Final state in US election projected to be won by Joe Biden

The last remaining state in the tortuous US election, Georgia, has been called by TV networks – but it is so close it will immediately lead to a recount

The last remaining state in the US Election has been called for Joe Biden.

Two US networks, NBC News and ABC News, called Georgia for the Democrat candidate. NBC hedged by describing Mr Biden as the “apparent winner”. That’s because we already know the state will do a full recount.

The president-elect’s lead in Georgia is pretty steady at 14,000 votes, and that margin would seem to be safe. Recounts typically only change the result of a statewide race by a few hundred votes at most.

Assuming these projections are correct, then, Mr Biden has won 306 electoral votes. That’s the same number Donald Trump won in 2016 although Mr Biden has gone further by also winning the popular vote.

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The projected 2020 electoral map. Picture: 270towin.

On Thursday, Arizona was also called for Mr Biden by NBC and CNN.

The comes days after Fox News called the state for Mr Biden, sparking fury from Mr Trump and his campaign.

The media outlet called Arizona for Mr Biden on election night when just 73 per cent of the state’s vote had been counted.

Arizona has long been considered a Republican stronghold, but the majority of major media outlets agree it has turned blue.

It’s the first time any Democratic candidate has won Arizona since 1996, and the first time one has claimed Georgia since 1992.

BREAKING: Joe Biden will win the state of Georgia, Edison projects. https://t.co/qg3YMeAMWl pic.twitter.com/yuv8nLrGVL

— ABC News (@ABC) November 13, 2020

BREAKING: Joe Biden is the apparent winner in Georgia, according to the NBC News Decision Desk. https://t.co/ZsIGWgI2lL

— NBC News (@NBCNews) November 13, 2020

Alaska and North Carolina are projected wins for Mr Trump. Alaskan voters backed Mr Trump by 53.6 per cent and North Carolinians by 50 per cent with Mr Biden on 48.7 per cent.

Looking at the electoral map compared to 2016, the Democrats have managed to flip five states: Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin. Mr Biden also nabbed one of Nebraska’s three Electoral College votes, the state is one of just two which can divide up its votes between candidates.

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The electoral map from Donald Trump's win in 2016. Picture: 270towin.

While none of the results are official – that occurs on December 14 with Congress signing off on a final tally on January 6 – the path for Mr Trump to somehow overturn the outcome looks increasingly tortuous.

The President’s legal team would have to flip three states either in recounts or the courts - and that’s the easiest way. These states would be:

1. Georgia (where Mr Biden is up by 14,000 votes)

2. Pennsylvania (Mr Biden is up by 59,000)

3. Arizona (Mr Biden is up by 11,000)

Mr Trump has also been talking about Wisconsin (where Mr Biden leads by 20,000) and Michigan (where he leads by 148,000). There is going to be a recount in Wisconsin, though it would be most unusual for that to shift more than a few hundred votes.

Joe Biden will be pleased by the outcome in Georgia. Picture: Joe Raedle/Getty Images/AFP.

The most fundamental point hasn’t changed – Mr Trump and his lawyers have yet to produce any evidence to back up their claims of widespread fraud. None of the lawsuits they’ve filed so far would threaten Mr Biden’s margin in a single one of the states listed above.

Put aside the fact that many of those lawsuits have been promptly thrown out by judges due to lack of proof. They simply don’t involve enough votes to shift the election’s outcome anyway.