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Highlights and analysis from Election Day 2020

Presidential election results as ballots are counted in key swing states for President Trump and Joe Biden. Get live coverage and electoral vote updates.
Watch NBC News special election coverage
Watch NBC News special election coverage

Election Day is over, with polls having closed across the country and officials processing both in-person and mail-in ballots.

As Tuesday bled into Wednesday, President Donald Trump and Joe Biden were running a tight race. Trump was projected to win some key battleground states such as Florida, Ohio and Texas, while Biden was projected to win New Hampshire and Minnesota. Meanwhile, election officials in three other key states, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Arizona, still have millions of ballots to count.

This live coverage has ended. Continue reading election news from November 4, 2020.

Read live updates below:

Georgia election official predicts a recount is unlikely, touts record turnout

Gabriel Sterling, a top election official in Georgia, said Wednesday that he expected Democrat Jon Ossoff to ultimately win by more than a half of a percentage point, a margin outside of the recount territory. 

NBC News has not called this race yet, though Ossoff is leading Republican David Perdue. 

Sterling also said that the voter turnout in the runoffs was "unheard of," with more than 4.3 million Georgians voting compared to the November general election, when about 5 million people participated. 

Sterling said that the previous turnout record for a runoff was 2.1 million. 

U.S. adds 100,000 new Covid-19 cases in single day, breaking records

Dartunorro Clark

The U.S. has reported over 100,000 new Covid-19 cases in a single day, breaking a previous record, according to an NBC News tally

This number exceeds the previous single-day record of 98,583 cases in late October. 

As the country grapples with a surge in coronavirus cases, a majority of voters said rising case counts were an important factor in their vote for president —  a reminder of the high stakes of the election as votes continue to be counted.

According to early results from the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, 61 percent of those casting ballots said rising coronavirus cases were a significant factor in their vote — including a quarter who said the surge was the most important factor.

Only 33 percent of voters said recent spikes in Covid-19 cases were not important to their vote for president.

Fulton County, Georgia, election officials expect to process all absentee ballots by midnight

Dartunorro Clark

Rick Barron, director of elections in Fulton County, told reporters Wednesday that the county expects to process its remaining ballots by midnight. 

Barron said by the time they are finished tonight, more than 142,000 absentee ballots will have been processed. As of 7 p.m. ET, over 113,000 of those have already been processed. And of those processed, more than 106,000 have been “adjudicated,” meaning the scanners didn’t pick up something on the ballot and a review panel has to determine voter intent.

No ballots have been rejected in this process, he said, noting that ballots would have been rejected, such as for a signature mismatch, before making it to this process.

NBC News currently rates the race at too close to call, with Trump at 49.9 and Biden at 48.9 percent of the vote and 95 percent of the total vote in. There is a 47,827 vote difference, with Trump's lead narrowing as votes continue to be tallied. 

Fulton is Georgia's most populous county and includes most of the city of Atlanta. Fulton and DeKalb Counties have the most votes left to count. Both areas have heavily African American populations that trend reliably blue in the red state. Exit polls show the vast majority of Black voters in the state supported Biden.

 

Biden campaign brass predicts wins in key battlegrounds, general election

The Biden campaign came out with guns blazing Wednesday morning, with its top brass assertively predicting a victory for their candidate in several key battleground states and in the general election.

“Joe Biden is on track to win this election and he will be the next president of the United States,” Biden campaign manager Jen O'Malley Dillon said on strategy call with reporters.

“By this afternoon, he will have leads in states that will put him over 270 electoral votes,” she added.

When it came to the specific battleground states where votes are still being counted, O’Malley Dillon predicted wins in all except Georgia and North Carolina.

“We believe we have already won Wisconsin,” she said, adding that “we believe this state can be called this morning” for Biden.

In Michigan, she said “we expected the final results to be today and we expect we will win this state.”

In Pennsylvania, she predicted that the ballots that have yet to be counted will come in for Biden at levels that “will more than overcome” the approximate 600,000 vote deficit by which Biden currently trails.

She said the campaign expected Pennsylvania to be called “probably by tomorrow afternoon, evening, from what we understand.”

In Nevada, O’Malley Dillon said “we expect to win this race.”

She expressed less confidence about Georgia, saying that “many outstanding ballots are in the Atlanta area which favors the vice president” and that “we should know pretty soon where we net out in" that state.

North Carolina, O’Malley Dillon said, was “probably leaning toward Trump” but that “we may have to wait several days for the outcome” in the state.

She said Biden would speak to the public later Wednesday. She added that the campaign had “not been in contact formally” with the Trump campaign.

 

Where everything stands as you start your day after Election Day

So, in case you're just tuning in now — here's where everything stands.

  • Biden holds a 224 to 213 Electoral College advantage over Trump with nine states yet to be called. It takes 270 electoral votes to win.
  • In those remaining states, Biden holds a lead in Arizona, Maine, Nevada and Wisconsin, while Trump is up in Alaska, Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina and Georgia. Each is still too close or too early to call.
  • Much of the outstanding vote in those states comes from Democratic stronghold cities like Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Atlanta.
  • Trump has falsely claimed he won the presidential election and vowed to take legal action to stop "all voting." Biden said he is encouraged by the results he's seen so far.
  • Democrats are projected to win the House — but Republicans are eating into their majority.
  • It is still too soon to project control of the Senate. 
  • Biden is currently winning the popular vote by more than 2 million. With much of the outstanding vote coming from urban areas, that number could widen.
  • So far, there has been a much lower level of third-party support. After topping 5 percent in 2016, third-party support is now below 2 percent nationwide.

Votes pour in from Milwaukee, shooting Biden into Wisconsin lead

Just before 5 a.m. on the East Coast, Milwaukee County made public much of its total vote that remained outstanding. 

Once that vote was published, Biden went from trailing by about 100,000 in Wisconsin to taking a lead of more than 10,000 votes.

Wisconsin was one of the tightest states in 2016. A loss there would mean Trump's path to victory becomes significantly more narrow.

Biden wins Hawaii, NBC News projects

Biden will win Hawaii, NBC News projects of a state that was not in question this election.

There are now only nine states that remain uncalled.

As it stands, Biden currently holds a 224 to 213 lead in the Electoral College over Trump. It takes 270 electoral votes to win. 

'Squad' wins re-election

Every member of the so-called House "squad" — Reps. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, D-N.Y., Rashida Tlaib, D-Mi., Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., and Ilhan Omar, D-Minn. — won re-election to their seats.

The results were never much in doubt as each of the congresswomen resides in an overwhelmingly Democratic district. 

Kansas candidate wins seat in legislature despite abuse allegations

A young Democratic candidate who admitted to circulating nude images of a 13-year-old girl is headed to the Kansas State House.

Aaron Coleman, 20, ran uncontested in Kansas House District 37. He garnered 3,496 votes against 2,013 votes cast for write-in candidates, according to the Wyandotte County Election Office. Coleman, who will represent sections of Kansas City, Kansas, declared victory on Facebook late Tuesday night: “People's Democracy has returned to the free state of Kansas after 110 years.” 

After Coleman defeated a seven-term incumbent Democrat by just 14 votes in the primary, multiple women publicly accused Coleman of abusive behavior. Coleman apologized, admitting to many of the accusations, including engaging in "revenge porn," though he denied others. NBC News has not independently verified the allegations.

Coleman ran on a platform of protecting access to abortion, backing the Green New Deal, defunding the police and raising the minimum wage.

'Outrageous, unprecedented, and incorrect': Biden camp slams Trump's remarks

Marianna Sotomayor

Biden's campaign is strongly pushing back on Trump's false claims of victory and threats to fight to stop votes from being counted.

"The president’s statement tonight about trying to shut down the counting of duly cast ballots was outrageous, unprecedented, and incorrect," Campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon said in a statement. "It was outrageous because it is a naked effort to take away the democratic rights of American citizens."

She added, "We repeat what the Vice President said tonight: Donald Trump does not decide the outcome of this election. Joe Biden does not decide the outcome of this election. The American people decide the outcome of this election. And the democratic process must and will continue until its conclusion."

Las Vegas Dreamer hopes Nevada will be blue

Anita Hassan

LAS VEGAS — Dulce Martinez started knocking on doors at 6 a.m. local time Tuesday morning in the east side Latino neighborhoods, encouraging those in the community who had not yet cast their ballots to do so. 

Thirteen hours later, Martinez, 22, a volunteer with Mi Familia Vota, a Latino nonprofit advocacy group, had knocked on 266 doors and was crossing her fingers, hoping her efforts would pay off. 

Besides questions about mail in ballots and polling locations, many people Martinez spoke with also wanted to know how she voted.

Martinez, who immigrated to the United States when she was 3 years old, and was a recipient of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, better known as DACA. Though the Obama-era program — which Trump has tried to shut down — had shielded her and hundreds of thousands of other children, who were brought into the U.S. as children from deportation, she could not vote. 

“So I would tell them there are many kids like me depending on people like you who can vote,”  Martinez, who works as a caregiver, said as she waited in line to grab a late dinner from a food truck at Election Day watch party held on the city’s east side. “You can help protect our lives too.” 

She’s not sure when all the votes will be tallied, or how many people she talked to on Tuesday went to cast their vote, but she’s hoping it’s enough to keep Nevada, a battleground state, in the blue.

Allegheny County in Penn. suspending mail-in ballot scanning until 10 a.m.

Matt Wargo

Matt Wargo and Maura Barrett

NBC News has learned Allegheny County is suspending the scanning of mail-in ballots until 10 a.m. local time Wednesday. 

“The county has made the decision to suspend scanning and will begin again after 10 AM. Staff are being asked to report at 10 AM and scanning will begin shortly after," said Amie Downs, spokesperson for Allegheny County.

There are currently 348,485 mail-in and absentee ballots that have been returned. Of those, 173,068 are scanned and uploaded and approximately 29,000 will be reviewed manually through the Return Board process. The remaining 146,537 will be scanned beginning late Wednesday morning and updates provided as that process begins until complete.

“After discussion with staff and the observers here, it allowed time for everyone to get a little rest before reconvening. The staff doing the scanning were not on separate shifts," Downs said. "The same group was running the process the entire time.”

All ballots have been secured in the warehouse with county police patrolling the facility all evening. The facility is also under 24-hour video surveillance.

With millions of votes still to be counted, Trump falsely claims he won

Shortly after 2 a.m. ET on Wednesday and with millions of votes left to be counted, Trump falsely claimed he won the presidential election.

"This is a fraud on the American public," he told supporters and members of the media in a White House address. "This is an embarrassment to our country. We were getting ready to win this election, frankly we did win this election."

He then vowed to take legal action to stop "all voting."

In Pennsylvania, Trump said the Democrats "aren't even close" because he currently holds a lead of less than 700,000 votes with about 75 percent of the expected vote in.

Much of the remaining vote to be counted in Pennsylvania is of the early-and-mail-in variety, which skews heavily toward Democrats. It's also coming from areas like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, the two biggest sources of Democratic votes in the state.

As it stands, NBC News estimates that more than 1.84 million votes remain to be counted in Pennsylvania, well more than Trump's lead. 

Earlier Wednesday, Biden also expressed confidence he would win Pennsylvania. The Biden campaign pushed back strongly on Trump's remarks, calling them "outrageous, unprecedented, and incorrect."

"Donald Trump does not decide the outcome of this election," said Biden Campaign Manager Jen O’Malley Dillon. "Joe Biden does not decide the outcome of this election. The American people decide the outcome of this election. And the democratic process must and will continue until its conclusion.”

Ten states still haven’t been called by NBC News, including Georgia, Michigan and Wisconsin. Trump boasted about leading in those states, though a large amount of votes in Democratic areas like Atlanta, Milwaukee and Detroit is still outstanding.

Then, in Arizona, where Biden is ahead, Trump said any declaration of Biden's victory there is premature.

“We have a lot of life in that," he said.

He mentioned victories in Florida, Ohio and Texas, which NBC News has called for the president, and added that he should be counted as the winner in North Carolina, which NBC News has not called yet, as the race remains too close.

NBC News Exit Poll: Early voters swung for Biden; Election Day voters backed Trump

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

The race for president cannot yet be characterized in a number of battleground states at least in part because of the sharply divided results between Election Day ballots and early votes, many of which have yet to be counted.

According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, voters who went to the polls on Tuesday backed President Trump by a 60 percent to 38 percent margin. The poll of early voters found they did the exact opposite, backing Joe Biden by 21 points. The Democrat got even more support from those who mailed back their ballots — 66 percent to 33 percent — than he did from those who cast an early vote in person — 52 percent to 45 percent.

Indecision was not a primary reason why one-third of the electorate decided to wait until Tuesday to vote. Nearly equal numbers of Election Day (82 percent) and early voters (84 percent) said they made up their minds more than a month ago.

Sarah McBride to become first transgender state senator in U.S. history

Dan Avery

Sarah McBride has won her Delaware state Senate race, poising her to become the first and only openly transgender state senator in the U.S. and the country's highest-ranking transgender official.

"I hope tonight shows an LGBTQ kid that our democracy is big enough for them, too," McBride, 30, tweeted Tuesday night after the election was called. "As Delaware continues to face the Covid crisis, it's time to get to work to invest in the policies that will make a difference for working families."

She easily defeated Republican Steve Washington to represent Delaware's 1st Senate District. Incumbent Democrat Harris McDowell, who did not seek re-election after 44 years, had endorsed McBride.

The 1st District covers Bellefonte, Claymont and parts of Wilmington, the state's largest city.

NBC News projects Steve Daines wins Montana Senate race, a blow to Democrats who hoped to flip seat

Dartunorro Clark

NBC News projects Republican Steve Daines wins re-election in his Montana Senate race, a blow to Democrats who hoped to flip the seat. 

Daines won against Democrat Steve Bullock, who is the state's governor, with 52.5 percent of the vote as of 2:30 a.m. Wednesday. 

Bullock, who ran an unsuccessful campaign for president, left the race to run in the Senate, which Democrats thought could give them an edge in the state and a win toward a Senate majority. 

Voters reject DA who recused herself from Ahmaud Arbery case

Janell Ross

In coastal Georgia, voters ejected from office a longtime prosecutor, Jackie Johnson, a Republican who declined to handle a case in which three white men chased, shot and killed a Black man on camera. Instead, voters elected Keith Higgins, an independent. 

In February, Johnson recused herself the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery, whose family has said he was jogging through a Brunswick, Ga., neighborhood when a trio of white men, including a father and son, chased him in their cars. The men approached Arbery with guns drawn, and one of them shot Arbury. The fatal shooting was captured on camera. Two of the three men later played a role in circulating footage of the incident. One of the men had previously worked as an investigator in Johnson’s office.

But a number of questions have been raised about instructions Johnson gave police and others after Arbery was killed. The three men involved in Arbery’s shooting death were allowed to go home and not arrested on the day of the shooting. Two months would pass before the case reached the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and arrests were made. The three men involved have denied any wrongdoing but remain in jail awaiting trial. Johnson and a second prosecutor who picked up the case then wrote a memo recommending no charges for the three men and have since become the subject of state and federal investigations.

Johnson, appointed prosecutor in 2010, received just 34 percent of the votes cast, while Higgins received 66 percent.

White House guests, including Fox News personalities, schmooze and watch results

Dartunorro Clark

Guests, including Fox News personalities, are schmoozing with wine in White House as Trump speaks as the election hangs in the balance. 

Fox News is on in the East Room playing results. Guests were seen enjoying wine and cheering as they mill about East Room. Guests estimated at about 150 people. 

Newt Gingrich and his wife, Callista Gingrich, who is the ambassador to the Holy See, are there. Also Fox News’ Laura Ingraham, Raymond Arroyo, Jeanine Pirro and former Fox Nation contributors Diamond and Silk attended. 

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar was also in attendance, the only one in attendance who appeared to be seen wearing a mask. 

CORRECTION (Nov. 4, 2020, 1:25 p.m. ET): A previous version of this post misstated the affiliations of social media personalities Diamond and Silk. They are former Fox Nation contributors, not Fox News contributors.

Arizona, Montana, South Dakota vote to legalize use of marijuana

The states of Arizona, Montana and South Dakota voted on Election Day to legalize the use of recreational marijuana for adults, NBC News projects.

A measure establishing a medical marijuana program in South Dakota also passed.

Earlier on Tuesday, the state of New Jersey also voted to legalize the use and possession of marijuana for recreational purposes, NBC News projected.

 

NBC News Exit Poll: Support for Trump increased among Black and Hispanic voters

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Trump appears to have boosted his support among voters of color this year, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters. Trump won 12 percent of the Black vote, which is the highest share for a Republican candidate in the past 20 years. The last Republican to win 12 percent of the Black vote was Bob Dole in 1996. 

Trump also improved on his 2016 performance among Hispanic voters. He achieved the highest level of Hispanic support (32 percent) for a GOP candidate since George W. Bush in 2004 (44 percent). Among both Blacks and Latinos, support was stronger among men than women. 

Hispanic Trump supporters said that the economy was by far the most important issue for their vote, with two-thirds (67 percent) citing that issue. There were too few Black Trump supporters in the exit poll to reliably analyze their top issue.

NBC News Exit Poll: Biden peels off 2016's third-party voters and non-voters

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Biden is performing well among voters who say they did not vote in 2016, as well as those who cast ballots for candidates other than Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump four years ago.

According to results from the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, 2020 voters who sat on the sidelines in 2016 are splitting for Biden by a significant margin: 61 percent cast a ballot for Biden, while 37 percent voted for Trump.

Most of those who did not vote in 2016, but voted this year, are younger and more Democratic than the 2020 electorate overall: 53 percent are under 30, and 40 percent say they usually think of themselves as Democrats. 

Voters who did not vote for either of the two major parties in 2016 also split for Biden — by more than 2 to 1: 62 percent of these voters cast a ballot for Biden while 24 percent voted for Trump.

Voter flies to Georgia from D.C. after absentee ballot failed to be delivered

After her absentee ballot failed to be delivered to her county election office, Joanne Fairley, 54, flew from Washington, D.C., to Georgia on Election Day to vote in person. Once Fairley landed in Atlanta, she traveled to her polling location in DeKalb County, only to learn that there was a computer issue affecting voting machines.

A poll worker provided Fairley with a provisional ballot instead; Fairley said a supervisor at the polling station told her that the “glitch” had happened to three other people on Tuesday, all of whom were looking to place in-person votes after their absentee ballots did not go through.

The Georgia Board of Elections did not respond to a request for comment from NBC News.

Fairley called it the most important election of her lifetime, explaining why she paid to travel by plane and rent a car to cast her vote.

"I feel whatever happens over the next 24 hours, I have done my part and I have used my voice and used the means that I have to make a difference," she said.

NBC News Exit Poll: Biden the projected winner in Minnesota, gains ground there

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Biden is the projected winner in Minnesota tonight after gaining ground among groups that were favorable toward Clinton in 2016 — and reversing some of the cratering that hampered Democratic candidates in the upper Midwest four years ago.

Biden did particularly well among voters under 30 (64 percent voted for him), voters who most wanted a candidate who could unite the country (80 percent), moderate voters (63 percent) and white women (57 percent).

Biden also made up some ground that Democrats lost in 2016 among white working-class voters. Four years ago, 33 percent of white voters with no college degree in Minnesota cast a ballot for Clinton. Today, 42 percent of that group voted for Biden —  a 9 percentage point improvement.

Oregon voters approve ‘magic’ mushrooms for therapeutic use

The Associated Press

Voters in Oregon have passed a measure legalizing controlled, therapeutic use of psilocybin mushrooms, as well as a measure decriminalizing possession of small amounts of heroin, cocaine, LSD, oxycodone and some other drugs.

They’ve also approved measures on cigarette taxes and political contributions. Also on the ballot are two high-profile drug measures and a U.S. Senate race while people in Portland choose a mayor in a race that has drawn national attention amid ongoing protests in the state’s largest city.

Voters in Nevada may not see final results for days

Anita Hassan

LAS VEGAS — As the hours went by, the mood turned solemn during Election Day watch party at an east Las Vegas banquet hall, where only a few remained to watch news reports on elections results across the country. 

“I think it’s still too early to tell and I don’t want to get my hopes up,” said Nevada state Assemblywoman Selena Torres, who was one of about 10 people remaining at the watch party shortly after 10:30 p.m. 

Nevada state officials have said that final results would not be available until several days after the election. About 30 Las Vegas polling locations stayed open an extra hour, till 8 p.m., after a judge granted a request from President Trump’s campaign to keep them open longer because of make up for delayed openings. According to NBC News' count, only about 7 percent of the expected vote had been counted a few hours after the polls closed.

Torres, a Democrat, said she hopes that Biden will win Nevada and that the state will be able to maintain its democratic majority in both the state house and senate. She added she is proud of the work that so many have done to engage the Latino vote in Nevada this election cycles. 

“Now it’s time to see if it was enough,” she said. 

NBC News Exit Poll: Among small share of voters dissatisfied with both candidates, Trump was clear choice

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

A small share of voters across the country found little to like about either President Trump or Joe Biden this year, a sign of their general dissatisfaction with the choices presented by the two parties. According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, these voters have solidly backed Trump.

Disaffected voters of several types were drawn to the president:

  • Thirteen percent of voters said they would be either “concerned” or “scared” regardless of whether Biden or Trump wins the presidency. They broke for Trump, 66 percent to 20 percent.
  • Six percent of voters said that neither Biden nor Trump has the temperament to serve as president. They overwhelmingly supported Trump over Biden, 65 percent to 17 percent.
  • Just 4 percent of voters said they had unfavorable views of both Biden and Trump. They gave their vote to Trump, 52 percent to 33 percent.

NBC News Exit Poll: More Iowa voters want a Republican-controlled Senate

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

In the hotly contested Senate race in Iowa, Republican incumbent Joni Ernst has faced a tough challenge from Democrat Theresa Greenfield. NBC News projects that Ernst will hold onto her Senate seat for another term.

Iowa voters are closely divided over how they see President Trump’s job performance, but a majority of Iowans this election want to see Republicans retain control of the U.S. Senate. Fifty-four percent prefer a Republican-controlled Senate; 41 percent prefer Democratic control.

And of those voters who want to see the GOP control of the Senate, 92 percent supported Ernst, with just 4 percent backing Greenfield.

NBC News Exit Poll: In Iowa, Trump draws support from white evangelicals and rural voters

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

NBC News projects that President Trump will pull out a repeat win in Iowa, albeit with a smaller overall margin than in 2016. 

Trump drew strong support from his core constituencies in Iowa, including about 7 in 10 white evangelical voters, a similar share as four years ago, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters. Trump also captured 68 percent of the vote from white men with no college degree in Iowa and about 6 in 10 votes from those in rural areas of the state.

The poll shows that voters in Iowa who were looking for a strong leader overwhelmingly picked Trump; 80 percent of this group selected him for re-election.

Iowa key groups Trump exit poll

Mississippi Senate rematch ends Democrats' hopes for an upset

JACKSON, Miss. — Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi will serve a full term after winning her election bid.

Supporters of Democratic challenger Mike Espy had hoped this year’s race would be competitive. In 2018, Espy and Hyde-Smith faced off in a special election, resulting in one of the state’s tightest Senate races in recent history.

Guests at Hyde-Smith's campaign watch party in Jackson cheered as she took the stage for a victory speech.

A few miles away, Wilburn Smith, 27, spent most of the night at a downtown restaurant hoping Espy would pull off an upset.

Had Espy won, he would have been Mississippi’s first Black senator since Reconstruction. Smith saw potential in Espy, a native of the Mississippi Delta, to address longstanding disparities in the state.

“We have been at the bottom of everything,” he sighed.

Biden wins Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District, NBC News projects

NBC News projects Biden will win Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District, marking the first flip from 2016 that NBC News has called so far.

Trump and Biden remain close in the Electoral College race, with Biden slightly ahead at 220 to 213. It takes 270 electoral votes to win.

The congressional district's solo vote is crucial in the event of a possible tie, which some elections experts have said is more likely than in the past due to the changing electorate.

Should Trump manage to hold on to states he won in 2016 other than Michigan, Wisconsin and Arizona, there could be an Electoral College tie. In that scenario, a tie would be broken by the state delegations in the House of Representatives, each with one vote; they are currently majority Republican. Should Trump fail to win that trio of states, along with one of Maine or Nebraska's congressional districts, he could lose the race by just one Electoral College vote.

 

NBC News projects Democratic Tina Smith of Minnesota wins Senate race

Dartunorro Clark

NBC News projects Democratic Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota will head back to the Senate. 

She beat her Republican challenger, Jason Lewis, with 49.3 percent, as of 1:30 a.m. with 86 percent of the vote in.

This is a race Democrats did not expect to be competitive, but President Trump campaigned heavily in the state hoping to flip it. Biden carried the state, however, according to an NBC News projection. 

Ballot delivery by helicopter

 

Biden wins Minnesota, NBC News projects

NBC News projects that Biden will win Minnesota. His victory in the state with 10 Electoral College votes extends a blue streak where Hillary Clinton won narrowly over Trump in 2016.

A Democrat has won Minnesota in every presidential election since 1972.

Trump made a big play for Minnesota, hoping to flip it after coming just short in 2016.

Biden now holds a 220 to 213 lead over Trump in the Electoral College.

NBC News Exit Poll: Biden loses some support from Black men as compared to past Democratic candidates

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Support for the Democratic presidential candidate reached a new low among Black men this year, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters. Eighty percent of Black men supported Biden, which is slightly down from Clinton’s level of support among Black men in 2016 (82 percent). It is significantly down from Obama’s level of support from Black men in 2012 (87 percent) and 2008 (95 percent). 

Support for the Democratic presidential candidate appears to be slipping among Black women as well, but to a much smaller degree. Biden still enjoyed support from more than 9 out of every 10 Black women voters.

There were a few groups that appear to have driven this shift toward Trump among Black men. Over half of Black men (52 percent) who identified as ideologically conservative cast their vote for Trump, and one in three Black men (35 percent) living in the Midwest also voted for Trump.

Also about 26 percent of Black men who had a high school diploma or less supported Trump in 2020. But 22 percent of Black men with bachelor’s degrees, and 20 percent of Black men with advanced degrees also supported Trump. Black men with some college education broke for Biden at levels comparable to those of Black women.

NBC News Exit Poll: Trump support among white voters declining slightly in industrial Midwest

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Support for President Trump among white college graduates is generally trending down across the industrial Midwest states formerly known as the "blue wall." According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, Trump is winning the support of 43 percent of college-educated white voters in Michigan, which is down from 51 percent in 2016. The pattern is similar in Pennsylvania, though far less pronounced in Wisconsin.    

The exit poll indicates that support for Trump has also dropped in this region among white voters who did not graduate college, with the notable exception of Pennsylvania. In the Keystone State, Trump is maintaining his strong support among working-class white voters, carrying nearly two-thirds of their vote this year. In Michigan and Wisconsin, however, Trump’s vote share among white voters who did not graduate college is down by about 5 to 8 percentage points.

Rep. Ben Ray Lujan wins Senate race in New Mexico, NBC News projects.

Dartunorro Clark

Rep. Ben Ray Lujan wins the Senate race in New Mexico, NBC News projects.

This was a race to watch, but one safely in the Democratic column. As of 1:15 a.m., Lujan beat his Republican challenger Mark Ronchetti with 51.4 percent of the vote. 

Currently, both sides have flipped one Senate seat, so the status quo hasn't changed. 

With Biden's speech done, cars at drive-in rally leave

WILMINGTON, Del. — As quickly as the parking lot at Biden’s campaign headquarters filled up, it emptied out even more quickly.

Moments after Biden finished speaking, cars that had come to the Chase Center on the Riverfront for the drive-in rally departed. 

The parking lot is largely empty once again.

The Biden campaign has called a "lid" - meaning there will be no more public appearances by Biden tonight.

Trump wins Texas, NBC News projects

NBC News projects that Trump will win Texas.

There has for months been talk of Texas turning blue, but it didn't happen this year. Trump easily knocked off Clinton there in 2016 and came out the winner again, collecting 38 Electoral College votes — the biggest pot of any battleground state.

Trump now leads Biden 212 to 209 in the Electoral College. It takes 270 votes to win.

California passes Proposition 22, backed by Uber and Lyft

Uber and Lyft picked up the support of California voters Tuesday, as they passed a measure that allows the app-based, ride-hailing services to classify drivers as independent contractors, NBC News projects.

Proposition 22 will make the companies exempt from a 2019 law, Assembly Bill 5, that greatly narrowed the definition of independent contractors, thus making more workers eligible for benefits such as sick leave, health care and unemployment benefits. 

The ride-hailing services had threatened to leave California if Proposition 22 didn’t pass.

Biden's early morning speech sparks optimism at Wilmington event

WILMINGTON, Del. — As Joe Biden spoke early Wednesday morning, the crowd at his campaign’s drive-in rally at the Chase Center on the Riverfront, in Wilmington, used their cars to let him know of their strong support.

Horns blared as Biden said, “we feel good.” And people cheered as he said “we can know the results as early as tomorrow morning”

After Biden wrapped up his remarks, supporters said they were relieved he spoke publicly about the election results — with many saying they were feeding off his optimism.

“I’m feeling inspired now,” Stephanie Ingram, of Newark, Delaware, said. Asked if she thought Biden would win, Ingram said “I really think he will.”

“Fingers crossed,” she added.

“It was short, it was sweet, it was to the point," said Victor Sloan, a rheumatologist who said he spent eight hours over the weekend canvassing for Biden. "It was exactly what we needed to hear."

NBC News Exit Poll: Trump's projected Florida win driven by voters who say racism, climate change not a problem

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

President Trump is projected to win Florida with a slightly larger share of the vote than he received in 2016, driven by groups including white Christians, white men, white voters who did not graduate college and rural voters, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters. That's a set of groups similar to those that drove Trump's success in the state four years ago. 

Trump florida exit poll 2

On the issues, Trump  won support in Florida from voters who do not believe climate change or racism are a problem: Nearly 90 percent of his supporters in Florida said they held each of those views. About 85 percent of voters who said that crime was one of the most important issues shaping their vote also supported Trump. In addition, his win in Florida was propelled by voters who prioritize rebuilding the economy over containing the coronavirus.

Trump florida exit poll

A Las Vegas woman convinced her husband to be her voice at the polls

Anita Hassan

LAS VEGAS — Mira Hernandez paced back and forth outside a north central Las Vegas polling site Tuesday evening, shortly before the polls closed. She wanted to make sure her husband cast his ballot. For two weeks, she’d been asking him to vote. 

On Tuesday, she finally got him out to a polling location at Meadows Mall in north central Las Vegas. 

Hernandez, 27, immigrated to Las Vegas from Mexico about four years ago and while she is a legal resident, she cannot vote. But her husband, Danny Hernandez, 29, was born in the United States and could vote— he just never had. Danny did not think voting mattered or that it would make any real impact. 

“I told him you have to do this for me, for my parents and for our family,” Mira Hernandez said. The couple have 4-year-old twins. She told him his vote for Joe Biden could make a difference for the future of immigration law, her residency status and their lives.  

About 25 minutes later, Danny Hernandez walked out of the polling site. His wife grabbed his arm and kissed him on the shoulder. He turned and looked at her. 

“Now, let’s just hope it counts,” he said.

Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa wins re-election, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

NBC News projects Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa wins re-election. 

This was one of the key Senate races of the election that Democrats had hoped to win in the crucial battleground state. Ernst faced a tough re-election battle against Democratic challenger Theresa Greenfield.

But as of 1 a.m. Wednesday, Ernst won the race with 51.6 percent of the vote, NBC News projects. 

Trump wins Iowa, NBC News projects

NBC News projects that Trump will win Iowa, giving him another swing state victory after earlier wins in Florida and Ohio.

The victory is a repeat performance for the president, who won Iowa handily four years ago over Hillary Clinton. The state has six Electoral College votes.

Las Vegas Election Day watch party also honors volunteers

Anita Hassan

Cheers erupted at an east Las Vegas Banquet hall on Tuesday night as the Nevada Chapter of Mi Familia Vota, a national, nonpartisan Latino voting group, handed out awards to its local volunteers. 

About 60 people gathered at the Election Day watch party at the Luxury Event Center, hosted by Mi Familia Vota and Nevada state Assemblywoman Selena Torres. The event included a local food truck in the parking lot and socially distanced tables inside for those who wanted to watch election results on the projection screen. 

During the watch party, the organization also handed out awards to many of its volunteers who spent two weeks canvassing and knocking on doors throughout the state encouraging Nevada’s Latino community to vote.

Cecia Alvarado, Nevada state director for Mi Familia Vota, said that volunteers knocked on 6,000 doors alone between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m. local time on Tuesday.  

“This has been an amazing effort by our volunteers,” Alvarado said.

Biden speaks to supporters, expresses confidence he's going to win

Biden spoke to supporters in Wilmington, Delaware, shortly after midnight and expressed optimism about his chances for victory.

"We feel good about where we are," he said, adding, "We feel we're on track to win this election. We knew, because of the unprecedented early vote, the mail-in vote, it was going to take a while. We have to be patient." 

"And it ain't over until every vote is counted, every ballot is counted," he continued. "But we're feeling good, we're feeling good about where we are."

He expressed confidence that he would come out victorious in Arizona, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, giving him the presidency.

"Look, we could know the results as early as tomorrow morning," he said, noting that it could still be later. "It's not my place or Donald Trump's place to declare who won this election," but the American voters.

Biden holds a 205 to 165 lead over Trump in the Electoral College.

NBC News Exit Poll: Majority of Asian Americans nationwide support Biden

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Asian Americans are diverse group of voters, comprising many different heritages and immigrant experiences in the United States. When considered as a group, however, 63 percent of Asian American voters across the nation cast their ballot for Democrat Joe Biden while 31 percent voted for President Trump, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters. 

Those figures are similar to 2016 when Hillary Clinton drew support from 65 percent of Asian American voters. Obama won about the same share of that voting bloc in his first bid for the presidency in 2008; he captured a higher share of their votes in 2012.

Among Asian voters nationwide, men tilted more heavily to the Democratic presidential candidate this election than women: 66 percent of Asian American men voted for Biden and 25 percent for Trump. Asian American women broke for Biden by a margin of 60 percent to 39 percent.

Third-party vote vastly diminished compared to 2016

NBC News Exit Poll: Latino voters show small shifts in some Sun Belt states

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Latinos constitute a large share of the electorate in some of the battleground states across the Sun Belt, and small shifts in how they vote could help shape outcomes in key states such as Arizona, Texas and Nevada. All three states are too early to call, though Joe Biden is leading in Arizona and President Trump is leading in Texas.

In Arizona, the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters indicates that Biden won about 64 percent of the state's Latino electorate — a slightly larger share than the 61 percent that Clinton won in 2016. It is a small shift, but it could carry weight: Latinos constitute just over 1 out of every 5 voters in Arizona, and the state went for Trump in 2016 by a margin of only 80,000 votes. This shift toward Biden largely comes at the expense of third -party candidates, as opposed to reduced support for Trump.

In Texas, where Latino voters make up about a quarter of the electorate, Latino support for Biden is almost identical to the level of support that Clinton received in 2016. Trump, however, seems to be doing slightly better among Latino voters in Texas. Similar to Biden’s performance in Arizona, Trump’s gains in Texas appear to have come at the expense of the third-party candidates who won about five percent of Texas’ Latino electorate in 2016.

Finally, in Nevada, where Latinos constitute about 1 out of every 5 voters, more than 33 percent of Latino voters said they supported Trump, the exit poll found. This is a slight uptick from 2016, when Clinton carried Nevada with just 25,000 votes.

Trump wins Florida, NBC News projects

NBC News projects that Trump will win Florida.

The state, where the president resides and where he voted and campaigned frequently, is one of the biggest prizes of the night with 29 Electoral College votes. It had been considered a virtual must-win for Trump’s chances of keeping his hold on the White House.

Biden now leads Trump 205 to 165 in electoral votes. It takes 270 to win the Electoral College

Why the vote result is delayed in Georgia

Janell Ross

ATLANTA — A number of factors may have contributed to Georgia's inability to count all of its votes Tuesday night, despite most polls closing at 7 p.m. ET.

All told, 3.9 million Georgia voters cast their ballots before Election Day — that's nearly as many voters who turned out in 2016 overall. This year, however, after long lines during the state’s primary, many voters chose to vote early to avoid in-person voting on Election Day, out of fears that crowded polling sites would increase exposure to Covid-19. 

This change required election officials to tally far more mail-in and early ballots than ever before, including in Fulton County, which includes Atlanta. But in Fulton County, tallying early and mail-in ballots became far more complicated when a pipe burst in State Farm Arena, which is a counting center.

Fulton County election officials halted counting for two hours and announced that they would stop counting for the night at 10:30 p.m. ET. Then, just after 10:30, officials announced they would instead continue counting Tuesday night. However, officials indicated that preliminary vote totals may not become available until after Wednesday. 

Photo: Watch parties go too late for some

A boy sleeps at the table at a watch party for Republicans on election day in Austin, Texas.
A boy sleeps at the table at a watch party for Republicans on election day in Austin, Texas.Sergio Flores / AFP - Getty Images

Here’s why we still don’t know who won the presidency

Heidi Przybyla

Jane C. Timm and Heidi Przybyla

Election Day has come and gone and we still don't know who won the White House.

Well, get comfortable, because we could be here for awhile: in three key battleground states, election officials still have millions of ballots to count.

While each of the states has varying processes, absentee ballot processing is a time-consuming process; signatures and voter registrations must be verified — often by hand — before ballots can even be tabulated. 

Image: Kristina Sladek, an election worker in Chester County, Pa., opens mail-in and absentee ballots on Election Day.
Kristina Sladek, an election worker in Chester County, Pa., opens mail-in and absentee ballots on Election Day.Matt Slocum / AP

Pennsylvania: 

Election officials began processing the nearly 2.5 million mail ballots received on Tuesday morning. Officials have warned it could take days for them to process, verify and tabulate the mail ballots, and don't forget that the state doesn’t even have all the mail ballots it will count. Ballots mailed on Election Day have until Friday to be received. 

At least seven counties are also choosing to wait to start processing and counting their mail-in ballots on Wednesday morning, due to space and resource limitations. 

Wisconsin:

Election officials were also barred from counting mail-in ballots until Election Day, and some Democratic areas including Milwaukee count mail ballots in centralized locations before the tallies are sent back to the counties for reporting. 

Michigan:

More than 3 million people have voted by mail, and most jurisdictions did not begin processing those ballots until today. While Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson had previously warned the counting could take until the end of the week, she told NBC News on Tuesday that the final tally will be coming in “much sooner than Friday."

NBC News Exit Poll: Trump gets higher marks than 4 years ago, but most voters still view him negatively

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Voters view President Trump more favorably than they did in 2016, according to results from the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters. More voters also said this year that they think Trump is presidential, and more said they are optimistic about the prospect of his victory.  

This year, 45 percent of voters said their opinion of Trump was favorable, while 53 percent said it was unfavorable. That’s a dramatic narrowing of the favorability gap Trump faced among voters in 2016, when it was 38 percent to 60 percent. 

Trump favorable exit poll

Trump has improved in voters’ minds in other ways over the past four years. When asked if they think Trump has the “temperament to serve effectively as president,” 44 percent of voters this year said yes. In 2016, just 35 percent thought so. This year, 44 percent of voters said they’d be either “excited” or “optimistic” if he wins the presidency; that’s up from 40 percent in 2016.

To be sure, Trump remains underwater on all of these questions: As in 2016, majorities of voters this year gave him negative marks on favorability, temperament and their reaction to a potential win. 

Hope, worry and cheers at Biden event in Wilmington

Image: Democratic Presidential Candidate Joe Biden Holds Election Night Event In Delaware
A supporter attends a drive-in election night event for Joe Biden at the Chase Center in Wilmington, Del.Win McNamee / Getty Images

WILMINGTON, Del. — The Biden drive-in rally in Wilmington, Delaware, has yet to officially get underway, but with results continuing to come in and the parking lot nearing a socially-distanced capacity, Biden supporters said they remained hopeful their candidate would win. But many also hinted they felt concerned that the race hadn’t yet been called for him as Tuesday night became Wednesday morning.

Carla Broadway, an elementary school counselor from Wilmington, said she was “trying to stay positive but also realistic.”

“I am sticking with hope,” she said. “I am holding out hope for a better, kinder America led by Joe Biden.”

Her sister, Linda Broadway, said she also felt “very hopeful" that Biden would win. While both Broadway sisters spoke, NBC News called the race in Virginia for Biden, which was announced on the MSNBC broadcast being played at the event. People cheered and car horns blared as the call was made.

Moments earlier, Greg Patterson, who works for the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, acknowledged that he’d hoped Biden “would have had a few more wins in swing states at this point in the night" and that "we would not have not had to wait for Pennsylvania.”

“But it might come down to Pennsylvania, so we’re going to need to settle in for a long night and maybe a few days,” he said.

His daughter, Wyatt Patterson, said she was “excited” and “anxious” and “hoping for some more clear-cut results” in the next few hours.

Word of the night from the Biden campaign is 'slog'

Arizona is offering encouragement to the Biden team for a much-needed flip tonight. And they remain confident in the outcome in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

But they are conceding that the Democrats' hopes for a clean and convincing victory that could be celebrated on election night are unlikely to be realized, given the likelihood the full vote counts won’t come in tonight from those states. 

“The 'blue wall' has always been our primary path to victory,” a top Biden official tells NBC News. Another official said they are still “confident" in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. 

NBC News Exit Poll: Biden is the projected winner in Virginia with the help of independents

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Former Vice President Joe Biden is the projected winner in Virginia, a state that delivers 13 electoral votes. One of the critical groups in Biden’s fortunes tonight come from independents.

According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, Biden won off 56 percent of independent voters in Virginia. That’s a healthy advantage over the 39 percent of this group who cast their ballot for Trump.

Biden’s performance with independent voters is considerably better than how previous Democratic candidates have fared in the state. In 2016, Clinton won 43 percent of independent voters, the same share that President Obama captured in his 2012 re-election bid. In 2008, Obama and Republican candidate John McCain closely split independent voters in the state.

 

Biden wins Virginia, NBC News projects

NBC News projects that Biden will win Virginia, an unexpected victory in what has been in the past a swing state.

Biden now holds a 205 to 136 lead over Trump in electoral votes. A total of 270 votes are needed to win the Electoral College.

Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, Republican Jim Risch of Idaho win re-election

Dartunorro Clark

Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, Republican Jim Risch of Idaho win re-election, NBC News projects. 

As of 12 a.m. Wednesday, Warner received 54 percent of the vote, maintaining the Democrats' hold onto the Senate seat there. Similarly, Republicans held onto their seat with Risch, who received 54.9 percent of the vote, as of midnight. 

Polls close on Election Day with no apparent cyber interference

After years of planning and worry, polls closed on Election Day 2020 without the country seeing any substantial public cyberattack.

"I think what you're seeing more than anything is 3½ years of collaboration," said Chris Krebs, the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, or CISA, which is responsible for securing the country's infrastructure cybersecurity. He touted the joint effort with agencies such as the U.S. intelligence community and the Election Assistance Commission.

"The 50 states are working together, sharing information," Krebs said. "From where we came in 2016 to where we are, we have a much better game plan."

The relative success is a stark contrast from that election — before CISA existed in its current form or elections had been designated as critical infrastructure by the Department of Homeland Security — when Russian military intelligence hacked into one state and several county systems.

It's after midnight ET — see where the path to 270 could go

It will take at least 270 electoral votes to win the 2020 presidential election. Finish the 2020 map on our interactive page by clicking or tapping an individual state or toggle in order to move it to red or blue. States where NBC News has projected a winner cannot be changed.

NBC News Exit Poll: Women, college graduates drive Biden's projected Washington state win

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Joe Biden has won the state of Washington and its 12 electoral votes, NBC News projects, riding on a wave of strong support from college graduates and women, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters.

Three-quarters of college graduates in Washington voted for Biden, as did two-thirds of female voters in the state. In addition, when Washingtonians were asked to name the issue mattering most to them in this election, Biden was the near unanimous choice of those who named either racial inequality or the coronavirus pandemic.

  

Washington state biden exit poll

Reflecting the liberal bent of the state, 70 percent of Washington voters said climate change is a “serious problem,” and 77 percent said they believe racism is an “important problem” in the United States. 

Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi wins re-election, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi wins re-election, NBC News projects

Hyde-Smith had been outraised by her Democratic opponent Mike Espy, a former congressman and the first African American to serve as U.S. agriculture secretary. Espy would have been the state’s first Black senator since Reconstruction.

Hyde-Smith previously defeated Espy in a special election runoff in 2018. She faced a tough re-election challenge as her campaign was marred by accusations of racism. She apologized in her 2018 race after publicly saying that she would “be in the front row” of a “public hanging” if invited by a supporter in a state with a dark history of lynching African Americans. 

NBC News Exit Poll: White voters who didn't graduate college boost Trump in Ohio

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

President Trump won the state of Ohio for a second time, NBC News projects, largely with the support of white voters who did not graduate college, who make up about half of the electorate in the state.

According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, Trump won this group in Ohio by a commanding 35-point margin. Other groups that broke strongly for Trump include rural voters, older voters and men. 

 

Ohio trump exit poll

According to the exit poll, a majority of Ohio voters cast their ballot on Election Day, as opposed to in advance. Those Election Day voters broke for Trump by a wide margin, 59 percent to 40 percent. 

NBC News Exit Poll: Despite spike in cases, coronavirus not a top concern for Montana voters

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

With coronavirus surging in Montana in recent weeks, voters in the state say that pandemic containment efforts have gone badly. By a 13-percentage point margin, more voters say the country has done a bad job getting the virus under control than say those efforts have been going well, according to the NBC News Exit Poll results of early and Election Day voters.

But voters in Montana say other issues are more important to their vote than the pandemic. The exit poll found 3 in 10 voters point to the economy as the most important issue to their vote, while just 15 percent say the coronavirus pandemic is the most important voting issue.

Trump wins Ohio, NBC News projects

NBC News projects Trump will win Ohio, giving him his first swing state victory of the night.

This battleground success gives the president 18 more Electoral College votes. He’s been on the winner’s side here before when he took out Hillary Clinton handily in 2016. Ohio also has a long history of the winner going to the White House. The Buckeye State has gone to the winner of every presidential election since 1964.

Jay Inslee wins third term as Washington governor

Washington voters on Tuesday re-elected Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee to a third term, NBC News projects.

With 86 percent of the vote counted, the one-time presidential candidate Inslee had a healthy lead over GOP challenger Loren Culp, 59.5 percent to 40.5 percent.

Rep. Ilhan Omar wins re-election in Minnesota

Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar won re-election in Minnesota on Tuesday, NBC News projects.

The first-term congresswoman was favored to win in her largely Democratic district but faced a well-funded Republican challenger, Lacy Johnson. Omar became a high profile member of the party's progressive wing after her election in 2018.

A protest flares up on Black Lives Matter Plaza in D.C.

Image: Black Lives Matter Plaza
Metropolitan police officers keep a small crowd back during a scuffle on Black Lives Matter Plaza near the White House in Washington on Election Day.Susan Walsh / AP
Image:
Police arrest and remove a protester on Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington on Election Day.Ting Shen / for NBC News

NBC News Exit Poll: Biden wins California, despite dip in Black voter support

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Biden’s victory in California in many ways mirrors that of Clinton in 2016, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and election day voters. Biden and Clinton won similar levels of support from white and Hispanic California voters. However, Biden appears to have underperformed Clinton with Black voters there. He won 80 percent of the Black vote, but Clinton won 88 percent of that electorate.

One bright spot for Biden in California is young voters. He bested Clinton’s performance among voters younger than 30 by about 8 points.

 

NBC News Exit Poll: Two-thirds of voters see climate change as serious problem

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Two-thirds of voters said they believe that climate change is a serious problem, according to the NBC Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters. Three in 10 voters said they disagree.

Joe Biden won about 7 in 10 voters who see climate change as a serious problem, compared to 29 percent who voted for President Trump.

 

Climate change exit poll

Conservative Republican voters stand out from other political groups for their views on climate change: just 28 percent of this group considers climate change a serious problem. A 55 percent majority of moderate or liberal Republican voters said climate change is a serious problem, as did three-quarters of independents and 88 percent of Democratic voters nationwide.

Rep. Roger Marshall wins Kansas Senate race, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

Rep. Roger Marshall, who was backed by establishment Republicans, won his race for Senate seat in Kansas, defeating Democrat Barbara Bollier, a state senator and former Republican, NBC News projects.

This was not a key race for Democrats, but the race raised alarm among Republicans who feared that if Marshall lost in the GOP primary to a polarizing candidate, such as controversial former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, it would put their Senate majority at risk. Marshall beat Kobach soundly in the primary. 

As of 11: 30 pm., Marshall received 52.7 percent of the vote to Bollier's 42.4 percent. 

Louisiana approves amendment stating abortion is not a right, NBC News projects

Voters in Louisiana approved an amendment Tuesday to the state’s Constitution saying that it does not protect the right to have an abortion or the funding of an abortion, NBC News projects.

The amendment adds language stating, “nothing in this constitution shall be construed to secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion."

Alabama, Tennessee and West Virginia also have similar language in their constitutions.

Despite record-breaking fundraising, South Carolina Democrat Harrison falls short

WASHINGTON — South Carolina Democrat Jaime Harrison shattered fundraising records in his Senate bid against Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, but the Democrat couldn't get over the hump despite that historic fundraising.  

Harrison raised more during the third fundraising quarter — $57 million — than any Senate candidate in history. Overall, he raised $109 million as of Oct. 14 and spent $105 million. By comparison, Graham raised $74 million over that time period and spent $63 million. 

And the Democrat really flexed his muscles on the advertising airwaves, spending almost $64 million on TV and radio compared to Graham's $32.5 million, according to the ad-tracking firm Advertising Analytics. 

But Graham pushed hard to close that ad-spending gap in the race's final days, actually outspending Harrison on those airwaves Monday. 

NBC News Exit Poll: Oregon voters sharply critical of how Trump handled Portland protests

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Oregon voters are sharply critical of Trump’s handling of the protests that unfolded in Portland over this summer in the wake of the killing of George Floyd. Six in 10 voters disapprove of the administration’s handling of the demonstrations — included in that figure is 48 percent who strongly disapprove, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters.

An overwhelming majority of Oregon voters casting ballots in the presidential contest said that racism is among the most important problems in the nation today, the exit poll found. Just 26 percent say racism is a minor problem or not a problem.

Ultimately, Biden captured Oregon’s seven electoral college votes easily — performing particularly well among women (64 percent to 33 percent), voters under 45 (61 percent to 29 percent), and those with a degree (72 percent to 24 percent).

Democrats hold on to Senate seats in Oregon and Rhode Island, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

Democrats hold on to Senate seats in Oregon and Rhode Island, NBC News projects.

Sens. Jack Reed, of Rhode Island, and Jeff Merkley, of Oregon, will be re-elected. As of 11 p.m., Reed received 57 percent of the vote and Merkley received 77 percent. These were seen as safe seats for Democrats. 

NBC News Exit Poll: Kamala Harris viewed favorably by just over half of voters

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

If elected vice president, Sen. Kamala Harris would be the first woman and the first person of color to serve in that role.

According to the NBC News Exit Poll of those voting early and on Election Day, just over half of voters nationwide — 51 percent — see Harris in a favorable light, while 43 percent have an unfavorable view.

Harris, a former attorney general of California whose father emigrated from Jamaica and whose mother emigrated from India, has been a strong voice on racial equality issues during the campaign. 

Two-thirds of Black and Latino voters said in the exit poll that they have a favorable view of Harris. 

Harris exit poll

White voters were divided, depending on their political party leanings. Eighty-nine percent of white Democratic voters said they had a positive view of Harris, as did 55 percent of white independents. But just 9 percent of white voters in the GOP said the same.

Lindsey Graham wins re-election in South Carolina, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

Image: Sen. Lindsey Graham Holds Election Night Watch Party In Columbia
Supporters celebrate a win for Sen. Lindsey Graham at his election night watch party in Columbia, S.C.Sean Rayford / Getty Images

NBC News projects Lindsey Graham wins re-election in South Carolina. 

Graham, the chairman of the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee, narrowly won a fourth term after a stronger-than-expected challenge from Democrat Jaime Harrison.

Harrison, who is Black, ran on a message of resetting the political conversation that helped him raise an eye-popping $57 million in the final weeks of the campaign, with polls indicating an unusually close race in the red state.

Image: South Carolina Senate Candidate Jaime Harrison Holds Election Night Watch Party
Jaime Harrison speaks to supporters after conceding to his challenger, Sen. Lindsey Graham, on election night in Columbia, S.C.Michael Ciaglo / Getty Images

GOP Senate wins: Bill Cassidy in Louisiana and Cynthia Lummis in Wyoming

Dartunorro Clark

NBC News projects that GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy will be re-elected in Louisiana and former GOP Rep. Cynthia Lummis will win her Senate race in Wyoming. 

Cassidy won 63.2 percent of the vote, avoiding a runoff election, with 74 percent of the vote in. Lummis won 73 percent of the vote in her race against Democrat Merav Ben-David, with 24 percent of the vote in. 

GOP Sen. Kelly Loeffler will advance to runoff in Georgia Senate race, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

NBC News projects GOP Sen. Kelly Loeffler will advance to a runoff in the Georgia Senate special election. 

No candidate in the race received more than 50 percent of the vote to avoid a runoff. Loeffler received roughly 28 percent of the vote, beating Republican Rep. Doug Collins, who received 22. 4 percent.

Earlier in the night, NBC News projected that Democrat Raphael Warnock advanced to the runoff. Trump did not endorse Loeffler in her race. She was appointed to the seat by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp as the successor to Sen. Johnny Isakson, who announced his intention to resign at the end of 2019 for health reasons. 

NBC News Exit Poll: In Minnesota, Biden surges with college-educated white voters

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

As the presidential candidates look to Minnesota, a state Hillary Clinton narrowly won in 2016, white college-educated voters are buoying Biden.

According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters in Minnesota, two-thirds of white college-educated voters casting ballots are voting for the Democratic candidate; just a third are voting for Trump. This is a massive shift compared to 2016, when Trump secured votes of 41 percent of white college-educated voters.

White college-educated women in particular have moved sharply to the left since 2016. Four years ago, Clinton won this group by 15 percentage points — 54 percent cast a ballot for Clinton while 39 percent cast a ballot for Trump. In the 2020 race, Biden leads Trump among white women with a college degree by almost 40 percentage points.

White college-educated men have also shifted decidedly toward the Democratic candidate since 2016. Four years ago, 46 percent voted for Clinton while 45 percent voted for Trump. Now Biden is besting Trump, 55 percent to 40 percent.

Biden is up overall, Trump leading in more swing states

As of 11 p.m. ET, Biden holds a 192 to 114 edge over Trump in the Electoral College. It takes 270 electoral votes to win.

NBC News has projected Biden as the winner in California, Washington, Oregon, New Mexico, Colorado, Illinois, New York, Maryland, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Delaware and Washington, D.C.

For Trump, NBC News projects the president as the winner in Wyoming, Utah, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska (still awaiting the separate congressional districts,) Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, Mississippi, Kentucky, Indiana and West Virginia.

Trump holds leads in swing states such as Georgia, North Carolina, Florida, Texas and Ohio. Biden holds a lead in Arizona. Because of mail-in ballots, it's tougher to discern the results in the upper Midwest.

Cars filing into lot at Biden drive-in event

WILMINGTON, Del. — Cars have begun to file into the parking lot at the Biden Election Night drive-in event at the Chase Center on the Riverfront here.

What programming the event will feature, and whether Biden will speak, remain unclear at the moment.

So far the playlist of music blaring to the growing number of cars has included "Come Together" by The Beatles and "I'll be Around" by The Spinners. MSNBC is playing on several large screens adjacent to the stage.

NBC News Exit Poll: Biden outperforming Clinton among union households in Michigan and Wisconsin

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

In Michigan and Wisconsin, Joe Biden is reversing much of the dip in Democratic union support that hampered Hillary Clinton in 2016. While Clinton carried the union vote in both states, she did so by smaller margins than President Obama in 2012. President Trump’s appeals to disaffected workers were effective in making major inroads with union voters in 2016.

According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, Biden is regaining much of the union support Trump siphoned off in 2016. This year 61 percent of Michigan voters in union households and 63 percent of Wisconsin voters in union households are supporting Biden, the poll found. Trump’s union support in both states has fallen below 40 percent.

Michigan union households exit poll
Wisconsin union exit poll

Michigan union households cite the economy as the issue mattering most to their vote (33 percent). Smaller shares cited the coronavirus pandemic (20 percent), racial inequality (20 percent), health care policy (13 percent) and crime and safety (7 percent). About 1 in 5 Michigan voters (22 percent) belong to a household with at least one labor union member.

Wall Street whipsaws as election winner remains far from clear

Trading in stock futures was volatile Tuesday night as polling stations across the country closed and started to report their returns, with a winner in the presidential election still far from clear.

Just hours after recording their second-best performance on Election Day, Dow futures fell by around 250 points and then gained about 170 points, as President Donald Trump was predicted to win Sun Belt states and former Vice President Joe Biden was the projected victor in most Northeastern states, according to NBC News.

Futures on the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained as much as 3 percent, and S&P 500 futures were up by almost 2 percent.

Earlier Tuesday, Wall Street was buoyed by investor hopes that a clear winner would be declared in the presidential election and that a fiscal stimulus deal would be swiftly passed, helping the U.S. inch its way toward economic recovery after the coronavirus pandemic.

Democrat Dick Durbin re-elected in Illinois Senate race, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

NBC News projects Democrat Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois will be re-elected. 

Durbin won 54.9 percent of the vote, beating his GOP challenger Mark Curran, who received 38.4 percent, NBC News project. As of 10:40 p.m., 40 percent of the vote is in.

This was not a competitive race for Democrats. Illinois has been a reliably blue state for the party. 

Vote Watch: Twitter takes down network of spam accounts pushing anti-Biden conspiracy theories

Twitter suspended a spam network of about 150 accounts pushing anti-Biden conspiracy theories on Election Day for platform manipulation. 

The tweets broke the site’s rules “on spam and platform manipulation, specifically coordinating with others to engage in or promote violations of the Twitter Rules, including violations of our abusive behavior policy,” a Twitter spokesperson told NBC News. 

The accounts tweeted identical messages and were flagged to Twitter by the Alethea Group, a company that tracks social media manipulation and had been monitoring disinformation operations that were coordinated on the messaging services Discord and WhatsApp. 

"This network was carefully and intentionally built to push particular narratives targeting U.S. political issues and conspiracy theories across both mainstream and fringe platforms,” Alethea Group vice president of analysis Cindy Otis said.

Kaplan said the group “targeted voters in swing states, Spanish-speaking voters, and those on the U.S. right it sees most susceptible to its messaging.” 

The spam accounts were pushing users on mainstream platforms such as Twitter and YouTube “to news sites run by Guo Media” and to “direct users to content on fringe platforms like Parler, to push political content that is primarily anti-Chinese Communist Party, anti-Joe Biden, and pro-Donald Trump,” Kaplan said. Guo Media is run by Guo Wengui, a billionaire who fled China amid accusations of bribery and other crimes. Guo is a close associate of former Trump White House aide Steve Bannon, who was arrested on Guo’s yacht in August

Guo and Bannon have been connected to several anti-Chinese Communist Party disinformation campaigns this year, including one peddling Covid-19 misinformation and another aimed at smearing the former vice president’s son Hunter Biden. Guo and Bannon did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Utah voters promote Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox to state's top job

Utah voters on Tuesday elected GOP Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox as chief executive of the state, NBC News projects.

Cox was well on his way to defeating Democrat Chris Peterson, a University of Utah law professor.

Republicans have won every governor's race in Utah since 1984.

Mnuchin describes feeling inside East Room of White House, where people are watching results

NBC News Exit Poll: In New York, Biden gains among whites, sheds voters of color

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

NBC News projects that Joe Biden has won New York state’s 29 electoral votes for the Democrats, as has been the case in every presidential election since 1984. But behind Biden’s big win are notable changes in the state’s vote along the basis of race and ethnicity, which mirror shifts nationwide, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters.

Biden narrowly won New York state’s white voters, 50 percent to 48 percent. That’s an improvement over Democrat Hillary Clinton’s performance among whites in New York in 2016, when she lost this group with 45 percent to Trump's 51 percent.

But while Biden has built a commanding lead (79 percent to 20 percent) among the state’s voters of color, that’s actually a 6 percentage point shift away from the Democrats compared to Clinton’s performance (85 percent to 13 percent) among these voters in 2016. 

This development in New York is similar to what the NBC News Exit Poll is finding nationwide: Compared to 2016, Biden is performing slightly better than Clinton among white voters, while Trump is slightly outperforming his previous levels of support with voters of color.

NBC News Exit Poll: Racial unrest in Wisconsin reflected in voter priorities

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

In Wisconsin, the presidential campaign has unfolded against a backdrop of civil unrest over the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, followed by the fatal shooting of two protesters. According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, Wisconsin voters tend to agree that recent incidents in which police have killed or injured Black people are a sign of broader problems rather than isolated events.

Black Wisconsin voters were more likely to say that the incidents are signs of a broader problem (64 percent), but most white Wisconsin voters (52 percent) express the same view.

 

Less clear is how heavily this factored into voting decisions. When asked about racism in the U.S., about two-thirds (65 percent) of Wisconsin voters said that it is one of many important problems. Only 12 percent said that racism was the most important problem.

That said, it is clear that this issue deeply affected Black Wisconsin voters. A 41 percent plurality of Black voters in the state cited racial inequality as the issue mattering most to their vote for president, when ranked along with four other issues. 

 

 

NBC News Exit Poll: Nevada voters split between containing the coronavirus and rebuilding the economy

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

In Nevada, where the Covid-19 pandemic has dealt a particularly devastating blow to a state heavily dependent on tourism and hospitality, voters are split on whether to focus on rebuilding the economy or containing the coronavirus, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters. The presidential race in the state remained too early to call when polls closed at 10 p.m. ET.

Forty-eight percent of Nevada voters said that “containing the coronavirus” is more important, while 47 percent said it would be better to focus on “rebuilding the economy.” That’s a big difference compared to voters nationwide: 52 percent of Americans say it’s more important to contain the virus; 41 percent say they’d rather focus on rebuilding the economy. 

What will it take for Biden or Trump to get to 270? Control the path with our tool

It will take at least 270 electoral votes to win the 2020 presidential election. Finish the 2020 map on our interactive page by clicking or tapping an individual state or toggle in order to move it to red or blue. States where NBC News has projected a winner cannot be changed.

Black Lives Matter movement draws some Las Vegas voters to the polls

Anita Hassan

LAS VEGAS — George Floyd’s death motivated Sally Andalon to come out to the polls Tuesday evening in Las Vegas. While Andalon, 21, said she had never cared much for politics or voting, learning more about racial inequalities in policing convinced her that she wanted her voice to be heard. 

“Being a part of the Black Lives Matter movement really made me want to come out,” said Andalon, a first-time voter who cast her ballot in person at a polling site in the Meadows Mall parking lot, in North Central Las Vegas on  Tuesday evening. “I went to the protests in May and marched and that motivated me to be more involved in the political system.” 

Several Las Vegas voters at the Meadows Mall polling location said the issues most important to them this election had to do with racial inequalities in criminal justice. Andalon, like others, said she cast her vote for Democratic candidates, most likely to bring what they say are much-needed reforms. 

“I feel like Trump didn’t really help with the protests or help with calming things down, or at least not as much as he should have” her brother, Julian, said. Also a first-time voter, Julian, 19, said he voted for Joe Biden because he believed he could help improve racial disparities in the criminal justice system.

“Now, we just have to hope for the best,” he said.

Trump takes the lead in Ohio, other swing states. Biden opens up early lead in Arizona.

Trump is leading in Ohio and Texas, though those races remain too close to call. Additionally, Trump is maintaining a lead in swing states such as North Carolina, Florida and Georgia, which also remain too close to call.

Biden has opened up a lead in Arizona with about 75 percent of the vote in.

Other critical states in the upper Midwest remain too close to call.

As of 10:30 p.m. ET, Biden holds a 98 to 86 Electoral College advantage over Trump. It takes 270 electoral votes to win.

Fulton County, Georgia, results will be stalled

Janell Ross

ATLANTA — The Fulton County Registration and Elections Department now says it will continue counting ballots tonight, after officials initially said it would stop counting mail-in ballots at 10:30 p.m., and resume the count Wednesday morning. Fulton is Georgia's most populous county, and includes most of the city of Atlanta.

This means there will be no decisive results for Fulton County on Tuesday night, which will affect when the results for Georgia, overall, are known.

Biden wins New Hampshire, NBC News projects

NBC News projects that Biden will win New Hampshire — a contested state that was not called until much later in the night during the 2016 election. That year, Clinton won by a narrow margin.

NBC News Exit Poll: Biden is favorite among voters who suffered Covid-19 financial hardship

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Amid an economic downturn brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, 55 percent of voters nationwide say that the coronavirus has caused them a financial hardship — including 17 percent who say it has caused them a severe financial hardship.

According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, among those most severely affected financially, Joe Biden is the clear favorite: 72 percent of voters who have suffered a severe financial hardship say they are casting a ballot for the Democratic candidate.

Among those voters who have suffered a moderate hardship, 62 percent say they voted for Biden, while 36 percent voted for President Trump.

Financial hardship exit poll

But Trump is favored among those who say they have suffered no economic setbacks due to the coronavirus: 55 percent of these voters chose Trump, while 43 percent cast a ballot for Biden.

Voters of color are among the most likely groups to say they have suffered a severe financial hardship as a result of the pandemic: 21 percent of Black voters say they have suffered a severe hardship, along with 36 percent of Hispanic voters. In contrast, just 12 percent of white voters say they’ve taken a severe financial hit due to the virus.

Democrat Mark Kelly leading in Arizona Senate race, but too early to call, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

NBC News projects that Democrat Mark Kelly, a former astronaut, is leading in the Arizona Senate special election but is it still too early to call. 

Kelly is leading with 55.4 percent of the vote against GOP incumbent Sen. Martha McSally, who received 44.6 percent of the vote, as of 10:20 p.m., with 73 percent of the vote in. 

This is one of the crucial seats for Democrats this election, which would make their path to Senate majority smoother. The Democrats picked up a seat in Colorado but lost a seat in Alabama. 

Internet outage at Florida election office to delay some voting results

An internet outage hit the office of a central Florida supervisor of elections on Tuesday night shortly before polls closed in the battleground state. 

The office, which is responsible for tabulating ballots cast in Osceola County, is working with the cable and internet provider Spectrum to restore internet service, Supervisor of Elections Mary Jane Arrington said. Arrington said that the process of manually uploading the results data from the different polling locations is about halfway done. “It’s going pretty quick and hopefully we’ll be done by midnight,” she said.

Spectrum said that it is trying to resolve the situation. 

“A construction crew unrelated to Spectrum severed a bundle of fiber optic cables in Kissimmee that serves the Supervisor of Elections office,” Spectrum said in a statement. “We have crews onsite working to repair the damage and restore service as quickly as possible.”

The internet outage is expected to delay reporting of results in Osceola County.

“They're actually driving their results to the central location for reporting,” a senior Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency official said in a press call.

Republicans flip Alabama Senate seat red, dealing blow to Democrats

Dartunorro Clark

Republicans gained a crucial seat Tuesday night, with Republican Tommy Tuberville winning the Alabama Senate race, NBC News projects.

This is a blow to Democrats, who won the seat in 2018 with Democrat Doug Jones. Jones was the first Democrat to represent the state in the Senate in 25 years. This pushed the number Democrats need to win Senate majority from three to four after the party flipped a seat in Colorado. 

Democrats keep control of House, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

Democrats keep control of the House, NBC News projects.

The party was expected to hold its majority, which was 232-197 going into the election. The result opens the door for Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., to seek another two-year term as speaker.

Democrats gained control of the House in 2018 after running on kitchen table issues, such as healthcare and the economy, and, in part, to the unpopularity of President Trump.

Voters of color and traditionally Republican suburban women were seen as key to the Democrats gaining control of the House. 

Pelosi has vowed to push an ambitious agenda if Democrats retained control, such as providing more healthcare protections to Americans and more coronavirus-related aid. 

Biden wins New Mexico, NBC News projects

Biden will win New Mexico, NBC News projects.

As it stands, Biden now holds a 94 to 72 Electoral College advantage over Trump. It takes 270 electoral votes to win.

NBC News Exit Poll: Latino voters in Florida shift toward Trump

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Latinos constitute 19 percent of the electorate in Florida and, compared to Latinos in other states, their vote has tended to be more evenly split between Republicans and Democrats.

An analysis of Latino voting trends in Florida since 2008 suggest that Latinos were moving away from Republican candidates in 2012 and 2016, but have moved back toward Trump this year. According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and election day voters, 47 percent of Latino voters in Florida supported Trump — up 12 percentage points from 2016. 

This pattern seems to be taking place despite the growing number of Puerto Ricans — who lean far more heavily Democratic than Cubans — in Florida’s electorate. Today, nearly 3 out of 10 Latino voters in Florida identify as Puerto Rican. According to the NBC News exit poll of the early and Election Day voters, about a third of Puerto Rican voters in Florida today supported Trump. In comparison, 56 percent of Cuban voters  supported Trump. 

In addition, about 40 percent of Latino voters in Florida identify as neither Puerto Rican nor Cuban. This subset of Florida’s Latino electorate includes Venezuelans, many of whom left Venezuela due to frustrations with the socialist government and consequently tend to support more conservative governments. About 50 percent of these voters supported Trump, slightly less than Cubans but more than Puerto Ricans.

CORRECTION (Nov. 5, 2020, 12:29 p.m. ET): A previous version of this article misstated the percentage of Latino voters in Florida. They make up 19 percent of the electorate in the state, not 30 percent.

As Michigan tallies its vote, Democrats are encouraged by high voter turnout in Detroit

DETROIT — As election workers continue to tally the vote in Michigan two hours after polls closed, Democrats are encouraged by the apparently high voter turnout in Detroit.

Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey, addressing reporters about an hour after polls closed at 8 p.m. ET, said turnout in the city — fueled by an unprecedented flood of absentee ballots —  appeared to be between 53 and 55 percent. That's as high or even higher than in 2008 when the opportunity to elect Barack Obama as the nation's first Black president energized voters in this overwhelmingly Black city.

It's a big change from four years ago when low turnout in Detroit — just 48 percent — robbed Hillary Clinton of the support she needed to defeat Donald Trump in this crucial state. He won Michigan by 10,704 votes.

Election Day went smoothly in Detroit, Winfrey said, with few problems at voting precincts where only 15 percent of voters cast ballots in person, and with absentee ballot counting happening faster than many feared in the wake of a botched primary election.

By 7:30 p.m., Winfrey said, 120,000 ballots had been tabulated and she predicted that final numbers would be available by Wednesday.

Georgia special election will go to runoff, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

NBC News projects that the Georgia Senate special election will go to runoff as none of the candidates has met the required 50 percent threshold to win the race.

Raphael Warnock, the Democrat in the race, will advance to the runoff. NBC News has not projected which Republican — incumbent Sen. Kelly Loeffler or Rep. Doug Collins — will face off against Warnock. 

This is one of the most competitive Senate races. Warnock received 28.5 percent of the vote, Loeffler received 28.7 percent and Collings 23.1 percent as of 10 p.m, with 50 percent of the vote in. 

NBC News Exit Poll: Trump and Biden voters sharply divided on questions involving racial justice

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Voters in the 2020 election were polarized along racial lines: The NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters found that 4 out of 5 voters for President Trump were white, compared to about half of Joe Biden's voters. Biden voters were more than twice as likely to be people of color as Trump voters were.

Voters race exit poll

 

Voters were also divided on questions involving racial justice. Eighty-seven percent of Biden voters had a favorable view of the Black Lives Matter movement, while just 24 percent of Trump voters agreed. 

And while more than 4 out of 5 Biden voters said they believe the criminal justice treats Black people unfairly, only 1 out of 5 Trump voters said they felt the same. 

Biden supporters watch the results roll in

Image: TOPSHOT-US-VOTE-FLORIDA
Andy Soberon attends a watch party in Miami on Election Day.Chandan Khanna / AFP - Getty Images

NBC News projects Sen. Ben Sasse wins re-election in Nebraska

Dartunorro Clark

NBC News projects that Sen. Ben Sasse will win re-election in his Senate race in Nebraska. 

The race was not a competitive race to watch as both parties battle for a Senate majority. However, Sasse has been one of the few Republicans who have attacked President Trump, signaling that Trump may not appeal to as many voters there as he did in 2016. 

NBC News has rated the race for president there as too early to call. 

New Jersey votes to legalize marijuana, NBC News projects

The state of New Jersey voted to legalize the use and possession of marijuana for recreational purposes Tuesday, NBC News projects.

Voters in the state were asked to decide if recreational marijuana use should become legal for people 21 and older. It was already legal for medical use in the state.

New Jersey was among four states deciding on the legalization of recreational marijuana this Election Day.

NBC News Exit Poll: Gender gap narrows as more men back Biden than supported Clinton in 2016

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

The gender gap is alive and well but not quite as large as the two prior elections thanks to a notable 8-point increase in male voters’ support for the Democratic candidate.

According to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, Joe Biden is polling better among both men and women than Hillary Clinton did four years ago. The increase is particularly large among men, who are breaking about evenly between Biden (49 percent) and President Trump (48 percent). Women are supporting Biden (57 percent) by about 3 points more than they did Clinton (54 percent).

For four decades, support for Democratic presidential candidates has been higher among women than men. This gender gap is one of the most durable features of modern American presidential elections.

 

Gender gap exit poll

While Biden is polling well with men overall, perhaps even more striking is his success with a key subgroup: white suburban men. Nationwide about 40 percent of white suburban men are breaking for Biden this year, which is up from 2012 (34 percent) and 2016 (28 percent). Democratic support among white suburban women, by contrast, has remained stable. 

Asian markets skittish at open as U.S. election winner remains unclear

Asian stock markets had a skittish start to the day Wednesday, as investors await the result of the U.S. presidential election.

Trader sentiment initially supported a "blue wave" that could lead to swifter economic recovery and approval of a new round of fiscal stimulus, including fresh support for the millions of Americans who are still out of work.

However, election night results show a presidential race that is so far too close to call, with a tightly fought race in many battleground states.

“Markets have taken a step back from the Democratic sweep scenario,” one analyst said.

Read the story here.

Sarah McBride to become first transgender state senator in U.S. history

Dan Avery

Sarah McBride has won her Delaware state Senate race, making her poised to become the first and only openly transgender state senator in the U.S. and the country's highest-ranking transgender official.

Image: Transgender activist Sarah McBride, who hopes to win a seat in the Delaware Senate, campaigns at the Claymont Boys & Girls Club in Claymont, Del
Transgender activist Sarah McBride campaigns in Claymont, Del.Jason Minto / AP

“I hope tonight shows an LGBTQ kid that our democracy is big enough for them, too,” McBride, 30, tweeted Tuesday night after the election was called. “As Delaware continues to face the Covid crisis, it’s time to get to work to invest in the policies that will make a difference for working families.”

She easily defeated Republican Steve Washington to represent Delaware’s 1st state Senate District. Incumbent Democrat Harris McDowell, who is retiring after 44 years, had endorsed McBride.

The district covers Bellefonte, Claymont and parts of Wilmington, the state’s largest city.

“Tonight, Sarah made history not just for herself but for our entire community,” Alphonso David, president of the Human Rights Campaign, a national LGBTQ advocacy group, said. “This victory, the first of what I expect to be many in her career, shows that any person can achieve their dream, no matter their gender identity or sexual orientation.”

NBC News Exit Poll: Trump's support among veterans slides

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Trump’s support among veterans declined noticeably this year, from 60 percent in 2016 to 51 percent in 2020, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and election day voters.

Military veterans have long been a strong base of support for Republicans. But Trump’s numerous controversies surrounding the military raised the prospect that some veterans might flip to Biden.

The exit poll shows that to be the case, as the Republican advantage among veterans is smaller than in recent elections.

Senate fight at a glance: Dems flip one seat, while Republicans hold on to several incumbent seats

Dartunorro Clark

In the state of the battle for the Senate majority, Democrats have flipped one seat while several Republicans in the Senate have sailed to re-election, according to NBC News projections.

Republicans are defending 23 seats and Democrats are defending 12. 

Democrats have maintained four seats: New Jersey, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Delaware. The party picked up a seat in Colorado, the first flip of the night. 

Despite losing a seat, Republicans have kept eight of their seats red Tuesday night: Kentucky, Texas, South Dakota, Arkansas, Tennessee, Nebraska, Oklahoma and West Virginia. 

Trump leads in Texas, NBC News projects

With 74 percent of the expected vote in, Trump currently holds a narrow lead in Texas, NBC News projects.

Trump won Texas by nearly 9 points in 2016. He currently trails his 2016 vote total by about 360,000 votes. Biden, meanwhile, has already topped Clinton's 2016 vote total by about 360,000 votes.

With that in mind, Trump still maintains a lead of less than 1 point.

Meanwhile, Biden is leading in New Hampshire, NBC News projects, though that race is also too early to call.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wins re-election in New York

Image: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speaks to members of her staff and volunteers who helped with her campaign outside her office in the Bronx on Election Day.Kathy Willens / AP

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez won her first bid for re-election in New York on Tuesday, NBC News projects.

She faced Republican challenger John Cummings, a former teacher and police officer, whose campaign was well-funded despite Ocasio-Cortez being heavily favored to win in her overwhelmingly Democratic district, which runs over parts of Queens and the Bronx. 

She became a prominent figure of the progressive wing of the Democratic Party after her upset win in the 2018 midterm election.

NBC News Exit Poll: Biden outperforming Clinton among new voters

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Biden is the overwhelming favorite of those who are casting ballots in a presidential election for the first time — and he's faring even better than Clinton did among this group in 2016, according to the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters.

The exit poll found that 13 percent of voters casting ballots for president in the 2020 contest have never done so before. These voters make up a slightly larger share of the electorate than they did four years ago.

Today, 68 percent of those who say they are voting for the first time cast a ballot for Biden; just 29 say they voted for Trump.

First-time voters tend to skew younger and more Democratic. Hillary Clinton was a clear favorite among the group, 

While Clinton was favored by the group 19 percentage points above Trump, with 57 percent to Trump's 38 percent, that was a considerably smaller margin as compared to this year. 

Trump wins South Carolina, NBC News projects

NBC News projects that Trump will win South Carolina, locking up a win in a state that was never much in question but does feature a competitive Senate race.

Biden now holds an 89 to 72 Electoral College advantage over Trump. It takes 270 electoral votes to win.

Trump, Biden supporters face off in Texas

Image: 2020 U.S. presidential election in Texas
Biden supporters face off with a Trump supporter outside of a polling site on Election Day in Houston.Go Nakamura / Reuters

North Dakota re-elects GOP Gov. Doug Burgum, NBC News projects

North Dakota voters on Tuesday  will re-elect Gov. Doug Burgum, defeating Democratic challenger Shelley Lenz, NBC News projects.

A Democrat hasn't won the governorship of North Dakota since 1988.

 

Hickenlooper wins Colorado Senate race, flipping seat from red to blue

Dartunorro Clark

Democrat John Hickenlooper, the former mayor of Denver and governor of Colorado, beat first-term GOP Republican Sen. Cory Gardner — a win for Democrats. 

Hickenlooper, 68, left office last year after two terms as governor and ran unsuccessfully for president. This was a must-win state for Democrats in the battle for the Senate. 

Follow the fight for Senate control here

Vote Watch: U.S. Cyber Command took prior action against Russian and Iranian government hackers

The U.S. Cyber Command conducted offensive operations designed to thwart election interference efforts prior to the election, two sources told NBC News. The operations targeted computer infrastructure associated with government hackers in Russia and Iran.

The effort by American military hackers against Iran was first reported by The Washington Post, and the action against Russia was first reported by CBS News.

The sources described cyber actions not as crushing blows to foreign adversaries, but as something of an annoyance to them.

The sources said the operations were similar to what Cyber Command did in 2018, when it took down computers associated with the Internet Research Agency, a Russian troll farm. The impact lasted only a day or two, the sources said, before the disinformation factory was up and running again.

A spokeswoman for Cyber Command declined to comment. Gen. Paul Nakasone, who serves as both director of the National Security Agency and commander of Cyber Command, boasted in a tweet earlier Tuesday: “We know our adversaries better than they know themselves. We stand ready with our partners to generate insights, enable defenses, and when authorized, impose costs on foreign adversaries. Rest assured, if called to, we will act.”

U.S. officials have said they have seen no signs Tuesday of malicious foreign cyber activity targeting the election.

NBC News Exit Poll: Despite 'law and order' appeals, white suburban women say economy, not crime, is top issue

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

With protests around racial inequality and policing occurring in cities across the country this year, many Republican candidates — and especially President Trump — sought to appeal to suburban white women by emphasizing a commitment to law and order. But according to early results from the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, the economy was a far bigger issue in deciding how this group voted for president. 

Only 11 percent of suburban white women said that crime was the issue that mattered most to their vote, about the same share who said racial inequality was the most important issue. 

White suburban women exit poll

When asked about the Black Lives Matter movement and the criminal justice system, more than half of white suburban women said they hold a favorable view of Black Lives Matter, and nearly half said they believe the justice system is unfair to Black people, the poll found.  

NBC News Exit Poll: Biden is ahead with independent voters nationwide

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

In an era marked by wide divisions between Republicans and Democrats across a host of issues and concerns, a key factor in this election is whom independent voters will favor.

In 2016, President Trump edged out Hillary Clinton among independents by 4 points, capturing 46 percent of independent voters nationwide, compared to the Democratic candidate's 42 percent. 

According to results so far from the NBC News Exit Poll of early and Election Day voters, this critical swing group is breaking for Joe Biden by a 17-point margin — 56 percent to 39 percent.

Men are a key constituency for Trump this election.

Former Vice President Biden is pulling in about half of independent men (52 percent), a group that Clinton lost by 12 points in 2016. And Biden is winning over independent women by a wide margin: 61 percent of this group is breaking for him, compared with 35 percent for Trump, a difference of 26 points.

Sen. Mitch McConnell gives victory speech

 

Gov. Jim Justice wins re-election in West Virginia, NBC News projects

Gov. Jim Justice won re-election in West Virginia on Tuesday, dispatching Democrat Ben Salango, NBC News is projecting.

The former coal executive is best known for having won office in 2016 as a Democrat, only to switch parties in 2017.

Biden holds early Electoral College advantage, but no swing states have been called

Biden currently holds an 89 to 54 advantage over Trump in the Electoral College, yet all of the major swing states remain outstanding.

Biden has so far won New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Jersey, Colorado, Maryland, Delaware, Connecticut and Washington, D.C., NBC News projects.

Trump, meanwhile, has won North Dakota, Indiana, West Virginia, Kentucky, Arkansas, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Tennessee, NBC News projects.

It takes 270 to win.

NBC News Exit Poll: In Pennsylvania, Trump losing ground with college-educated whites

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

In 2016, Trump toppled the "blue wall" of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin by running up the numbers with white voters who do not have college degrees. According to the 2020 NBC News Exit Poll of early and election day voters in Pennsylvania, Trump is maintaining his support of non-college whites but losing ground with white voters who have college degrees.

In the 2012 election, there was no education divide among white voters in Pennsylvania. Four years later, Trump won non-college whites handily, with 64 percent of the vote, while breaking even with Hillary Clinton among college-educated whites. This year, the exit poll shows Trump losing the white college graduate vote in Pennsylvania by about 12 points (43 percent to Biden's 55 percent).

 

Attitudes among white Pennsylvania voters divide sharply on the question of whether Trump has the temperament to serve effectively as president. Most college-educated whites say no (60 percent) while a similar share of non-college whites (58 percent) say yes.

 

Tensions high as Texans await the results of a tight presidential race

HOUSTON — With Texas in play for Democrats for the first time in decades, the mood is tense among dozens of people who’ve crowded onto a patio at Axelrad Beer Garden for an election night watch party.

Serma Malik, 36, just didn’t want to be alone after the crushing disappointment she felt when Trump won four years ago.

Image: Headline
Serma Malik watches results at Axelrad Beer Garden in Houston.Annie Mulligan / for NBC News

“It’s hard for me to even think about what the next four years are going to be like if Trump wins,” said Malik, who was born in Pakistan and immigrated to the U.S. as a child. “It feels like this election is about who’s welcome in this country, and who isn’t.”

Malik, surrounded Tuesday by close friends and her husband, hasn’t allowed herself to contemplate the possibility that Texas could flip for Biden.

“I’m trying not to set my expectations high so if somehow we flip that will be an exciting surprise,” Malik said. "I felt so burned after the last election four years ago, I just want to prepare myself to be disappointed.”

A moment later, just as the last Texas polling locations closed, an MSNBC anchor announced that the state was still too close to call.

Malik took a deep breath and looked down at her phone.

Image: Headline
People react during an election watch party at Axelrad Beer Garden in Houston.Annie Mulligan / for NBC News

GOP Sen. Mike Rounds wins South Dakota Senate race, NBC News projects

Dartunorro Clark

NBC News projects GOP Sen. Mike Rounds will win re-election in South Dakota, a state President Trump also carried. 

This brings the total of seats Republicans have maintained on election night to seven. This was not seen as a competitive Senate race. 

NBC News Exit Poll: In Texas, Biden is performing better among white voters than any Democrat in decades

NBC News Exit Poll Desk

Texas and its big cache of electoral votes have remained solidly in the Republican column since 1976, but this year the state emerged as a surprising battleground in the race between President Trump and Joe Biden. That’s in part due to Biden’s historically strong performance among the state’s white voters, according to results from the NBC News Exit Poll conducted with early and Election Day voters in the state.

Trump enjoys a solid lead among the state’s white voters, 65 percent to 34 percent. But Biden’s performance among this group is better than any Democrat since at least 1996, when President Bill Clinton won 31 percent of the white vote in Texas.

 

White Texas voters

Biden is leading Trump among nonwhite voters in Texas, 68 percent to 30 percent, according to the exit poll. Texas remained too early to call when polls closed in the state at 9 p.m. ET.  

Nevada court rejects Trump campaign effort to halt mail ballot processing

The Nevada Supreme Court refused a last-ditch Trump campaign effort to halt mail ballot processing and the use of signature verification software in Clark County, allowing the county to continue processing ballots as planned.

The Trump campaign and the Nevada Republican Party filed an emergency motion this afternoon asking the court for an emergency injunction after their suit in a district court was rejected Monday. The state Supreme Court refused Tuesday evening, writing that the “appellants have not demonstrated a sufficient likelihood of success to merit a stay or injunction.”

The court said that the suit had failed in district court because it lacked “evidentiary support” and standing and that the appeal hadn’t changed that. 

See the map two hours after the first polls closed and choose the path to the presidency

It will take at least 270 electoral votes to win the 2020 presidential election. Finish the 2020 map on our interactive page by clicking or tapping an individual state or toggle in order to move it to red or blue. States where NBC News has projected a winner cannot be changed.

Florida too close to call, but Trump leading

NBC News projects that Florida is still too close to call, but Trump is leading the key swing state.

Trump is up about 900,000 votes on his 2016 vote total in the Sunshine State while Biden is up on Clinton's 2016 total by more than 600,000. About 93 percent of the expected vote is in.

GOP Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and John Cornyn of Texas win re-election

Dartunorro Clark

As of 9 p.m. ET, NBC News projects that GOP Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and John Cornyn of Texas will win re-election in their respective Senate races. 

Both races were not seen as terribly competitive among the Senate races. 

As more polls close, more Senate races too early to call

Dartunorro Clark

As of 9 p.m., NBC News projects several Senate races are too early to call: Kansas, Michigan, Colorado, Minnesota, Arizona, New Mexico, South Dakota, Nebraska, Louisiana and Wyoming. 

Michigan, Minnesota and Arizona are seen as highly competitive races. 

Biden wins New York. Trump wins Arkansas.

NBC News projects that Biden will win New York while Trump will win Arkansas.

Both outcomes were not seriously in doubt, though Trump projected public optimism he could somehow flip New York, his birth state.

As of 9 p.m. on the East Coast, Biden now holds an 80 to 48 advantage over Trump in electoral votes. It takes 270 to win.

Gov. Phil Scott wins re-election in Vermont

Vermont Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican in a solidly blue state, won re-election Tuesday, NBC News projects. Scott held off Democratic challenger state Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman.