- Americans continue to watch and wait to see who will be declared the winner of Tuesday’s presidential elections.
- Alaska, Georgia, Nevada and Pennsylvania are still counting ballots and winners have not been projected.
- Trump has repeated voting fraud claims without providing evidence.
- Biden, who has urged patience, has taken the lead in Georgia and Pennsylvania.
- Arizona has been projected for Biden, but officials say mail-in ballots are still being counted.
Hello and welcome to Al Jazeera’s continuing coverage of the US elections. This is Joseph Stepansky taking over from Usaid Siddiqui and Shereena Qazi.
Lawyer to hold press conference in Philadelphia – Trump
US President Donald Trump announced a press conference in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at 11:30 ET (16:30 GMT)on Saturday, as vote counting continues in the state.
Trump says ‘tens of thousands’ of votes illegally received, tweet labelled ‘disputed’
Trump has alleged, without evidence, that tens of thousands of votes were received illegally, which could change the results in battleground states.
“Tens of thousands of votes were illegally received after 8 PM on Tuesday, Election Day, totally and easily changing the results in Pennsylvania and certain other razor thin states,” he tweeted.
Twitter labelled the tweet with a warning saying the claims “might be misleading” and “disputed”. To date, the Trump campaign has not provided any proof of widespread fraud. Several states, incuding key battlegrounds Pennsylvania and North Carolina accept ballots that are post marked by election day even if they arrive in the days after the election, based on their individual election rules.
Australia, US relations ‘bigger than one individual’
Australian’s prime minister commented on the ongoing US election process on Saturday, calling the relationship between Australia and the US “bigger than any one individual”.
Speaking to local media in Hobart, Tasmania, Scott Morrison said the link between the two countries was Australia’s “most important relationship”.
“It secures Australia’s position in this part of the world. It provides for our economic opportunities as well,” he said.
Hello. This is Usaid Siddiqui in Toronto,Canada, taking over from my colleague Shereena Qazi.
Venezuela’s Maduro expresses confusion over US election
Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro expressed “concern” about the uncertainty of the election results in the US.
In recent years, Trump has pursued a campaign of aggressive sanctions against the South American nation’s ruling United Socialist Party.
The sanctions against Maduro’s government have included asset freezes and travel bans for senior officials, and measures to curtail the OPEC nation’s oil exports and its fuel imports.
Maduro added that he wishes to have better bilateral relations with the US, “no matter who wins the presidential elections”.
Iran: Rouhani urges next US gov’t to ‘return to commitments’
President Hassan Rouhani has called on the next US administration to restart fulfilling commitments under the Iran nuclear deal.
In a televised speech, Rouhani said the Iranian people have faced “economic terrorism” for the past three years and have shown admirable resistance.
The president said he hopes those who sanctioned Iran will come to the conclusion their methods have been wrong and will bear no results.
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Guns seen outside vote-counting centres
The most turbulent and norm-breaking presidential election of a lifetime has led to an extraordinary spectacle in the US over the past three days: Armed protesters gathering nightly outside offices where local workers are counting the votes that will decide who wins the White House.
Experts warn weapons potentially create dangerous situations that could be seen as intimidation or tip easily into violence.
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Incendiary texts traced to outfit run by top Trump aide
A texting company run by one of Trump’s top campaign officials sent out thousands of targeted, anonymous text messages urging supporters to rally where votes were being counted in Philadelphia, falsely claiming Democrats were trying to steal the presidential election.
The messages directed Trump fans to converge at a downtown intersection where hundreds of protesters from the opposing candidates’ camps faced off Thursday afternoon.
“This kind of message is playing with fire, and we are very lucky that it does not seem to have driven more conflict,” said John Scott-Railton, senior researcher at the University of Toronto’s online watchdog Citizen Lab.
Trump Chief of Staff Meadows diagnosed with COVID-19
White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, who has frequently appeared at public events without wearing a mask, has been diagnosed with COVID-19, Two senior administration officials confirmed.
They offered no details on when the chief of staff came down with the virus or his current condition.
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Recounts: What are the rules in key contested states?
Trump to seek recounts in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Georgia, where apparent winner Biden is ahead by narrow margins.
Read the rules here in key states governing recounts and ballot challenges
Biden predicts victory as his lead over Trump grows
Biden says he is going to win the US presidency as his lead over Trump in battleground states grows, although television networks are holding off from declaring him the victor as officials continue to count votes.
“The numbers tell us … it’s a clear and convincing story: We’re going to win this race,” Biden said late on Friday, adding he and his running mate Kamala Harris were already meeting with experts as they prepare for the White House.
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Read our previous updates here.
