US election on knife edge

*So far, Biden 238; Trump 213

*Trump declares victory

*Biden also confident

*Polls fraud alleged

*Legal battle likely

The US presidential race is too close to call with with US President Donald Trump and Democrat candidate Joe Biden vying for electoral votes in some key states. Biden was ahead in Wisconsin and Michigan and Trump in Pennsylvania at the time of going to press.

A candidate has to secure as many as 270 out of 538 electoral votes to secure the coveted US presidency. Biden had obtained 238 and Trump 213 by yesterday evening. Vote counting was in progress in some states.

Biden is heavily dependent on mail-in votes, which the Democrats promoted. The Republicans are protesting against a decision by several states to allow mail-in votes to be accepted even after the Election Day. The Republicans were dependent on the election-day voting.

President Trump declared victory prematurely on the election night and threatened to move the US Supreme Court to stop the counting of votes. He said a fraud was being perpetrated on the American people. It is reported that ‘an army of Republican lawyers’ is awaiting the go-ahead to launch the legal battle. The Democratic lawyers are also ready to counter a possible Republican move to have the counting stopped. Biden had also said he is winning.

President Trump has won some key states including Florida, Texas, Iowa and Ohio. Biden was expected to win Arizona at the time of writing.

Political analysts expect Trump to win Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, West Virginia, Wyoming, Indiana, South Carolina and Utah. Biden has bagged pro-Democratic states such as California, Colorado, Columbia, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington.