After days of thorough ballot counting, former Vice President Joe Biden emerged as the victor of the 2020 presidential election on Saturday, ousting President Trump from the White House as a one-term president.
The Associated Press called Pennsylvania, which has 20 electoral votes, in favor of Biden on Saturday at 11:25 am. That gives him 284 votes in the Electoral College, more than the 270 threshold needed for him to win the presidency.
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Biden’s running mate, was also elected as vice president, making her the both first woman and the first woman of color elected as part of a presidential ticket.
Alphonso David, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said in a statement the victory by Biden and Harris “proves once again that equality is a winning issue.”
“The Biden/Harris ticket is the most pro-equality ticket in history. President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris are not just willing to be our allies, but they are true advocates for equality,” David said. “And they’ve done it for decades.”
David name-checked numerous aspects of Biden and Harris’ pro-LGBTQ record, including their early support for same-sex marriage.
“From Biden’s work championing hate crimes protections in the 1980’s to Harris performing some of the first marriages for LGBTQ couples after Prop 8 was overturned, these leaders have a clear vision that centers unity over division,” David said, “A vision where LGBTQ people are protected from discrimination and are afforded the freedoms and rights we should all have. A vision where transgender and gender non-conforming people don’t fear for their lives walking down the street. A vision where LGBTQ children are loved, embraced and protected from bullying.”
The final results remained up in the air days after Election Day on Tuesday as key states, including Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Nevada, counted ballots in exceeding close races. Although Trump had a narrow path to victory, that opportunity went up in smoke Friday went Biden eked ahead in Georgia and Pennsylvania.
Trump has refused to back down and has promised a legal blitz to challenge the ballot counting the battleground states. Making a statement from the White House on Thursday, Trump made unfounded claims about widespread fraud and said illegal ballots were being counted.
Following news of Biden’s win, Trump in a statement refused to concede and said he’d fight the election results in court.
“We all know why Joe Biden is rushing to falsely pose as the winner, and why his media allies are trying so hard to help him: They don’t want the truth to be exposed,” Trump said. “The simple fact is this election is far from over. Joe Biden has not been certified as the winner of any states, let alone any of the highly contested states headed for mandatory recounts, or states where our campaign has valid and legitimate legal challenges that could determine the ultimate victor.”
Jason Harrow, executive director of Equal Citizens and former manager of SCOTUSBlog, said in a statement Trump’s plan to attack the election results in court would amount to nothing.
“The whirlwind of legal filings by the Trump campaign over the last few days all equal up to a sum total of nothing more than legal shenanigans that are distractions which will ultimately have zero impact on the outcome of this election,” Harrow said.
Story courtesy of the Washington Blade.