Evening update: What we know about the US election race
After an action packed day of ballot counting in the Midwest, we now have a much clearer picture of the final results of the 2020 US presidential election.
As this reporter went to bed early this morning in D.C., Trump held solid leads in the three election-deciding states of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan.
However, things took a dramatic turn just hours later.
Biden in poll position to be elected president
Biden has surged ahead in Michigan and in Wisconsin, leaving him on track to win the 2020 election.
Biden’s lead in Wisconsin looks unassailable, with almost 100 per cent of votes tallied, meaning he just needs to win one of Pennsylvania or Michigan to win.
This is assuming that he holds on to his leads in Nevada and Arizona.
Trump still leads Biden in Pennsylvania by more than 500,000 votes, however there are still an estimated 1.4m early and mail-in votes to be counted.
These ballots are expected to swing heavily to the Democrats, with most of them coming from around Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
There are also hundreds of thousands of ballots to be counted in Michigan, however these are also expected to lean blue.
Trump continues to allege electoral fraud
Trump sensationally last night made the unfounded declaration that he had won and that the Democrats were trying to steal the election.
He also said he wanted the counting of ballots to stop, except for in Arizona where he was behind, and that he would take the case to the Supreme Court.
He has continued his onslaught on Twitter today, by falsely claiming there had been widespread election fraud with mail-in ballots.
Trump’s campaign manager Bill Stepien has now announced that the President will file a law suit in Michigan in an attempt to stop the counting of ballots.
Stepien is also calling for a recount in Wisconsin as the margin is les than one per cent.
In a statement, Stepien said: “President Trump’s campaign has not been provided with meaningful access to numerous counting locations to observe the opening of ballots and the counting process, as guaranteed by Michigan law.
“We have filed suit today in the Michigan Court of Claims to halt counting until meaningful access has been granted. We also demand to review those ballots which were opened and counted while we did not have meaningful access. President Trump is committed to ensuring that all legal votes are counted in Michigan and everywhere else.”
Trump has been building up to this during the campaign, with the President consistently questioning the validity of early voting.
He has been widely criticised by Democrats and Republicans alike for his conduct.
Republicans likely to hold the Senate
The Democratic Senate candidate for Maine Sara Gideon has conceded the race, leaving the party unlikely to win control of Congress’ upper chamber.
With a Maine victory for the GOP, the Senate would be 48 for Republicans and 45 for the Democrats, with two independents.
The Republicans look like they will be in line to win at least another three seats in the remaining races, giving the party a majority.
This will mean that Congress will be split once again between Democrats in the House of Representatives and Republicans in the Senate.
This will make it hard for whoever is President to pass legislation, including new coronavirus financial relief, through Congress.
Markets appear unfussed by election uncertainty
Wall Street’s major indices all opened higher, despite investors remaining worried about the prospect of a contested result.
The FTSE 100, helped by a weaker sterling after a choppy start to the session, also closed 1.7 per cent higher at 5,883 points.
In New York, the S&P 500 climbed 3.4 per cent in early trading, while the Dow gained 2.8 per cent.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq led gains, however, as investors rushed to buy up big technology names. It shot up 4.5 per cent.