Who is leading the presidential race in 5 key states that are still counting ballots?
President Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden are neck and neck in some key states still counting ballots Friday morning.
The Associated press didn’t call the presidential race in any additional states Thursday — leaving projected election results up in the air for another day. It hasn’t yet called a winner in five states: Alaska, Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina and Pennsylvania.
Biden stands at 264 electoral votes as of Friday morning after picking up key wins in Michigan and Wisconsin on Wednesday. The AP also called Arizona for Biden on Wednesday, but some news networks say the race there is too close to call.
Trump has 214 electoral votes as of Friday morning. The winner needs at least 270.
As the country awaits results of the election, all eyes are on Georgia, Nevada and Pennsylvania — all of which could tip the election depending which way they go. North Carolina is also a key state, but officials have said it’s unlikely all of the votes will be counted until next week.
Results aren’t in yet for Alaska, but its three electoral college votes wouldn’t put either candidate at 270. Trump is solidly ahead in the state, by 29 points.
Here’s where the candidates stand in key states still counting ballots as of Friday morning.
Arizona
Electoral votes: 11
Leader as of Friday morning: Biden
About 90% of the expected vote was in as of 7 a.m. Friday, and Biden is ahead by 1.5 percentage points — or about 47,052 votes — according to the AP.
The AP says it’s still monitoring the vote count in Arizona as results continue to come in. Elections officials are expected to give another update at 11 a.m. EST Friday.
Arizona has historically been a Republican stronghold. It’s picked a Democrat for president once since 1952 — in 1996 when President Bill Clinton beat Republican Bob Dole, per Ballotpedia. Trump won the state in 2016 with 48.7% of the vote.
Georgia
Electoral votes: 16
Leader as of Friday morning: Biden
About 99% of Georgia’s expected vote is in as of Friday morning, according to the AP, and Biden is ahead by a razor thin margin: 0.02 percentage points, or 917 votes.
If Georgia is called first Friday, it would put Biden at 280 or Trump at 230 electoral votes.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger tweeted Thursday night that there were at least 14,097 outstanding ballots to be counted as of 10:35 p.m.
If Biden were to win Georgia, it would be the first time a Democrat has carried the state since 1992, when Democrat Bill Clinton defeated incumbent George H.W. Bush. Trump won the state in 2016 with 50.8% of the vote compared to Democrat Hillary Clinton’s 45.6%.
Nevada
Electoral votes: 6
Leader as of Friday morning: Biden
The AP says 84% of Nevada’s expected vote is in as of early Friday, and Biden is leading by 1 percentage point. He’s up by about 11,400 votes.
Officials in Clark County, home to Las Vegas, said the next batch of results will be released around noon Friday, according to The New York Times.
If Nevada is called first Friday, it would put Biden at 270 — the threshold to win the presidency — and Trump at 220 electoral votes.
Nevada last picked a Republican for president in 2004, when President George W. Bush defeated Democrat John Kerry. In 2016, Clinton carried the state with 47.9% of the vote compared to Trump’s 45.5%.
North Carolina
Electoral votes: 15
Leader as of Friday morning: Trump
The state likely won’t finish counting votes until next week, officials have said, but about 94% of the expected vote is in as of Friday morning, according to the AP.
Trump is leading Biden by 1.4 percentage points, or about 76,700 votes.
The winner in North Carolina likely won’t be known until Nov. 13, The News & Observer reports.
North Carolina went for Trump by 3.6 percentage points in 2016. The state picked Obama in 2008 but his Republican challenger Mitt Romney in 2012. The 2008 election was the first time North Carolina went for a Democrat since Jimmy Carter in 1976, according to The Charlotte Observer.
Pennsylvania
Electoral votes: 20
Leader as of Friday morning: Trump
Trump is ahead of Biden by about 0.3 percentage points with 97% of the expected votes in, the AP reports. He has a roughly 18,000 vote lead.
Most votes should be counted Friday, and those remaining are expected to favor Biden, according to The New York Times.
If Pennsylvania is called first Friday, it would put Biden at 284 and Trump at 234 electoral votes.
Trump won the state in 2016 with 48.2% of the vote, according to Ballotpedia. It was the first election in which Pennsylvania was won by a Republican since 1988, when President George H.W. Bush beat Democrat Michael Dukakis.
This story was originally published November 6, 2020 at 4:53 AM with the headline "Who is leading the presidential race in 5 key states that are still counting ballots?."
