Former President Donald Trump has extended his lead over Vice President Kamala Harris in states anticipated to favor him in the 2024 presidential race, while election officials in seven key battlegrounds continued to process ballots as of early Wednesday morning.
As of 5:20 AM, the former president had amassed 230 Electoral College votes compared to Harris’s 153, according to various media projections. The Associated Press reported that a total of 270 votes is required to secure victory.
At the time of publication, projections were still pending for crucial swing states including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Trump claimed North Carolina’s 16 votes, edging closer to the 270-mark as Harris’s chances dwindled.
He appeared to have secured wins in Iowa, Missouri, Montana, and Utah as polls in the western states closed. Additionally, Trump gained some electoral votes from Nebraska, one of two states that does not use a winner-takes-all system.
The AP had already projected victories for Trump in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
In contrast, Harris captured Colorado and the District of Columbia, adding to earlier wins in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
All results remain unofficial until local election officials across the nation verify and certify the outcomes in the coming days and weeks. The ballot counting process and determination of a winner could extend for several more days.
The race took an extraordinary turn when President Joe Biden, following a disappointing debate performance, withdrew his re-election bid with just over 100 days until the election, prompting Trump’s campaign to pivot toward Harris.
As results began to come in, Trump used his Truth Social platform to remind supporters of poll closing times. He spent election night at his residence in Palm Beach, Florida.
Harris was at Howard University in Washington, D.C., her alma mater, where her supporters had gathered to await the results.
Presidential campaigns continued to focus on swing states, engage with the press, and issue statements on voters’ rights.
From his Mar-a-Lago estate, Trump urged voters through a video message on Truth Social to stay in line if they arrive before polls close.
“Republicans, we’re doing very well. Stay in line, don’t get off line, and vote. Make sure you cast your vote. We’re going to have a big victory tonight,” Trump declared.
Biden, who was viewed as the presumptive Democratic nominee until he withdrew and endorsed Harris over 100 days ago, did not make any public appearances on Tuesday.
Control of both chambers of Congress is also at stake. Democrats face a narrow path to preserving their Senate majority following Republican Jim Justice’s flip of a West Virginia seat on Tuesday, while the House of Representatives remains a toss-up.
Nearly three-quarters of voters indicated in national exit polls that they believe American democracy is under threat, highlighting the profound polarization within the nation as divisions sharpen during a fiercely contested race.
Trump has increasingly employed dire rhetoric while fueling unfounded fears regarding the integrity of the election system. In contrast, Harris warned that a second Trump term could jeopardize the foundations of American democracy.
Hours before polls closed, Trump alleged without evidence on his Truth Social account that there was “a lot of talk about massive cheating” in Philadelphia, echoing his previous false claims from 2020 about fraud in large Democratic-controlled cities. He further claimed there was fraud in Detroit.
“I don’t respond to nonsense,” Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey told Reuters.
Seth Bluestein, a Philadelphia city commissioner, responded on X, stating, “There is absolutely no truth to this allegation. It is yet another example of disinformation. Voting in Philadelphia has been safe and secure.”
Trump, whose supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, after he alleged the 2020 election was rigged, voted earlier near his home in Palm Beach, Florida.
“If I lose an election, if it’s a fair election, I’m going to be the first one to acknowledge it,” Trump told reporters.
His campaign has indicated that he may declare victory on election night, even if millions of ballots remain uncounted, as he did four years ago. The ultimate winner may not be determined for days if the margins in battleground states are as narrow as anticipated.
Millions of Americans stood in orderly lines to cast their ballots, with only isolated disruptions reported in a few states, including a series of unverified bomb threats that the FBI traced back to Russian email domains.
Trump was monitoring the results at his Mar-a-Lago club before addressing supporters at a nearby convention center, according to sources familiar with the plans. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, a prominent Trump ally, announced he would watch the results alongside Trump at Mar-a-Lago.
Tuesday’s vote concluded a tumultuous race marked by unprecedented events, including two assassination attempts on Trump, President Joe Biden’s unexpected withdrawal, and Kamala Harris’s rapid ascent.
No matter the outcome, history will be made. Harris, 60, the first female vice president, would become the first woman, the first Black woman, and the first South Asian American to win the presidency.
Trump, 78, the only president to be impeached twice and the first former president to be criminally convicted, would also become the first president in more than a century to win non-consecutive terms.
