By: Juan Carvajal, Contributing Writer
Donald Trump took the lead in many states at the early stages of the election. Joe Biden took the lead in the National Polls.
So far, Trump has demonstrated how much impact he has had over the last four years. In 2016, after a period of consistent and exhausting campaigning, he was able to defeat Hillary Clinton and defy all the odds against him. The 2020 election seemed like a tug of war between the Democrats and Republicans.
According to Dr. Marco Rimanelli, a political science professor at Saint Leo University, “The results of the election depend on state and precinct […] if the turnout of in-voting of Tuesday is heavy, meaning, if a lot of Republicans vote and a good part of Democrats vote, it will take a few days for the results to be announced.”
“In Philadelphia, where Democrats have the lead, mail-in voting was heavily encouraged especially for people who support the Democratic Party. On Tuesday, nationwide, from all the registered mail-in ballots, 45 percent were from registered Democrats and 35 percent from registered Republicans,” Rimanelli said. “In places like Broward, Miami, and Tampa, which are Democratic, turnout is most likely to be light.”
Some populous states such as Pennsylvania took longer to count votes due to the large number of mail-in ballots.
Source: Twitter
Since turnout will vary between precincts and districts, some states use machines to speed up the counting.
“Ballots can be opened, without being counted, as early as three days before the election day if the legislature of the given precinct decides to do so […] opening the ballots saves a lot of time […] however, based on how strong or light each precinct and district is, the ballots can be counted,” Rimanelli said.
Throughout the day on Nov. 3, Pennsylvania registered 20 electoral votes. Since Pennsylvania is mostly Democratic, Biden has an advantage over Trump in that state. On Nov. 7, the Associated Press called Biden the winner of Pennsylvania.
Amy Coney Barrett is ready to give it her all in the Supreme Court, supported by Donald Trump.
Source: cnn.com
Trump won Florida on Nov. 4 by a tight margin, which helped him gain momentum initially.
Despite leading in Wisconsin early on and winning Wisconsin in 2016, Trump lost the state this election.
According to The Guardian “Trump won Wisconsin in 2016 by fewer than 23,000 votes, a year when voter turnout in key cities such as Milwaukee was also low.”
Other states that are not swing states, like Arizona, were called early.
In Arizona, Biden got the lead. According to a report from azcentral.com, “Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has won Arizona, the first presidential victory for a Democratic candidate here since 1996, but the national race is still too close to call.”
Likewise, Michigan gave the green light to the Democrats on the evening of Nov. 4.
According to the Detroit Free Press, “Democratic nominee Joe Biden won Michigan on Wednesday, giving him a crucial 16 Electoral College votes toward his goal of defeating President Donald Trump’s reelection bid and denying the president a valued prize from his 2016 campaign.”
On Nov. 7, the Associated Press called the election. Biden defeated Trump and became the 46th U.S. president.
The Democrats dislike Barrett, but she is focused on her duty, not on being liked. Source: Twitter
As of Nov. 11, Trump has won Alaska, North Carolina has yet to be called, and Georgia is recounting votes by hand.
While votes are being counted, another concern for many is the appointment of Amy Coney Barrett as the Supreme Court Justice.
After the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Barrett posed as Trump’s ideal replacement for the role of justice
According to whitehouse.gov, “Justice Barrett has made her philosophy clear: She will not legislate from the bench.”
In a report from wusa9, a television station affiliated with CBS, Barrett was asked by Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy if she would recuse herself from any Supreme Court ruling on disputes regarding the 2020 elections. Barrett did not provide a concrete answer.
“I commit to you to fully and faithfully apply the law of recusal. […] and I will apply the factors that other justices have before me […] But I cannot offer a legal conclusion right now about the outcome of the decision I would reach,” said Barrett.
Since Barrett’s nomination to the Supreme Court, Democrats have seen her as an obstacle.
According to The Hill, “Democrats opposed Barrett’s nomination while accusing the GOP of hypocrisy for pushing through the Supreme Court pick within weeks of the election.”
On the other hand, The White House released a statement at the end of October.
“Throughout Justice Barrett’s career, she has faithfully upheld our U.S. Constitution as written. The American Bar Association gave Barrett its highest rating, and she has an impressive track record across the legal profession—as a judge, professor, and litigator.”
