ATLANTA — Former Vice President Joe Biden is now leading President Donald Trump in Georgia.
Biden jumped ahead of Trump by 917 votes just after 4:30 a.m. ET Friday. With 16 electoral votes up for grabs, Georgia is a state Trump must win in order to maintain a chance of winning.
Biden emerged in Wilmington, Delaware, for a short speech meant to project optimism, urge patience in the vote-counting.
“In America, the vote is sacred. It is how the people of this nation express their will,” he said, calling for calm and patience as the vote-counting process unfolds.
No Democratic presidential nominee has won the state since Bill Clinton in 1992. Clinton narrowly defeated former President George H.W. Bush in that state in part because he and Bush were in a three-way race that included Ross Perot, an independent candidate for the presidency.
Tight races in Nevada and Arizona are still keeping Americans on the edge of their seats.
Overall, Biden is still holding on to a 264 to 214 lead in the electoral vote count.
President Trump’s campaign filed lawsuits to stop the counting of votes in three battleground states on Thursday. All of those lawsuits were quickly dismissed by state judges in those states.
