By Meg Wagner, Melissa Mahtani, Melissa Macaya, Fernando Alfonso III, Veronica Rocha and Amanda Wills, CNN
According to data submitted today in federal court filings, the USPS processed thousands of ballots on Wednesday in critical battlefield states If postmarked correctly, these could be counted according to state laws
These data do not tell us if the ballots were postmarked by or on polling day, or if they were returned on Wednesday
Remember: CNN has yet to project a presidential winner Six states remain too close to summon, and Trump and Joe Biden both have their way to the 270 electoral votes needed to win the election
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Joe Biden’s campaign has announced it will hold a live-streamed press conference at 11 a.m. ET
Campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon and senior advisor Bob Bauer to provide status update as votes continue to be counted
Around 60,000 votes are counted today in Georgia, election official Gabriel Sterling said at a press conference on Thursday Here’s the breakdown provided:
An election official in Georgia said the state’s main goal is the accuracy of the vote count
« We told people they can expect election night results, we got a lot, » Sterling said
Georgian officials hold press conference to take stock of votes counted so far
There is currently a tiny margin between candidates in the state, and with 16 electoral college votes, a victory in the state would be a huge price for either candidate
Based on CNN projections so far, Joe Biden leads the race for the White House with 253 electoral votes President Trump has 213 electoral votes
While Biden and Trump still have paths to 270, victory in Georgia could decide Joe Biden’s election
Two days after election day, it is still too close for CNN to project a winner in six states: Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina and Pennsylvania
The process of CNN screenings is meticulous and complicated It involves both real-time results and information from exit polls
CNN, NBC, ABC and CBS are working with polling firm Edison Research in what is known as the National Election Pool for results and outgoing voting data Fox News and Associated Press have a separate arrangement
Democrats’ only way to avoid a Republican majority in the Senate might require winning both seats in Georgia
The balance of power in the Senate is currently 47 Democrats and 47 Republicans, with six seats to be determined
Democrats need four more seats to get to 51, which would bring the Senate under their control If Joe Biden wins the presidency, Kamala Harris would be a tiebreaker in the Senate
Currently incumbent Republican Sen Thom Tillis maintains his lead in North Carolina and incumbent GOP Sen Susan Collins has a lead in Maine In Alaska, GOP Sen Dan Sullivan leads Democrat Al Gross
There is an opportunity for Democrats in the Arizona race, where Democratic challenger Mark Kelly maintains his sizable lead over current GOP Sen Martha McSally
This makes the two seats in Georgia indispensable for Democrats The race for the current Sen Kelly Loeffler’s seat will enter a second round with Raphael Warnock This election will take place on January 5
In the second race, outgoing Republican David Perdue is currently ahead of his Democratic challenger, Jon Ossoff Perdue holds exactly 50% of the reported votes, but he has to keep it, because if Ossoff continues to reduce that margin as he was so far the race could also turn into a second lap
As we wait for more election results and the count of all legally cast ballots, Trump’s world is giving mixed messages on the counting of the votes
President Donald Trump offered a three-word all-caps message in his first tweet of the day on Thursday
It’s unclear if Trump’s missive was directed to one or more particular states, as his campaign has also advocated for the count of every ballot in places where Joe Biden is ahead and, if the count should be stopped As he currently is, Biden would win in Arizona and Nevada, putting him on top with the electoral votes needed to clinch the presidency
Minutes before Trump’s morning tweet, former high-level aide Kellyanne Conway was on Fox News, where she urged patience and a full count
She continued, “Why are we in such a rush to end this election prematurely? Let’s be patient Let’s take a deep breath Count every legal vote I think it’s time to be methodical and not emotional «
Trump, however, has repeatedly called for final election results on election night, claiming as late as Tuesday afternoon that Americans « should have the right to know who won on November 3 »
Remember: CNN has yet to project a presidential winner Six states remain too close to summon, and Trump and Joe Biden both have their way to the 270 electoral votes needed to win the election
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Reacting to protests outside the voting center where votes are counted, Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs reiterated officials will count all votes cast in the state
« I don’t understand the purpose of these protesters Of course we’re going to count all the votes We’re legally obligated to do that, » Hobbs said in an interview with NBC this morning
She added that county election officials « were working around the clock to get these ballots counted » and that they « would do their job whether or not there were protesters outside urging them to do it »
Hobbs said there were around 450,000 ballots left in the state, with around 300,000 coming from Maricopa County alone Former Vice President Joe Biden currently holds a narrow lead of more than 68,000 votes over President Donald Trump in the state
Hobbs did not yet have an estimate of how long it would take for the remaining ballots to be counted
These ballots are « advance ballots that voters cast on election day at polling stations, » she said, adding « they are being verified by signature before to be able to be totaled »
She also debunked an online conspiracy theory known as « Sharpiegate », in which the state is claimed to invalidate ballots filled with sharpies
« There really is no merit in it, » said Hobbs « It’s a conspiracy theory, that people have been given pens to deliberately invalidate their ballots. This absolutely does not happen »
Georgia, Ballot, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, US Presidential Election, 2020, Brad Raffensperger
World News – United States – USPS Processed Thousands of Ballots yesterday in the battlefield states
