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Election 2020 updates: Biden warns of 'dark winter,' pushes masks in pandemic plan

The president-elect emphasized how he would handle the pandemic response.

ByCatherine Thorbecke, Morgan Winsor, Libby Cathey, Adia Robinson, Lauren King, Emily Shapiro, Ivan Pereira, and Marc Nathanson
Last Updated: November 10, 2020, 10:14 AM EST

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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Here's how election week unfolded. All times Eastern.
Nov 03, 2020, 10:12 PM EST

Collins delivers a speech reflecting on competitive race in Maine

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, took the stage at a coronavirus-compliant outdoor campaign event in Bangor, Maine, and reflected on the competitive Senate race she has had against Democratic Speaker of the Maine House Sara Gideon.

Sen. Susan Collins delivers election night remarks to supporters and staff on Nov. 3, 2020 in Bangor, Maine.
Scott Eisen/Getty Images

Collins said that her opponent has, "thrown everything at her but the kitchen sink but that's also coming." The moderate Republican also touted her history in the Senate, saying that she has never missed a vote -- more than 7,400 over 24 years, and that she co-wrote the Paycheck Protection Program in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Collins, the only Republican holding federal office in New England, has deep institutional support in Maine -- most notably from the Bush clan -- but the state, like many other battlegrounds, has trended increasingly blue since 2016, when Trump nabbed an electoral vote by winning Maine’s 2nd Congressional District.

Gideon has repeatedly outraised Collins, and public polling has shown Gideon ahead of the four-term senator.

-ABC News' Stephanie Ramos, Christopher Donato, Benjamin Siegel and Kendall Karson

Nov 03, 2020, 10:00 PM EST

Polls close in 5 states 

The polls are closing in Iowa, Montana, Utah, in parts of Idaho and Nevada.

Voters get their ballots at the polling place at Syringa Hall in Sweet, Idaho, on Nov. 3, 2020.
Otto Kitsinger/AP

Nov 03, 2020, 9:53 PM EST

Trump projected to win South Carolina

Trump will win South Carolina’s nine electoral votes, ABC News projects, raising his Electoral College standing to 72 votes, while Biden stands at 89.

Nov 03, 2020, 9:39 PM EST

Hickenlooper projected to win Colorado, 1st Senate seat Dems pick up

In the first Senate flip of the night, Democrat John Hickenlooper, former governor of Colorado and 2020 presidential candidate, will defeat GOP Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner, ABC News projects.

John Hickenlooper, Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate seat in Colorado, speaks during a car rally in Denver, Oct. 8, 2020.
David Zalubowski/AP, FILE

It’s a hopeful sign for Democrats who are seeking to flip the upper chamber.

Gardner was seen as one of the most vulnerable incumbents defending his seat heading into the election.

Hickenlooper had to battle against some ethics violations brought down during his time as governor, but his general popularity and assistance from the DSCC helped him through the final months of the election. The race shaped up to be the 10th most expensive at $95,670,908 according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

-ABC News' Meg Cunningham

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