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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 08, 2020, 8:36 PM EST

Vote count continues in several states

The election count is continuing in several states. Here is a breakdown, including the percentage of expected vote that has been counted in each state.

Georgia (99% EV in)
Biden: 2,465,781 (49.5%)
Trump: 2,455,428 (49.3%)
Biden's edge: +10,353 votes

Based on ABC News' reporting, there are approximately 14,200 ballots still to be counted, including overseas/military and provisional ballots plus any other outstanding absentee ballots that were cured by the deadline.

Arizona (97% EV in)
Biden: 1,633,181 (49.5%)
Trump: 1,613,833 (48.9%)
Biden's edge: +19,348

There are about 99,399 ballots left to tabulate, 44,668 of which are provisional ballots.

North Carolina (98% EV in)
Biden 2,658,274 (48.6%)
Trump: 2,733,681 (50.0%)
Trump's edge: +75,407

Approximately 95,000 voters who requested an absentee ballot have not yet returned theirs before the state's Nov. 12 deadline. This number does not yet account for voters who requested an absentee ballot but voted in person on Election Day instead.

Nov 08, 2020, 4:06 PM EST

Trump golfed on Sunday

The president was back Sunday at Trump International Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia. Trump was also there on Saturday when ABC News characterized Biden as the apparent winner in Pennsylvania, giving the former vice president the electoral votes he needs to capture the presidency.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump gives two thumbs up to supporters as he departs after playing golf at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling Va., Nov. 8, 2020.
President Donald Trump gives two thumbs up to supporters as he departs after playing golf at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling Va., Nov. 8, 2020.
Steve Helber/AP
PHOTO:A woman holds up a sign that reads "A Time To Heal America" as the motorcade of President Donald Trump passes on the way to the Trump International Gold club in Sterling, Va. on Nov. 8, 2020.
A woman holds up a sign that reads "A Time To Heal America" as the motorcade of President Donald Trump passes on the way to the Trump International Golf club in Sterling, Va. on Nov. 8, 2020.
Andrew Caballero-reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
President Donald Trump walks to his motorcade on the South Lawn of the White House on Nov. 8, 2020.
Andrew Cabalero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

Nov 08, 2020, 3:44 PM EST

Pa. AG tells Supreme Court all counties segregating late ballots, as directed

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro has informed the Supreme Court that, contrary to Republican concerns, all of the state's counties have been complying with the Secretary of State's guidance to segregate late-arriving mail ballots. 

"At the time Secretary of the Commonwealth Kathy Boockvar filed her Response in Application to the Republican Party of Pennsylvania’s Emergency Application for Injunction earlier yesterday, 63 of Pennsylvania’s counties had affirmatively confirmed their understanding and intention to follow the Secretary’s October 28, 2020 and November 1, 2020 guidance, as noted in the Response," he wrote. "The Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth has confirmed that the remaining four Pennsylvania counties have similarly confirmed their understanding and intention to follow that guidance. We would appreciate if you would circulate copies of this letter to the Justices of the Court. "

While waiting for a result in the election, Scott Knuth of Woodbridge, Va., and Christy Pheagin, of Washington, stand outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Nov. 6, 2020.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Shapiro seems to suggest that Justice Samuel Alito's order late Friday was not necessary given that the counties were already doing the segregation, notwithstanding the unfounded GOP speculation that they might not have been.

-ABC News Senior Washington Reporter Devin Dwyer

Nov 08, 2020, 3:18 PM EST

George W. Bush, world leaders congratulate Biden

Former President George W. Bush said in a statement that he spoke with Biden and congratulated him on the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.

Bush said in the statement that he also spoke with Kamala Harris, who he congratulated for “her historic election to the vice presidency.”

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

“Though we have political differences, I know Joe Biden to be a good man, who has won this opportunity to lead and unify our country,” the statement read.

On Sunday, several more world leaders, such as South Korean President Moon Jae-in, the Saudi royal family and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, also congratulated Biden on his apparent win.

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