US 2020 election: Trump suffers fresh setback as Hurricane Biden sweeps through Georgia, Pennsylvania
By George Aluo, with agency report
Joe Biden has overtaken Donald Trump‘s vote count in Pennsylvania and Georgia, both key swing states, putting him within touching distance of the White House.
The Independent of London reports that the latest update unfolded even as Mr Trump continued to push false claims about electoral fraud.
Trump had at a press conference in the White House on Thursday made several spurious electoral fraud claims that were so dishonest that TV networks cut away mid-stream.
The incumbent’s apparent early lead disappeared in Pennsylvania thanks to the widespread use of mail-in ballots, which have favoured his opponent. The latest tranche of returns came from Philadelphia and gave Mr Biden a lead of more than 5,500 votes in the state.
Mr Trump’s baseless claims of electoral fraud have spurred continued protests outside counting centres in key states like Pennsylvania and Arizona.
In Philadelphia, police have uncovered a plot to attack a building where ballots were being counted.
The president has also said he wants the Supreme Court to decide the election, but it is not clear what legal grounds the justices would rule on.
