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LIVE UPDATES: Joe Biden takes lead in Pennsylvania, Georgia as count continues

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Posted at 4:46 AM, Nov 04, 2020
and last updated 2020-11-04 04:46:48-05

FOLLOW ALONG FOR LIVE ELECTION RESULTS HERE

9:07 a.m. Friday
Joe Biden takes the lead in Pennsylvania; If he wins, he'll have a majority of electoral votes in the presidential race.

1:59 a.m. Friday
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has overtaken President Donald Trump's once-sizeable lead in the state of Georgia, though the state remains too close to call, according to the latest update from the Associated Press.

6:59 p.m. Thursday
Supporters of President Trump are planning two more events outside TCF Center in downtown Detroit Friday.

RELATED: Chaos erupts at Detroit’s TCF Center as poll challengers denied access due to COVID safety measures

Activists tell 7 Action News that American Patriot Council and WalkAway with Brandon Straka will begin their protests at 9:30 a.m.

This is taking place after Trump supporters spent two days protesting the outcome of the election in Michigan.

1:30 p.m. Thursday

After the hearing, Judge Cynthia Stevens dismissed the Trump campaign's lawsuit, saying it was filed too late and the counting had already completed.

12:30 p.m. Thursday

A court hearing is underway for the Trump campaign lawsuit filed attempting to stop vote counting in Michigan.

11:30 a.m. Thursday

Gary Peters spoke to a crowd of supporters after winning his re-election campaign against Republican John James.

11:21 a.m. Thursday

Incumbent Rep. Haley Stevens has won a second term in Congress, beating Republican Eric Esshaki and Libertarian Leonard Schwartz.

8:57 p.m. Wednesday

Michigan voters overwhelming pass proposals 1 and 2. Proposal 1 will change how money is spent under the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund, while Proposal 2 aims to change the state’s constitution and move Michigan into the 21st century by requiring law enforcement agencies to get a search warrant to access someone’s electronic data or electronic communications.

Read more on Prop 1 here and more on Prop 2 here.

8 p.m. Wednesday

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson held a press conference Wednesday evening to discuss where Michigan stands in the ballot counting process.

Benson said that the process of counting ballots is "by and large complete," adding that it exceeded her expectation. It was initially predicted that tabulations would take roughly 80 hours for election workers to count the over 3 million absentee ballots cast. Instead, those results were available in half that time.

Benson boasted that this election, there were 5.2 million voters, which is more than any amount in our state's modern history.

“In Michigan, the process worked. Our system is secure, accurate, and anyone who tells you otherwise is attaching our democracy or unhappy with the results.”

She also addressed the Trump campaign's lawsuit, calling it frivolous.

4:45 Wednesday

ABC News projects Joe Biden will win Michigan.

3:30 p.m. Wednesday

Former State Sen. Peter Lucido, a Republican, has won the race to be the nextMacomb County Prosecutor. He beat out former Judge Mary Chrzanowski.

1:40 p.m. Wednesday

Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Karen McDonald, a Democrat, has won the race for Oakland County Prosecutor.

1:30 p.m. Wednesday

Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin has won her second term in Congress, beating Republican Paul Junge and Libertarian Joe Hartman.

1:20 p.m. Wednesday

Dave Coulter, a Democrat who is the interim Oakland County Executive, has won the race for executive and will continue to serve for the next four years.

12:15 p.m. Wednesday

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson says about 100,000 ballots are left to be counted.

Ballots are still being counted in Detroit, Grand Rapids, Flint and Kalamazoo, along with a number of smaller jurisdictions.

11 a.m. Wednesday

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson will hold a virtual press conference Wednesday morning to provide an update on the ballot counting process in Michigan.

9:12 a.m. Wednesday

As of 9:12 a.m., here's where some of the closest races in Michigan stand, with Joe Biden taking a slight lead over President Donald Trump in Michigan.

8:15 a.m. Wednesday

Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey says 143,000 absentee ballots in Detroit have been counted. There are 35,000 more left to count.

7:40 a.m. Wednesday

Michigan is on track to complete the vast majority of tabulation Wednesday, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said in an appearance on CNN.

Benson said absentee ballots from Detroit, Flint, Grand Rapids, Warren and Sterling Heights are yet to be recorded; there are hundreds of thousands of ballots from the largest jurisdictions.

7:10 a.m. Wednesday

Wayne County Clerk Cathy Garrett joined CNN on Wednesday morning to talk about the count in the county.

According to Garrett, as of 6:23 a.m., the county had only counted 55% of the precincts. There are 1,115 precincts in the county, and Garrett said they have counted only 617.

6:40 a.m. Wednesday

When will we know who won Michigan? Michigan Secretary of State Communications Director Jake Rollow joined 7 Action News This Morning to talk all about what the state is seeing with the election.

Watch his interview below.

Michigan SOS spokesperson speaks after election day

5:13 a.m. Wednesday

More U.S. House seats from Michigan have been called.

The Associated Press projects that Rep. Andy Levin, a Democrat from Michigan's 9th Congressional district and Rep. Bill Huizenga, a Republican from Michigan's 2nd Congressional District, will win re-election.

The AP also projects that Lisa McClain, a Republican, has been elected to the U.S. House in Michigan's 10th Congressional District, replacing Paul Mitchell.
4:40 a.m. Wednesday

The City of Detroit said another 50,000 absentee ballots have been processed at the TCF Center.

4:10 a.m. Wednesday

The Associated Press projected several U.S. Congressmen and Congresswomen from Michigan would keep their seats.

According to the AP, Democratic Reps. Brenda Lawrence (14th district), Debbie Dingell (12th district) and Rashida Tlaib (13th district) all won re-election.

The AP also project several Republicans in other parts of Michigan would keep their seats. That includes Reps. Jack Bergman (1st district), John Moolenaar (4th district), Fred Upton (6th district) and Tim Walbert (7th district).

2:30 a.m. Wednesday

President Trump spoke in the early morning hours of Wednesday, falsely declaring victory in several states that have yet to be called and saying he'll ask the Supreme Court to stop counting votes.

At the time of his speech, he was trailing Joe Biden in electoral votes.

1:05 a.m.

The Associated Press projects President Donald Trump will win Texas.

12:49 a.m.

President Donald Trump tweeted that he will make a statement soon, adding that he believes that the election is being stolen.

There is no evidence at this time of any widespread election or voting fraud.

12:35 a.m.

Joe Biden addressed supporters just after 12:30 a.m. Wednesday as he had a lead in the electoral college votes, but votes were still being counted around the country.

Watch it below.

12:19 a.m.

The Associated Press projects President Donald Trump will win Ohio, Iowa and Montanas.

12:14 a.m.

The Associated Press projects Joe Biden will win Minnesota.

12:07 a.m.

The Associated Press projects Joe Biden will win Hawaii.

11:07 p.m.

The Associated Press projects President Donald Trump will win Utah.

11:00 p.m.

The Associated Press projects Joe Biden will win New Hampshire, Washington, Oregon, and California. They also project President Donald Trump will win Idaho.

10:20 p.m.

The Associated Press projects President Donald Trump will win Kansas.

10 p.m.

9:50 p.m.

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson gave an update on Michigan's election results from Ford Field Tuesday evening. She praised voters for safely showing up to the polls, as well as city clerks for maintaining a safe environment for residents to vote, while also ensuring that every ballot is counted.

“Voters turned out in record numbers in Michigan," Benson said.

On Election Day, 28,000 citizens registered to vote in person, while the in-person voter turnout was about 2.5 million so far, but will likely increase in the coming hours, Benson said.

Benson also noted that 3.26 million absentee ballots have already been received and are in the process of being tabulated, indicating that Michigan could potentially see full results within 24 hours.

9:36 p.m.

The Associated Press projects that Joe Biden will win Colorado.

9:31 p.m.

The Associated Press has projected that Joe Biden will win Washington, DC.

9:11 p.m.

The Associated Press has projected President Donald Trump will win North Dakota, South Dakota, Louisana, Nebraska, and Wyoming and Joe Biden will win New Mexico, and New York.

8:58 p.m.

The Associated Press reports President Donald Trump will win Indiana.

8:53 p.m.

Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey and Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson gave an update on the election shortly after polls closed in most of Michigan.

According to Winfrey, as of 7:30 p.m., the City of Detroit had tabulated 120,000 absentee ballots, and about 80,000 of those had been published. That means they've been looked at and are good to go.

The rest must go through what is called the adjudication process.

According to the clerk's office, 15% of Detroit voters showed up in person.

"The way that the work is going, it looks like, and I’m not making promises, but if we continue at this pace, we should have 100 percent results by about this time tomorrow at the earliest," Winfrey said.

8:40 p.m.

The Associated Press projects that President Donald Trump will in South Carolina.

8:35 p.m.

The Associated Press reports President Donald Trump is projected to win Arkansas.

8:30 p.m.

Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey and Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson will be speaking around 8:30 p.m.

WATCH LIVE HERE

8:05 p.m.

The Associated Press has called Maryland, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Delaware, Illinois, and Connecticut for Joe Biden and Tennessee, Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Alabama for President Donald Trump.

8:00 p.m.

The polls have now closed throughout most of Michigan. Stay tuned to the blog for results.

You can also follow along with our election night special coverage. Watch here.

7:58 p.m.

The Associated Press projects President Donald Trump will win South Carolina.

7:39 p.m.

The Associated Press projects Joe Biden will win Virginia.

7:33 p.m.

The Associated Press projects President Donald Trump will win West Virginia.

7:30 p.m.

The Michigan Secretary of State's Office said some polling locations are seeing longer lines as they approach polls closing.

A spokesperson also said that 24,308 people have registered today as of 6:30 p.m. Detroit leads the way with just over 1,000 people.

According to the spokesperson, the SOS will speak around 8 p.m. or 8:30 p.m. in Detroit with Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey.

As for absentee ballot numbers, there have been 3.24 million returned so far which are being counted across Michigan.

7 p.m.

As the first polls close in other parts of the country, the AP had called Vermont for Joe Biden and Kentucky for President Donald Trump.

5 p.m.

The Michigan Secretary of State's office provided an update on the election with just three hours until the polls close.

A spokesperson for Michigan SOS said that they will likely have a mix of absentee and polling place results tonight, but it depends on how certain jurisdictions count their ballots. They are hearing from some absentee voting counting boards that things are moving along well.

He added that it does not mean they expect to have full results tonight. They do expect to have some results tonight, said they always have. But not full results.

He said he's heard things are going well in Detroit and Oakland County when it comes to counting boards for absentee ballots. Oakland County was one of the faster ones in the August primary, and both are two of the larger counting boards in the state.

The state also has had 18,822 registrations today alone. Detroit led the way with 805, as of 4:30 p.m., followed by Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids, Lansing and Kalamazoo. Also as of 4:30 p.m., there have been 3,216,098 absentee ballots returned.

4:30 p.m.

Voters in Southfield haven't had to deal with long lines on Election Day. More than 3.1 million people returned absentee ballots as of election day, and 3.5 million were requested.

The Southfield City Clerk said 35,000 people in the city returned ballots. Our Kim Russell has an update on what voters are dealing with at the polls.

Short voting lines despite high turnout

2:30 p.m.

The Detroit Police Department is prepared to address any issues of voter intimidation or violence, Chief James Craig said Tuesday.

Officers will be on high alert for "potential unrest," Craig said. He said the department is in a "constant state of readiness."

2:18 p.m.

Kamala Harris spoke at her first stop in metro Detroit on Election Day.

Watch it below.

2 p.m.

Democratic Vice Presidential Candidate, Sen. Kamala Harris, arrived in Detroit around 1:30 p.m. on election day for several events in metro Detroit.

Speaking to the media shortly after she got off the plane, Harris talked about being in Detroit on election day.

"The path to the White House and the path to determining who will be the next President of the United States, without question, runs through Michigan," she said.

Harris was also asked about people who fear potential unrest over the election results.

She said that people should have faith that whoever is elected will defend the integrity of our democracy.

Sen. Kamala Harris arrives in Detroit on Election Day

1:55 p.m.

Voters across Michigan are sending in their "I voted" sticker selfies this Election Day.

FULL GALLERY HERE

Email your Election Day photos to webteam@wxyz.com.

1:30 p.m.

At the TCF Center in Detroit, absentee ballot counting is underway. There are more than 500 election precincts in the city of Detroit and we’re told workers at 134 tables in the center are hard at work.

There are poll challengers at TCF, people who aim to ensure the ballot counting process is fair.

“There’s challengers from every group, there’s Republicans, Democrats, nonpartisans and I think that’s the way it should be. If we have enough eyes on the process, it makes it a fair process, because it balances each other out,” said Tim Griffin, poll watcher.

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said she has confidence in the process on this historic Election Day.

“I have a lot of confidence in our clerks, and I have a lot of confidence in the work our election workers are going to do and already are doing today to securely tabulate every ballot. The communities that began and were able to begin pre-processing yesterday had a great experience, and it was also helpful because we were able to prepare even more for today,” she said.

1:20 p.m.

Rep. Andy Levin, a Democrat from Michigan's 9th district, said that absentee numbers are high in Oakland and Macomb counties. According to Levin, there had been 231,669 ballots returned in the two counties, more than three times the number of absentee ballots in 2016.

Levin also said that of those ballots, more than 55,000 are from people who didn't vote in 2016.

11:29 a.m.

State officials say Flint residents are being targeted in voter suppression robocalls. Attorney General Dana Nessel said residents are getting calls saying they should vote on Wednesday, due to long lines.

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson released this statement correcting the misinformation being shared in Flint:

“We received reports that an unknown party is purposefully spreading misinformation via robocalls in Flint in an attempt to confuse voters there, and I want to ensure everyone who plans to vote in person understands they must do so — or be in line to do so — by 8 p.m. today," Benson said in a statement. "Lines in the area and across the state are minimal and moving quickly, and Michigan voters can feel confident that leaders across state and local government are vigilant against these kinds of attacks on their voting rights and attempts at voter suppression, and we will be working quickly all day to stamp out any misinformation aimed at preventing people from exercising their right to vote."

10:51 a.m.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW PHOTOS OF LONG LINES AT THE POLLS IN METRO DETROIT

10:40 a.m.

If you experience or witness voter intimidation on Election Day, please reach out, and send us your photos and videos. We have a team dedicated to monitoring any problems that may arise at the polls today: Email tips@wxyz.com.

7 a.m.

In-person voting is underway across Michigan. In order to cast your ballot safely, here's what you need to know.

6:45 a.m.

Long line reported at Precinct 27 in Macomb County. If there's a long line at your precinct this morning, send us a photo!

6:05 a.m.

More than 3.1 absentee ballots have been returned in Michigan, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said in an appearance on 7 Action News This Morning.

Although state officials have repeatedly said all ballots will be tabulated by Friday due to the record-breaking amount of absentee ballots, Benson said they could all be counted "potentially sooner."