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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.

Top headlines:

Here's how election week unfolded. All times Eastern.
Nov 05, 2020, 1:04 PM EST

In Georgia, Trump leading by 13,540 votes

In Georgia, Trump is now leading by 13,540 votes. As of 1 p.m. ET, Trump has 49.5% (2,436,007 votes) while Biden has 49.2% (2,422,467 votes).

Election workers count Fulton County ballots at State Farm Arena on Nov. 4, 2020, in Atlanta.
Jessica Mcgowan/Getty Images

As of 12:45 p.m., Georgia had about 50,401 absentee ballots still outstanding, said Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

As of 9:15 a.m., Chatham County, home to the Democrat-leaning city of Savannah, had the most outstanding absentee ballots with about 17,000. Chatham County went for Hillary Clinton by a 14.7-point margin in 2016.

-ABC News' Elwyn Lopez and Quinn Scanlan

Nov 05, 2020, 1:04 PM EST

Sources say path is 'narrow,' 'tough' for Trump

Sources close to Trump told ABC News Thursday morning that the path ahead is “narrow” and it is increasingly looking “tough” for the president.  

A view of the White House in Washington, D.C., Nov. 5, 2020.
Susan Walsh/AP

Sources say aides are trying to calmly map out a plan forward and they are putting a lot of hope in Arizona.

Supporters of President Donald Trump pause for prayer during a rally outside the Maricopa County Recorders Office, Nov. 4, 2020, in Phoenix.
Matt York/AP

As the numbers tighten, aides say there is “growing concern” with the vote count in Georgia.  

Sources say Trump is asking about the legal options available in some cases and that he's laser focused on Pennsylvania and Arizona. Despite the Trump campaign taking legal action in Michigan and demanding a recount in Wisconsin, Trump sources told ABC News there is no viable path there.

-ABC News' John Santucci

Nov 05, 2020, 12:58 PM EST

Trump team says they've not been provided up-close access to observe Philly vote counting despite court order

Trump campaign senior adviser Corey Lewandowski said the Trump team has not been provided up-close access to observe the Philadelphia vote counting -- in spite of a Thursday morning court order allowing them to stand closer.

“This makes it look like a kangaroo court. We deserve better. And we’re not leaving until we witness every single vote that transpires here,” Lewandowski said.

A Pennsylvania judge Thursday morning granted the Trump campaign’s request to observe -- up-close -- poll workers as they process the remaining mail-in ballots, overturning earlier rules that kept them farther back out of concern about the coronavirus.

The city of Philadelphia has asked the state Supreme Court to overturn the Thursday morning decision.

-ABC News' Alex Hosenball, Ben Siegel and Matt Mosk

Nov 05, 2020, 12:53 PM EST

Judge to order twice-daily sweeps in mail facilities

A federal judge is preparing to order twice-daily sweeps at mail facilities in states with extended ballot-receipt deadlines after the U.S. Postal Service submitted data indicating that thousands of ballots postmarked over the weekend were not returned by Election Day.

New Postal Service data released Thursday showed that as many as 9,000 ballots postmarked over the weekend did not arrive at their destination until Wednesday, including in states with no ballot extension deadlines. In the Atlanta area, for example, 68 such ballots arrived late.

-ABC News' Lucien Bruggeman

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