“Now, after a long night of counting, it’s clear we are wining enough states to reach 270 electoral votes need to win the Presidency,” said Joe Biden today, the day after a unresolved election that saw a record breaking 150 million votes cast.
“I’m not here to declare that we’ve won, but I am here to report that when the count is finished we believe we will be the winners, the former VP added from Wilmington, Delaware with running mate Sen Kamala Harris by his side.
As Biden was speaking, CNN called Michigan for the former Vice-President, moving him and Harris closer to a win over Donald Trump.
Just under two hours after a big win in Wisconsin, the ex-Veep stepped in front of the cameras and microphones for the second time in about 12 hours. Biden’s remarks come as the Trump campaign are trying to have vote counting halted in the Badger State and Pennsylvania. In the latter, the former Celebrity Apprentice host has taken the matter to the Supreme Court. Even as he actually has a lead so far with around a million advance and mail-in ballots to be counted.
Having topped more than 50% of the popular vote, Biden’s speech Wednesday afternoon finds the ex-VP with 248 electoral votes to Trump’s 214, according to the AP. Facing certain court battles all the way up to the SCOTUS on an unbelievably tense day, Biden is just 22 electoral votes short of victory. Frustrating for a nation not known for its patience, the 11th hour vote counting in battleground states was actually always expected by Biden campaign brass and the Trump team in a nearly evenly divided nation.
Along with the Keystone State, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, and North Carolina have outstanding votes that are still being tallied. The Pennsylvania ballots are anticipated to be finalized in the next 24 hours, according to Gov. Tom Wolf. As Biden noted today, the Great Lake State is also aiming to have its votes all wrapped up by EOD.
Having said that, if present trends continue, Joe Biden will top more than 70 million votes, more than any other Presidential candidate in American history.
Even if Biden does hit the magic number of 270 electoral votes and declares himself the winner, doubtful Trump will be calling the movers over to the White House. Once the vote counting is done, the real lawsuits will begin.