The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group and the Africa Investment Forum (AIF) founding partners have approved the postponement of the 2020 Africa Investment Forum to 2021, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The annual three-day investment marketplace was initially scheduled for November 2020 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The decision follows a careful evaluation of the impact and evolution of the COVID-19 global pandemic, the attendant risk of a possible second wave, and its associated effects on global travel, investments, as well as social distancing rules.
The Forum will continue to curate new deals, track investments and advance the financial closure of transactions and existing deals through its innovative digital platforms.
At the 2019 Africa Investment Forum, 57 deals valued at $67.7 billion were tabled for discussions. Fifty-two deals worth $40.1 billion secured investment interest.
In July this year, the AIF Founding partners pledged to strengthen strategic partnership engagement and commitments for Africa Investment Forum Market Days 2021, to help “reboot investments in Africa.” They underscored the need to boost local manufacturing while leveraging the continent’s vast resources to unlock investment.
The Africa Investment Forum relies on four pillars to achieve its objectives: connecting, engaging, closing, and tracking investments.
The Africa Investment Forum founding partners are the African Development Bank, African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank); Africa Finance Corporation; Africa50, the Islamic Development Bank, the Development Bank of Southern Africa and the Trade and Development Bank.
Contact:
Amba Mpoke-Bigg, Communication and External Relations Department, African Development Bank; email: a.mpoke-bigg@afdb.org
Read the original article on African Development Bank.
Mexico’s culture ministry on Wednesday questioned French fashion designer Isabel Marant’s use of patterns from indigenous Mexican communities, marking the government’s latest complaint over high-fashion brands appropriating local styles.
According to the ministry, Marant’s latest collection, including a long cape with stripes and starburst designs in gray and brown hues, includes elements from the Purepecha people of Mexico’s Michoacan state.
Marant’s company, Isabel Marant, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The brand’s website says it is committed to ethical and responsible behavior.
In 2015, the company was similarly accused of incorporating designs from Mexico’s southern state of Oaxaca.
Last year, Mexico called out Venezuela-born designer Carolina Herrera and French fashion house Louis Vuitton for using traditional patterns in their designs, without regard for the people who first brought them to life.
Until recently, activists in the diaspora and separatists had insisted that schools remain closed and used violence to ensure it.
At a primary school in Cameroon. Credit: GPE/Stephan Bachenheimer.
On 24 October, armed men attacked a school in Kumba in the Southwest region of Cameroon. They killed seven students and injured others several more.
In the aftermath of the assault, the Cameroonian government was quick to blame separatist fighters who have been locked in war for independence since 2017. The secessionist groups rejected the claim. They said the attack was conducted by agents of the Cameroonian military in an attempt to tarnish the separatists’ reputation.
Regardless of who was responsible for it, the Kumba attack underscored the fact that educational institutions have been a target throughout the crisis that has engulfed the two Anglophone regions of Cameroon. Since its start, teachers and students have played a key role, whether as players or pawns. Many schools had only just re-opened following years of enforced closures, and Kumba is just the latest school in the Anglophone regions to have been attacked in the last few years.
Calling for a school boycott
Schools and teachers have been central to the Anglophone crisis since protests against the regions’ decades of marginalisation began in 2016. That October, teachers’ and lawyers’ trade unions organised demonstrations demanding an end to Francophone domination in their institutions. By the end of November, students had joined in, leaving schools empty.
As the Cameroonian government brutally suppressed these demonstrations, the Anglophone Civil Society Consortium, which was spearheading the movement at the time, called for civil disobedience in the form boycotting businesses and schools.
The day after this action commenced, the protest leaders were arrested. Soon after, several teachers’ trade unions and members of the consortium called for schools to resume but the consortium leaders refused to change their stance. Activists in the diaspora also spread disinformation by saying UNESCO would not recognise any educational certificates issued in Cameroon that year. The boycott largely held.
The few schools that re-opened faced reprisals. The first attack on a school occurred in February 2017 near Kumba. In May, a government primary school in Bamenda that was preparing to host exams was burnt down. It is not clear who carried out these attacks as separatist fighters had not yet mobilised, but it is likely they were motivated by activists in the diaspora who had begun to advocate for a violent approach.
The boycott was further solidified in the summer of 2017 when members of the diaspora formed the “Interim Government” of Ambazonia. The new group, which advocated for the creation of an independent state, said it would not permit the resumption of schooling until independence was granted.
Matters turn more violent
When conflict then broke out in January 2018, separatist fighters added the threat of violence and attacked schools that defied the boycott. In April 2018, high school staff member Thomas Nkongho was killed by secessionist fighters. Days later, primary school teacher Sophie Maloba was executed. Some other teachers were kidnapped. This use of violence was encouraged by activists in the diaspora. US-based activists such as Eric Tataw and Tapang Ivo Tanku, for instance, issued threats of violence that were later carried out or openly celebrated the executions of students.
These attacks continued at the start of the academic year in 2018. That August, Ayeah Ngam Emmanuel, a teachers trade unionist calling for school resumption, was abducted. Then, on the first day of the term, fighters attacked the Presbyterian School in Bafut, kidnapping teachers and students. By the end of 2018, at least 43 schools had been attacked or burned.
This pattern has continued up to now, with the vast majority of children in the two Anglophone regions unable to attend school.
The official reason separatists have given for opposing the resumption of schooling is that it is not safe for students due to the conflict. It is widely assumed that the real reason for the policy, however, is so that they can use it as leverage in negotiations with the Cameroonian government. When a delegation of female leaders travelled to the US to discuss reopening schools with separatist leaders, for instance, they were told that the issue could only be addressed as part of official negotiations.
A change in policy?
At the beginning of the academic year in 2020, segments of the divided separatist movement began to change their stance. The Interim Government of Sisiku AyukTabe, who remains in prison in Yaoundé, announced that parents may send their children to school if they determine it to be safe. Fighters on the ground announced their support for limited forms of schooling. Activists who had vociferously opposed school resumption in the past including Eric Tataw and Mark Bareta changed their positions. And some other separatist groups such as the Ambazonbia Governing Council (AGOVC) stated that while it did not support government schools resuming, it supported “community schools”.
Others retained their previous stance such as the Interim Government of Samuel Sako, which said that school resumption would not be allowed unless accompanied by international negotiations to end the conflict.
Following these changes, many students began attending school for the first time in years and felt secure doing so. However, this all changed with the killing of students in Kumba. While it is too early to know the full impact that attack will have on the resumption of schooling, it is clear that many children will continue not to receive an education as long as the conflict continues.
The Chairman of Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State, Adode Tete, has deployed vigilantes to beef up security in all communities within the LGA.
This is coming on the heels of the gradual rise in crimes as operatives of the Nigeria Police have refused to return to their duty posts in spite of the directive of the Inspector-General, Mr Muhammed Adamu.
Police operatives, it will be recalled, emptied from the streets in the wake of extrajudicial killings by hoodlums who hijacked the peaceful #EndSARS protest across the country.
See Also: We’re committed to ending all forms of estimated billing –Buhari
No fewer than three policemen were killed and police stations burnt in some parts of the state, a development that has sent police operatives underground for fear of being hacked down.
The presence of operatives of vigilance groups was more noticeable across communities in Ughelli axis of the state where they have strategically manned towns and clans of the area.
Checks on Wednesday showed some of the vigilance groups’ operatives mounting surveillance at some locations in the ever-busy East-West road axis of Otovwodo junction, the Ughelli Market as well as Ekiugo community, and other parts of the LGA.
It was gathered that the decision to deploy the community outfits came following a security meeting the local government areas in Ughelli held with the traditional rulers and President-Generals of the various kingdoms in the locality.
The President-Generals of the seven kingdoms in Ughelli North Local Government Area, it was gathered, had, in collaboration with the council, already provided patrol vehicles and other necessary logistics for the effective operations of members of the local vigilante groups.
See Also: DSS sacks 140 teachers over request for better salary
The local government, it was further gathered, had also resolved to grant the vigilance groups’ operatives periodic seminars and training on the job.
The measures, as gathered, came into effect after a hurried meeting on Monday by the security committee of the local government area to prevent criminals from taking undue advantage of the noticeable drought of policemen at their duty posts and to avert jungle justice.
When contacted, Chairman of Ughelli North, Mr Adede Tete, confirmed the deployment of operatives of local vigilance groups and other efforts being made to protect his people and domain.
“These are just some of the pro-active measures being taken by the local government to guard against insecurity in the area,” he quipped.
According to him, he had had security meetings with the Ughelli Area Commander of the Nigeria Police who had assured him that “his officers and men are actually working, operating in plain clothes, in view of the fact that tension is still high for now.”
He further quoted the Area Commander as assuring that the police were on ground to give a timely response to any distress call from members of the public.
Mr Tete, however, remarked that the Nigeria Police, at this time, need morale-boosting from both the government and members of the public.
President Muhammadu Buhari has restated the Federal Government is committed to ending estimated billing in all forms in Nigeria.
He said his regime would ensure that Nigerians pay only for the electricity they consume.
Buhari said this in a series of tweets he posted on his Twitter handle, @MBuhari, on Wednesday.
He added that the government was making money available for the distribution of one million free meters in the first instance while the target is to meet the 6.5 million deficit of meters nationwide.
Buhari wrote, “Under the first phase of the Presidential Mass Metering Initiative, we are making funding immediately available for DisCos to roll out 1,000,000 meters in the first phase, at no cost to consumers. Deployment has already started in parts of Kano, Kaduna, Lagos and Abuja.
“Future phases of this metering initiative will help us fully meet the 6.5 million deficit of meters nationwide and will impact an estimated 30 million consumers. All meters under this programme will be sourced from local manufacturers and in-country stock, to create jobs.
“We are committed to ending estimated billing in all forms in Nigeria, and ensuring that Nigerians pay only for the electricity they consume.”
The Department of State Services, DSS, has reportedly sacked 140 teachers and other staff members of its Community Staff Schools, Asokoro, Abuja for demanding better conditions of service and regularisation of their appointment.
The service also shut down the institution and directed the 1,800 pupils in the nursery/primary and secondary classes to stay at home for two weeks.
It has been gathered that all the pupils had been sent away pending the engagement of new teachers by the authorities.
Findings indicate that the primary school commenced pupil enrolment in 1992/93, while the secondary classes took off in 1998.
See Also: FG, ASUU’s meeting hits deadlock over adoption of UTAS
Trouble began when the teachers demanded the regularisation of their appointment and an increase in their salaries and other emoluments following increase in the school tuition.
In response, the authorities issued a letter of disengagement to the workers, including the principal and other administrative officials.
Before the face-off, the fee for the nursery and primary classes was increased from N25,000 to N35,000 for children and wards of the rank and file, while children of senior DSS officers were required to pay N45,000 up from N35,000 per term.
For children of civilians, the tuition was increased from N45,000 to N60,000.
See Also: INEC earmarks N1 billion for the resumption of voter registration in 2021
The tuition for secondary school classes was increased from 35,000 to 45,000 for children and wards of the rank and file, while officers’ children were asked to pay N60,000 up from 40,000. Students who did not fall in either of the categories will pay N90,000 from N70,000. Other sundry charges were also said to have been increased.
However, in the letter of disengagement dated November 2, 2020, signed by the Executive Secretary, CSSA, M. Onyilo, the DSS hinged its decision to sack the school staff on poor financial situation brought about by the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the nation’s economy.
The letter titled, ‘Disengagement from the service of Community Staff Schools, Asokoro,’ reads partly, “Due to the effect of COVID-19 on the Nigerian economy vis-a-vis the crippling financial situation of the school, I am directed to convey the Director-General, State Services/Proprietor’s approval to disengage you from the services of the school with effect from 3rd November 2020.”
THE Ministry of Youth and Sports Development in alliance with Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 have ruled out the possibility of fans watching the eagerly awaited Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier against the Leone Stars of Sierra Leone at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin on November 13.
In a clearly worded advisory to both the Edo State Government and the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), the authorities said they won’t condone breaching the COVID-19 protocol, adding ‘the no gathering, no audience for football and contact sports’ is still in full force.
In a letter to the Deputy Governor of Edo State Comrade Philip Shaibu, the Ministry noted inter alia : “The Ministry wishes to bring to your urgent attention that in compliance with the condition of no gathering agreed upon by the Ministry and the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 before the Federal Government opened up football and contacts sports, the match between Nigeria and Sierra Leone will not have any audience and no gathering save for players, match officials and government officials from both countries.
Democrat Joe Biden has a path to victory in the US election but his Republican opponent President Donald Trump is challenging vote counts in four key states. So what might happen?
The Trump campaign has claimed, without evidence, there is voter fraud and wants to stop the count in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia and Michigan.
We speak to legal experts about what this means – and what comes next if the contest drags on.
Shouldn’t we know the results by now?
Yes and no. Usually, when the data shows a candidate has an unbeatable lead, the major US networks declare one candidate the winner. This tends to happen in the early hours of the morning after voting day.
These are not official, final results – they are projections, and the final official tally has always taken days to count.
But this year’s massive volume of postal votes means the counting is taking longer, especially as some battleground states have not allowed counting ahead of election day.https://emp.bbc.com/emp/SMPj/2.36.2/iframe.htmlmedia captionCould postal voting upend the US election?
So they have had to count everything on the day itself, and counting postal votes can take longer than in-person votes due to verification requirements.
If races are too close to call, and neither candidate concedes, it’s normal for the counting to go on, says Matthew Weil, director of the Bipartisan Policy Research Center’s elections project.
There were obstacles before voting
It was already a very litigious election.
Before Tuesday’s vote, there were more than 300 lawsuits across 44 states regarding postal and early voting in elections this year.
They centred on a range of issues such as the deadline for posting and receiving ballots, the witness signatures required and the envelopes used to post them.
Republican-run states said restrictions were necessary to clamp down on voter fraud.
But Democrats said these were attempts to keep people from exercising their civic rights.
What are the challenges issued by Trump?
Wisconsin
The president’s campaign said it has requested a recount in Wisconsin “based on abnormalities seen” on Tuesday.
It’s unclear when this recount would take place, however, since typically these do not happen until after the county officials finish reviewing the votes. The state’s deadline for this part of the process is 17 November.
Columbia University Law School professor Richard Briffault says there was a recount in Wisconsin in 2016 as well, and it “changed about a hundred votes”.
“A recount is not a means of, challenging the legality of a vote,” he explains. “It’s just about literally a means of making sure that the calculations are right.”
Michigan
Mr Trump won the state in 2016 by his slimmest margin – just over 10,700 votes. On 4 November, his campaign announced a lawsuit to stop the count there, though 96% of the votes have already been unofficially tallied by local election officials.
Thousands of votes remain uncounted and many come from regions that are historically Democratic, but US outlets and the BBC are projecting a win for Mr Biden.
Pennsylvania
The challenge here centres on the state’s decision to count ballots that are postmarked by Election Day but arrive up to three days late. Republicans are seeking an appeal.
Mr Weil says he is most concerned about this dispute as the nation’s top court was deadlocked on it before the election – and before Justice Amy Coney Barrett joined.
“They did indicate in some of their dissents that they would be interested in taking it after. So I do think there is a risk that some of those [postal] ballots that were cast by election day and not received until Friday may be discarded. I think that would be the wrong result, but I think that is a legally possible result.”
But Weil adds that the election would have to be “very, very close for that to matter”. He points out that state officials had sent out messaging ahead of election day urging voters to turn in their absentee ballots at polling places instead of posting them. “So my guess is that it’s not going to be a huge number of ballots that could be thrown out, if that was the case.”
Prof Briffault also points out that the ballots arriving late are being counted separately, and says if Mr Biden can pull ahead without those being tallied, he sees no basis for a legal challenge.
But the Trump campaign has declared victory in the state though there are more than a million votes still to be tallied. No major US networks have yet projected a winner.
Georgia
State Republicans and Mr Trump’s campaign have filed a lawsuit in Georgia’s Chatham County to pause the count, alleging problems with absentee ballot processing.
Georgia Republican chairman David Shafer tweeted that party observers saw a woman “mix over 50 ballots into the stack of uncounted absentee ballots”.
They’ve asked a judge to account for the county’s ballots that were received after polls closed on Election Day.
Could anything reach the Supreme Court?
Early Wednesday, Mr Trump also claimed voting fraud without evidence, and added: “We’ll be going to the US Supreme Court – we want all voting to stop.”
Voting has already stopped – polls closed on Election Day, though there is the question of late ballots, like in Pennsylvania.
Mr Weil says: “The Supreme Court doesn’t have any kind of special power to stop the legal counting process.”
Prof Briffault also says that campaigns may dispute close contests in pivotal states, but “they still nonetheless have to have [a case] that raises a constitutional concern” for it to reach the Supreme Court.
“There’s no standard process for bringing election disputes to the Supreme Court. It’s very unusual and it would have to involve a very significant issue.”
If the election result is challenged, it would require legal teams to challenge the result in the state courts. State judges would then need to uphold the challenge and order a recount, and Supreme Court justices could then be asked to overturn a ruling.
In some places, recounts are automatically triggered if the margins are close enough – you may remember Florida’s in the 2000 presidential election between George W Bush and Al Gore (more on that below).
How long can this drag on?
Because this is a presidential race, there are key federal and constitutional deadlines to move things along:
States have about five weeks from 3 November to figure out which candidate won their presidential contest. This is called the “safe harbour” deadline, and this year, it’s 8 December.
If states haven’t settled on their electors by this date – remember the president is chosen by an electoral college not the popular vote – Congress can rule that their electors won’t count in the final tally.
On 14 December, electors meet in their respective states to vote.
If we still don’t have a majority-winner after 6 January, then Congress decides the outcome in what’s called a contingent election.
The House of Representatives will select the president while the Senate confirms the vice-president. Yes, this means we could see a president and vice-president from different parties, but maybe don’t prep your Biden-Pence signs just yet.
Each House state delegation gets one vote. Whoever wins 26 delegations is the new US president.
But Mr Weil notes that “a lot would have to go wrong to get to this situation where the House and Senate are really deciding the presidency”. Namely, the election would need to be incredibly close.
“It’s not just that some states have to be up for grabs,” he says. “We could have some disagreements in states and still have one candidate getting to 270 electoral college votes.”
Why might states not declare a winner?
What if the states themselves can’t agree on who gets their electors? You could imagine this happening if one party argues that the final vote count is inaccurate or rigged.
The key battlegrounds of North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin all currently have split governments – Democratic governors but Republican-majority legislatures.
In a contested election, lawmakers could theoretically split from their governors and submit their own certified electors to Congress. (This happened in 1876 – but more on that below.)
Congress would need to determine whose votes count – the ones submitted by the legislature or the governor’s.
If the House and Senate both agree, there’s no problem. If they’re split, we’re in uncharted waters, though some experts say federal law is in favour of the governor’s electors.
The final, final deadline
No matter what, on 20 January, the Constitution says there must be a new presidential term.
“At noon, we have to swear in somebody to be president. If there isn’t an outcome, then we go into our succession plan,” Mr Weil says.
Mr Weil notes we could also see a scenario where the House is in a deadlock about the president, but the Senate confirms a vice-presidential pick.
If the House can’t resolve it by Inauguration Day, the Senate-selected vice-president becomes the president.
Next in line, if there’s no vice-president – the Speaker of the House (currently a Democrat, Nancy Pelosi).
Have we seen this kind of drama before?
To date, the 2000 election this is the only one decided by the Supreme Court, when George Bush edged out Al Gore.
It was a tight race between Democrat Mr Gore and Republican Mr Bush. On election day, Gore won the popular vote, but things were closer in the electoral college. Everything hinged on how Florida doled out its 25 electoral votes.
The race was close enough to trigger a recount. Mr Gore’s team asked for four counties to do that recount by hand, prompting an appeal by the Bush camp. Weeks later, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Bush along party lines 5-4. Mr Gore conceded and President Bush moved into the White House.
There are two other instances of unusual outcomes:
Right to the wire, 1876
Lawmakers had another election mess on their hands in 1876, between Democrat Samuel Tilden and Republican Rutherford Hayes. Tilden was one vote short of a win in the electoral college. Four states had electoral disputes – and if Hayes won those, he’d win it all.
Lawmakers appointed a bi-partisan commission to decide the winner. And so came the Compromise of 1877: Hayes won – by a margin of one electoral vote – by negotiating with southern Democrats. The election was resolved just two days before Inauguration Day.
Getting most electoral college votes still not enough, 1824
In 1824, the man who won the popular vote and the most electoral college votes did not win the election.
Andrew Jackson appeared to narrowly beat John Quincy Adams for the sixth presidential seat, but because neither candidate secured a majority, the decision went, per the Constitution, to the House.
The Speaker at the time, Henry Clay, was not a Jackson fan. In what’s known as the “corrupt bargain”, Clay negotiated with House lawmakers and Adams to secure the win for Adams – and the Secretary of State role for himself.
Three Nigerian-Americans, Esther Agbaje, Oye Owolewa and Nnamdi Chukwuocha, have won their electoral bids in the United States election held on Tuesday.
Agbaje, who contested to represent District 59B in the Minnesota House of Representatives on the platform of the Democratic Party, won with 17,396 votes.
The 35-year-old Harvard law graduate defeated Republican Alan Shilepsky and Green Party candidate Lisa Neal-Delgado to represent downtown and north Minneapolis in the state House.
She is one of the nine Nigerian-Americans on the ballot in Tuesday’s election.
Born to Nigerian parents – an Episcopal priest and a librarian – Ms Agbaje became the first Nigerian-American to be elected to the Minnesota legislature.
With a master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania, she had a stint in the U.S. State Department, experience working with city government, and accolades at a prestigious law firm, her profile read.
In August, Agbaje was one of four newcomers who defeated established Democratic legislators in the primary – two in the state House and two in the Senate.
She is interested in prison reform, fighting racial discrepancies, housing among others.
She took to Twitter to announce her victory on Wednesday.
“I’m honored to have earned the support and trust of my neighbors to serve as their representative for #MN #HD59B. From North #MPLS to North Loop, Elliot Park to Bryn Mawr, I will work hard everyday to represent this entire district with empathy, compassion and pride.#ThankYou”.
Another Nigerian Democrat, Oye Owolewa, was elected as a shadow member of the House of Representatives from the District of Columbia.
He polled 164,026 votes to defeat incumbent Joyce Robinson-Paul, who scored 18,600 votes, and Sohaer Syed with 15,372 votes.
Owolewa, who has roots in Kwara and Oyo states, holds a PhD in Pharmacy from the Northeastern University, Boston.
In 2018, he was elected commissioner of his neighbourhood in SouthEast DC.
As an advocate for DC statehood, he launched TaxFreeDC as a movement to combat DC’s taxation without representation.
According to his website, TaxFreeDC declares that until DC statehood is achieved, DC’s tax revenue shall no longer go to the federal government.
“Oye believes our money belongs here for DC priorities instead of going to a government that fails to recognise us,” it said.
He became the first Nigerian-American to occupy the seat.
As the results trickled on Wednesday morning, Owolewa shared the news of his victory on his social media.
“Good morning. Looks like we did it! I want to thank everyone, from family and close friends to DC residents.
“Because of your contributions and sacrifices, I stand before you as America’s first Nigerian-American congressman.
“In this role, I’m going to fight for DC statehood and bring our values to the lawmaking process. While today is the day for some celebration, the hard work also follows.
“Again, thanks so much for everything. I wouldn’t be here without yall,” he said.
Lastly, Nnamdi Chukwuocha won re-election as a member of Delaware House of Representatives from District 1.
As a Democrat without an opponent, he won 100 per cent of the votes with 7,640.
Chukwuocha was elected to represent District 1 in the Delaware House of Representatives in 2018.
With a bachelor’s degree in history and a master’s degree in social work from Delaware State University, he has several years of experience in local politics in the state.
He once served on the Wilmington City Council as President Pro Tempore and Chair of the Education, Youth and Families Committee.
In 2019, he was a member of the Corrections Committee, the Education Committee, the Health & Human Development Committee, the Veterans Affairs Committee as a US Army veteran and Vice-Chair of the Transportation/Land Use and Infrastructure Committee.
He is part of the spoken word duo “Twin Poets” which was appointed as the State of Delaware 17th Poets Laureate.
…Trump, Biden await results in battleground states
…Two Nigerians, Agbaje, Oye win Minnesota, District of Columbia
THE excruciatingly close U.S. presidential election hung in the balance yesterday with Democrat Joe Biden leading in two critical Midwestern states that could tip the contest in his favor even as President Donald Trump claimed victory and made allegations of electoral fraud.
Biden extended his narrow lead in Michigan while maintaining a slight edge in Wisconsin on Wednesday, according to Edison Research. The Republican president won the two pivotal battleground states in 2016. Michigan officials continued to count mail-in ballots that surged amid the coronavirus pandemic. Wisconsin officials said they concluded their counting, but a winner had yet to be declared.
President Donald Trump on Wednesday requested for a vote recount in Wisconsin won by Democratic challenger Joe Biden.
Biden inched closer to victory in the bitterly-fought United States election with 253 Electoral College votes to Trump’s 214.
For a candidate to be declared winner, he must win 270 Electoral College votes.
The final outcome was being expected last night in fiercely contested states of Alaska with 3 Electoral College Votes, Georgia (16), Nevada (6) North Carolina (15) and Pennsylvania (20).
The Trump campaign also filed a lawsuit to halt the counting of votes in Michigan, alleging it had not been given “meaningful access” to observe the count in several locations.
Bill Stepien, the Trump campaign manager, said in a statement that the lawsuit filed in Michigan state court sought a halt to the count until they were given access, as well as a “review” of ballots already counted.
A copy of the Trump campaign lawsuit was not immediately available from the Michigan Court of Claims. A Michigan courts spokesman said it had not yet been filed.
The winner of the election is determined through a system called the Electoral College. Each of the 50 states, plus Washington DC, is given a number of Electoral College votes, adding up to a total of 538 votes. More populous states get more Electoral College votes than smaller ones. A candidate needs to win 270 Electoral College votes (50% plus one) to win the election.
With millions of votes yet to be counted, Trump made a premature claim of victory and alleged plot to “steal the election”. He also falsely asserted election fraud.
Claiming that he had won many states that whose ballots, including Georgia, North Carolina and Pennsylvania.
His Democratic challenger insisted that “we believe we’re on track to win this election” and pleaded for patience, citing Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan. “It ain’t over till every vote is counted,” Biden said.
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