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A recount was reportedly ordered in the southern US state of Georgia tonight, as Democratic candidate Joe Biden appeared to be near the finish line in the presidential election.
Biden had regained President Donald Trump’s lead in Georgia previously and had advanced by 6,000 votes in his home state of Pennsylvania. Victory in Georgia and Pennsylvania would put him above the 270 electoral college votes needed to win the election.
However, the BBC reported that Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger announced shortly before noon (11:45 pm Friday in Malaysia) that the state’s presidential race will go to a recount.
It says 4,169 votes remain to be counted and that some 8,000 absent military ballots are still in the mail and will only be counted if they reach the end of the day.
“At this time, Georgia remains too close to call. With such a small margin there will be a count in Georgia. The interest in our election obviously goes beyond the borders of Georgia. The final count in Georgia at this time has huge implications for the entire country, ”he said, the BBC reported.
Officials in Philadelphia are still counting mail-in votes that arrived before Election Day, and Biden’s lead over Trump in the decisive state appears to be growing. He now leads Trump by about 7,000 votes, the BBC said.
His lead is expected to continue to grow, as the votes now being counted are absentee ballots. Trump actively discouraged his supporters from voting by mail, while Biden told his supporters to do so to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
