By
Democrat Joe Biden, leading the U.S. presidential race said he would address Americans later on Saturday, his second address in 24 hours.
The first on Friday night was expected to be a victory declaration, but he decided to downgrade it, with TV networks not calling him victor yet, as vote counting continues in some battleground states.
Nevertheless, the 77 year-old Biden was upbeat about the prospect of victory as he spoke in Delaware at prime time.
“The numbers tell us … it’s a clear and convincing story: We’re going to win this race,” Biden said late on Friday.
He said he and running mate Kamala Harris were already meeting with experts as they prepare for the White House.
As the counting entered its fifth day, Former Vice President Biden had a 253-to-214 lead in the state-by-state Electoral College vote that determines the winner, according to Edison Research.
Securing Pennsylvania’s 20 electoral votes would put Biden over the 270 he needs to win the presidency after a political career stretching back nearly five decades.
As officials count a deluge of mail-in ballots, Biden has held on to narrow leads in Nevada and Arizona and earlier on Friday overtook Trump in Pennsylvania and Georgia.
In Arizona, Biden led by 29,861 votes with 97% of the tally completed. In Nevada, he led by 22,657 votes with 93% of the count complete.
In Georgia, he led by a mere 4,289 votes with the count 99% complete, while in Pennsylvania he led by 27,130 votes with 96% of the vote complete.
Biden said Trump’s demands to stop the count would not work.
“Your vote will be counted. I don’t care how hard people try to stop it. I will not let it happen,” Biden said.
Leading Trump by 4.1 million votes nationwide out of a record 147 million cast, Biden said Americans had given him a mandate to tackle the pandemic, the struggling economy, climate change and systemic racism.
“They made it clear they want the country to come together, not continue to pull apart,” Biden said.
He said he hoped to address Americans again on Saturday.
Biden backers danced in Philadelphia’s streets, while armed Trump supporters in Phoenix and Detroit said the election was being stolen, despite any evidence of irregularities.
Under the banner of “Stop the Steal,” Trump supporters planned dozens of rallies for Saturday.
Trump has remained defiant, vowing to press unfounded claims of fraud as his Republicans sought to raise $60 million to fund lawsuits challenging the results.
But some in his camp described the legal effort as disorganized, and so far they have not found success in the courts.
Trump showed no sign he was ready to concede, as his campaign pursued a series of lawsuits that legal experts said were unlikely to alter the election outcome.
“Joe Biden should not wrongfully claim the office of the President. I could make that claim also. Legal proceedings are just now beginning!” he wrote on Twitter.
Republicans aimed to raise at least $60 million for legal costs, although the fine print on solicitations indicates that more than half the money raised would go to paying down the campaign’s debts.
A Trump adviser described the campaign’s litigation strategy as chaotic and disorganized. Another Republican official said it was doubtful the lawsuits would yield a Trump victory.
“This race is over, and the only person who doesn’t see it is Donald Trump,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Abass Latifat
