DEMOCRATIC candidate Joe Biden surged ahead as results of the United States Presidential election trickled in this morning.
As of 5:00am, Biden had secured 209 Electoral College votes to President Donald Trump’s 118. For a candidate to win, he must secure 270 Electoral College votes.
Results from battleground states with 96 Electoral College votes that would determine the final outcome were being expected. The states are: Arizona (11), Florida (29), Georgia (16), Iowa (6), Maine 2nd Congressional District (1), North Carolina (15) and Ohio.
The final outcome in not expected until later today.
The Democratic candidate won California (55), Connecticut (with seven Electoral College votes), Delaware (3), Illinois (20), Maryland (10), Massachusetts (11), New Jersey (14), New Mexico (5), New York (29), Rhode Island (4), Vermont (3), Virginia (13), Idaho (4) and Colorado (9).
The Republican candidate won in Alabama (with nine Electoral College votes), Arkansas (6), Indiana (11), Kentucky (8), Utah (6), Louisiana (8), Mississippi (6), Nebraska (4), North Dakota (3), Oklahoma (7), South Carolina (9), South Dakota (3), Tennessee (11), West Virginia (5), Wyoming (3), Arkansas (6) and Missouri (10).
Americans also elected members to the two chambers of Congress – Senate and the House of Representatives.
Thirty-five of the 100 Senate seats were in contest while all the 475 House of Representatives seats were contested.
Across America, businesses closed early and some planned to stay closed for the rest of the week for fear of unrest.
Pre-Election Day voting skyrocketed nationwide despite the ravaging coronavirus pandemic. At least, six states – Texas, Hawaii, Nevada, Washington, Arizona and Montana – surpassed their total turnout from the 2016 general election.