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US Votes in Election for President

People in the United States voted yesterday in the country’s election for president. The race is still too tight to be called and the results will depend on what happens in a few key states. Final results could take several days because of delays involved in counting ballots.

Democratic  Ex-Vice President Joe Biden is challenging current President Donald Trump, a Republican,  for control of the White House.

President Donald Trump and ex-Vice President Joe Biden
People in the US voted yesterday in the country’s election for president. The race is still too tight to be called, and it could take several days to get final results. Above, President Donald Trump (left), and ex-Vice President Joe Biden (right).
(Source: Gage Skidmore [CC BY-SA 2.0], Trump, Biden, via Wikimedia Commons.)

Results: Biden Wins the Election
The US election for president is decided by the “Electoral College” rather than simply the number of votes (sometimes called the “popular vote”). Each US state has a different number of electoral college votes, depending on how many people live there.

In order to win, a candidate must reach the “magic” number of 270 electoral college votes. On Saturday, Mr. Biden took Pennsylvania and won the election. Mr. Biden currently has 279 electoral college votes, while Mr. Trump has 214.

Four states remain undecided. Mr. Biden is leading in two of these states. Mr. Biden’s lead may grow larger when results from these states are known.

Trump: 214    Biden: 279

This election for president has been one of the most bitter and hard fought ever. One of the main issues for voters seems to have been the coronavirus,  which has made nearly 10 million Americans sick, and killed over 238,000.

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One of the main issues for voters seems to have been the coronavirus. Mr. Biden has said that the US must take health experts seriously and take steps to get the virus under control. Above, Mr. Biden speaking to supporters in Ohio.

While Mr. Trump has long said that the virus would just go away, Mr. Biden has said that the US must take the science and health experts seriously and take steps to get the virus under control, even if it’s difficult in the short term.

For many Republican voters, one of the biggest issues was the way things are going for businesses. The coronavirus has made things very difficult for businesses, and Mr. Trump’s focus on keeping businesses open was important to these voters.

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For many Republican voters, one big issue was the way things are going for businesses. Mr. Trump’s focus on keeping businesses open in spite of the coronavirus was important to these voters. Above, Mr. Trump speaking to his campaign workers.

The number of people voting in this election set records. Far more people voted this year than in 2016. Because of the coronavirus, millions of people voted early. Some states, like Texas and Hawaii, actually had more people vote before election day than voted at all in 2016.

Many people expected problems with the election, but things seem to have gone smoothly.

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The number of people voting in this election set records. Far more people voted this year than in 2016. Because of the coronavirus, millions of people voted early. Above, people voting in Ohio.

Before election day, Mr. Trump and the Republicans worked hard to raise questions about the results of the election. Mr. Trump has suggested repeatedly that mail-in ballots weren’t safe and would lead to cheating. There has been no proof of this.

In many recent elections, the results were learned on election night. This year, because so many votes were mailed in, election results are taking longer than usual. It may be days before all of the votes are counted and the results are finally learned.

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In many recent elections, the results were learned on election night. This year, because so many votes were mailed in, election results are taking longer than usual. It may take days for all of the votes to be counted. Above, election workers count ballots in Pennsylvania.

Tuesday’s election wasn’t just for president. There were also many important races for the US Congress,  as well as state and local offices.

Many people were carefully watching the US Senate, where the Republicans had a majority of 53. In yesterday’s voting, both sides gained and lost seats. Races that haven’t been decided yet will determine which political party controls the Senate. Democrats still control the House of Representatives.

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