pennsylvania extended to 0.5 — the margin over which a recount would be likely — with 99 per cent of votes reported.
But Biden got over the line for the Presidency after an agonising wait. After Pennsylvania was declared for Biden he stood on 273 electoral college votes, and moments later Nevada followed suit, putting his tally at 279.
2020 US election results map in full
Свежие комментарии