Election 2020 updates: Biden warns of 'dark winter,' pushes masks in pandemic plan
The president-elect emphasized how he would handle the pandemic response.
Joe Biden is set to become the 46th president of the United States, capping a tumultuous and tension-filled campaign during a historic pandemic against President Donald Trump. ABC News characterized Joe Biden as the apparent winner of his home state of Pennsylvania, putting him over the 270 vote threshold needed to capture the presidency.
The hard-fought battle against the president was set against the backdrop of racial unrest and the coronavirus pandemic and bitter divisions among the electorate.
Trump had falsely declared on election night, when he held a lead in several key states, that he won the contest and alleged without evidence, after the count started to swing the other way, that the election was being stolen from him and that fraud had been committed.
Painting the election as a "battle for the soul of the nation," Biden won on a message of unity over division, compassion over anger, and reality over what he called Trump's "wishful thinking" as the coronavirus pandemic cast a heavy shadow over the campaign.
The 2020 election has shattered voting records with votes totaling 147 million and counting, surpassing the 138 million who voted in 2016.
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Trump surrogates continue to allege fraud in Nevada
Two Donald Trump associates held a news conference in Las Vegas alleging voter fraud in the state, but they provided little proof and didn't announce any legal actions.
Former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt and American Conservative Union chairman Matt Schlapp spoke outside the Clark County Election Department, providing a number of anecdotal stories of voter fraud.
Among the unverified allegations were repeated complaints about the machine used to verify voter signatures and charges that Republicans were denied the right to vote.
The pair also claimed that hundreds of dead people voted in Clark County.
Laxalt and Schlapp said they had no legal action to announce at the briefing.
Two days ago, a Clark County judge denied a request by the GOP to halt the use of the signature verification machines, saying the devices were lawful and that observers were watching the count. The judge also criticized GOP representatives for not providing any evidence of wrongdoing.
-ABC News' Michelle Mendez, Matthew Fuhrman and Cheyenne Haslett
Vote count continues in several states
The election count is continuing in several states. Here is a breakdown, including the percentage of expected vote that has been counted in each state.
Georgia (99% EV in)
Biden: 2,465,781 (49.5%)
Trump: 2,455,428 (49.3%)
Biden's edge: +10,353 votes
Based on ABC News' reporting, there are approximately 14,200 ballots still to be counted, including overseas/military and provisional ballots plus any other outstanding absentee ballots that were cured by the deadline.
Arizona (97% EV in)
Biden: 1,633,181 (49.5%)
Trump: 1,613,833 (48.9%)
Biden's edge: +19,348
There are about 99,399 ballots left to tabulate, 44,668 of which are provisional ballots.
North Carolina (98% EV in)
Biden 2,658,274 (48.6%)
Trump: 2,733,681 (50.0%)
Trump's edge: +75,407
Approximately 95,000 voters who requested an absentee ballot have not yet returned theirs before the state's Nov. 12 deadline. This number does not yet account for voters who requested an absentee ballot but voted in person on Election Day instead.
Trump golfed on Sunday
The president was back Sunday at Trump International Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia. Trump was also there on Saturday when ABC News characterized Biden as the apparent winner in Pennsylvania, giving the former vice president the electoral votes he needs to capture the presidency.
Pa. AG tells Supreme Court all counties segregating late ballots, as directed
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro has informed the Supreme Court that, contrary to Republican concerns, all of the state's counties have been complying with the Secretary of State's guidance to segregate late-arriving mail ballots.
"At the time Secretary of the Commonwealth Kathy Boockvar filed her Response in Application to the Republican Party of Pennsylvania’s Emergency Application for Injunction earlier yesterday, 63 of Pennsylvania’s counties had affirmatively confirmed their understanding and intention to follow the Secretary’s October 28, 2020 and November 1, 2020 guidance, as noted in the Response," he wrote. "The Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth has confirmed that the remaining four Pennsylvania counties have similarly confirmed their understanding and intention to follow that guidance. We would appreciate if you would circulate copies of this letter to the Justices of the Court. "
Shapiro seems to suggest that Justice Samuel Alito's order late Friday was not necessary given that the counties were already doing the segregation, notwithstanding the unfounded GOP speculation that they might not have been.
-ABC News Senior Washington Reporter Devin Dwyer