A Recap of the 2020 Election

As most people know, Joe Biden is the winner of the 2020 U.S. presidential election, making him the 46th President-elect. Biden won the Electoral College 306 to 232, and he won the popular vote by more than six million votes. A key to Biden’s victory was winning states such as Arizona, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Georgia, which were won by Trump in 2016. Additionally, some of these states are historically red. Furthermore, this year had one of the highest voter turnouts ever. This election is historic for a number of reasons, but a big reason is that Kamala Harris will be the first women vice president, the first African-American vice president, and the first vice president of South Asian descent. Harris is also the first person of color to be the vice president since Charles Curtis in 1933. 

The Democrats managed to maintain control of the House of Representatives, but they lost seven seats, which surprised many people. The good news for Democrats is that they gained a seat in the Senate and hope to control the Senate by winning both of the two key run-off elections in Georgia. If they win both of the Georgia seats, the Senate will be split 50-50 because two independent senators typically side with the Democrats.

Although Joe Biden won the presidential election, Donald Trump claims that there was voter fraud. He has presented no evidence of election interference. Trump has filed many lawsuits in several states, and most of them have not been successful. There have also been recounts in some states, but none of them have changed results significantly. It is not known how long Trump will contest the results of the election. States must certify their ballots six days before the Electoral College electors meet. On December 14, 2020, the Electoral College electors will vote on who officially will be the next president. In 33 states it is illegal to be a faithless electoral (meaning that it is illegal to vote against the results of that state). Biden will have an extra 72 electors, so the chances of Trump getting 73 to vote against the results of their state is extremely low, and it is something that is historically unlikely.

After the networks called the election, people around the world flooded the streets in celebration of the Biden/Harris victory. However, some worry that the wheels of government will come to a stop because, as of November 20, Trump refuses to let his staff help transition Biden's Administration into the White House. However, there have been reports that members of the Trump Administration have been reaching out to Biden’s team, and thus transition is likely to begin.