On Thursday, 5 November, Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden and incumbent President Donald Trump both addressed the nation separately amidst days of nail-biting ballot counting.
Democracy Is Sometimes Messy, Says Biden
In his brief address, Biden projected optimism about the election results and vote counts, saying "the process is working".
Urging for patience, he reiterated that "every vote must be counted."
“The senator and I continue to feel very good about where things stand. We have no doubt that when the count is finished Sen. Harris and I will be declared the winners. So, I ask everyone to stay calm – all people to stay calm. The process is working. The count is being completed. And we’ll know very soon. So, thank you all for your patience, but we’ve got to count the votes,” said a confident Biden.
Biden and Harris spent Thursday being briefed on the COVID-19 crisis facing the US, as the numbers of the cases continue to rise. "Our hearts go out to each and every family who's lost a loved one to this terrible disease," he said in his address.
Biden later tweeted about the same briefing on COVID-19.
Stop the Count: Trump
A few hours later, Trump addressed the American electorate from the White House, breaking a two-day silence with reporters.
The President painted the election results so far in the colour of conspiracy, arguing of schemes to deprive him of a second term by Democrats, election officials in various cities and the news media. "They are trying to steal the election," Trump said.
“If you count the legal votes, I easily win,” Trump began, providing no evidence for his claim. "If you count the illegal votes, they can try to steal the election from us."
“I’ve already decisively won many critical states, including massive victories,” he claimed, also mentioning that “very bad” things are happening around the electoral process.
In his address, Trump continued to press the need to 'stop the count' of the 'votes that came in late'.
The Guardian reported that TV news networks, including ABC, CBS and MSNBC stopped broadcasting the President’s remarks since they made unfounded claims.
As MSNBC cut away from the White House, after the President falsely declared victory, anchor Brian Williams commented, “Here we are again in the unusual position of not only interrupting the President of the United States but correcting the President of the United States.”
Ballot Adjudication Underway in Key States
Under mounting pressure, ballots are continuing to be counted in several battleground states. After two full days of ballot counting, some of them are receiving extra scrutiny in a process known as ballot adjudication.
Although nitty-gritties of the process may vary state and sometimes county-wise, it typically involves a small panel of individuals reviewing a ballot to determine either the voter's intent or whether the ballot can be counted at all based on whether the voter's eligibility.
As of Thursday afternoon, the adjudication process is underway in a number of the battleground states, including Georgia and North Carolina – where President Trump and Joe Biden are locked in a close race, CNN reports.
(With inputs from CNN and The Guardian)
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