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.
Here's how election week unfolded. All times Eastern.
Nov 08, 2020, 1:04 AM EST
Biden plans flurry of executive orders to reverse some Trump policies: Sources
Sources familiar with President-elect Biden’s plans say he is discussing signing a flurry of executive orders once he takes office to reverse some of President Trump’s policies over the past four years.
There have been discussions about rejoining the Paris Climate Accords and World Health Organization and repealing the travel ban, sources said, emphasizing that executive action is only one vehicle to implement Biden’s agenda and the priority will be to work with Congress.
A Biden transition official said, "there have been no transition decisions made and we look forward to working with Congress to implement Biden-Harris policies.”
The Washington Post first reported the news about the series of executive orders.
-ABC News' Katherine Faulders
Nov 07, 2020, 10:20 PM EST
Howard University, Harris' alma mater, celebrates historic win
At Vice President-elect Kamala Harris' alma mater, Howard University, in Washington, D.C., the mood among students and members of her sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha, was ecstatic on Saturday. The jubilation on campus kicked off early Saturday afternoon and lasted throughout the evening as Harris and Joe Biden took the stage in Delaware.
Gwen Cofield, a fellow soror who was on campus at the same time Harris in the early 1980s, was among those impatiently watching the results on TV in the past few days.
"With the tension and the voting and accounting of it was stressful," Cofield told ABC News. "There was some sadness in terms of some levels of watching the numbers and what it meant for us as a a nation."
Students and alumni of Howard University, alma mater of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, gather on campus to celebrate her victory with President-elect Joe Biden, Nov. 7, 2020.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
"Ultimately the final numbers showed what direction we want to go at," she added. "And so that is what makes me excited. The tears I ultimately shed will be tears of joy."
Howard University celebrated the news of their famous alum, saying in a statement, "Senator Kamala Harris has swung her Howard hammer and shattered the proverbial glass ceiling into pieces that will not be put back together. In an election that saw more Americans cast a ballot than ever before, a majority of Americans have selected Vice President Biden to be the 46th President and our distinguished alumna Senator Harris to serve as the 49th Vice President of the United States."
One student on campus, Taylor Ward, told ABC News that Harris' rise to vice president "is very empowering and eye-opening knowing that you could potentially do everything that you want to do just because you have an example set for you."
-ABC News' Matthew Vann, Becky Perlow and Faith Abubey
Nov 07, 2020, 9:56 PM EST
Scenes from the celebration in Delaware: PHOTOS
When Biden concluded his remarks, his family joined him on stage, followed by Harris and her relatives.
Supporters of Joe Biden, who is set to become the 46th president of the United States, wait outside the Chase Center for Biden to address the nation, Nov. 07, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Supporters wait at the Chase Center for Joe Biden, who is set to become the 46th president of the United States, to address the nation Nov. 07, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.
Win Mcnamee/Getty Images
President-elect Joe Biden points a finger at his election rally, after news media announced that he won the presidential election, in Wilmington, Del., Nov. 7, 2020.
Kevin Lamarque/Reuters
President-elect Joe Biden and his wife Jill wave to the crowd after speaking at his election rally, after the news media announced that Biden has won the presidential election, in Wilmington, Del., Nov. 7, 2020.
Jim Bourg/Reuters
President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris react as confetti falls, while standing with members of their families, after delivering remarks in Wilmington, Del., on Nov. 7, 2020.
Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images
President-elect Joe Biden addresses the nation from the Chase Center Nov. 07, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.
Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images
President-elect Joe Biden is accompanied on the stage by his wife Jill, and members of their family, after speaking in Wilmington, Del., Nov. 7, 2020.
Andrew Harnik/Pool via Reuters
President-elect Joe Biden kisses a child held by his son Hunter Biden after speaking at his election rally in Wilmington, Del., Nov. 7, 2020.
Jim Bourg/Reuters
Illuminated drones spell BIDEN in the sky after President-elect Joe Biden addressed the country from Wilmington, Del., Nov. 7, 2020.
Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images
Drones illuminate the sky with the numbers 46 after an event by President-elect Joe Biden, Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.
Andrew Harnik/AP
Nov 07, 2020, 9:18 PM EST
Biden concludes quoting hymn that 'captures the faith that sustains me'
"In the last days of the campaign, I began thinking about a hymn that means a lot to me and my family, particularly my deceased son, Beau. It captures the faith that sustains me and which I believe sustains America. And I hope -- and I hope it can provide some comfort and solace to the ... Americans who have lost a loved one through this terrible virus this year," he said.
"'And he will raise you up on eagles' wings, bear you on the breath of dawn, and make you to shine like the sun and hold you in the palm of his hand,'" Biden said, quoting "On Eagles Wings." "And now together on eagles' wings, we embark on the work that God and history have called us to do with full hearts and steady hands, with faith in America and in each other, with love of country, a thirst for justice. Let us be the nation that we know we can be. A nation united, a nation strengthened, a nation healed."
