Voting has closed in the United States and all eyes are on the count in key states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia and North Carolina to decide the race for the White House.

Addressing supporters, Biden said he believes he is “on track” to win. He flipped Arizona, while taking California, Washington, New York and Illinois.

Trump claimed victory prematurely and has continued to falsely claim ballots counted after election day signal malfeasance. He takes Florida, Ohio, Iowa, Missouri and Texas.

Early voting surged to unprecedented levels with just over 100 million early votes cast either in person or by mail before polls opened on Election Day.

A contentious and fast-moving election season held under the spectre of the coronavirus pandemic and protests against racial injustice culminated on Tuesday with millions of US citizens heading to the polls.

Voting across the country on Election Day appeared to go relatively smoothly. Before that, More than 100 million US citizens cast ballots by mail or in in-person in historic early voting.

However, as expected, counting those ballots, especially in states that do not allow the tally to begin until Election Day, has proven more daunting.

Currently, the AP has projected 238 electoral votes for Biden, who so far flipped Republican bastion Arizona. The AP has called 213 electoral votes for Trump, with the AP calling an early victory for the president in battleground Florida. A candidate must clear 270 electoral votes to win.

The nation is now anxiously awaiting results from six key battleground states: Pennsylvania with 20 electoral votes, Michigan with 16, Wisconsin with 10, North Carolina with 15, Georgia with 16, and Nevada with six.

France: Vote result will not affect trade with Europe

The outcome of the presidential elections will have little effect on US-Europe trade relations, France’s finance chief asserted, saying Washington is unlikely to drop its confrontational stance whether Trump wins or not.

The US administration has inflicted billions of dollars worth of tariffs on European imports over the past four years, with Trump claiming unfair barriers against American firms trying to compete on continental markets.

Rouhani: Who wins US election not important for Iran

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has repeated his country’s stance on the US presidential race,  saying it is not important who wins but what actions the next president takes towards sanctions on Iran.

“What is important for us is that America returns to respecting the Iranian nation. We want respect instead of sanctions, no matter who is [in office]. If he lifts the unfair and illegal sanctions and replaces them with respect, then our situation will be different,” Rouhani said in a televised speech on Wednesday.

German minister warns of ‘very explosive situation’

German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer warns the US is facing a “very explosive situation” and a possible systemic crisis after Trump prematurely declared election victory.

Following Trump’s remarks that he will go to the Supreme Court to stop ballots from being tallied, Kramp-Karrenbauer told public broadcaster ZDF: “This election has not been decided … votes are still being counted.”

She said Trump could create “a constitutional crisis in the USA”, calling such a scenario “something that must deeply concern us”.

What might happen if US election result is disputed?

Despite incomplete results from several battleground states that could determine the outcome of the US presidential race, Trump prematurely claimed election victory.

The move confirmed worries that Trump would seek to dispute the election results.

Source: Aljazeera