US election LIVE | Trump is now oldest person in US history to be elected President
AP Race Call: Kamala Harris wins the District of Columbia
NYT forecast gives Trump 80% chance of winning
Go vote, California, says Trump
Republican candidate Donald Trump appealed to California, a blue state, to vote
AP Race Call: Trump wins Utah
Donald Trump has won Utah and its six electoral votes, said AP. "The Mountain West state is a rare Republican stronghold that has in past elections only half-heartedly supported Trump, whose brash style and comments about immigrants do not sit right with some members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," said the AP report.
Latter-day Saints, better known as Mormons, make up about half of Utah’s 3.4 million population. Since Lyndon B Johnson in 1964, no Democratic presidential candidate has won in Utah.
The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 10:00 pm EST.
AP Race Call: Harris bags Colorado
Kamala Harris has won Colorado, picking up the state’s 10 electoral votes. Colorado was once a purple state, flipping between Democratic and Republican presidential candidates, but it has shifted blue in the past two decades, said AP.
"The last Republican presidential candidate to snag Colorado’s electoral votes was George W Bush in 2004. Since then, it’s backed Democratic presidential candidates, with Joe Biden winning it handily in 2020. Colorado gained its 10th electoral vote after the 2020 census, attributed to population growth around Denver. The Associated Press declared Harris the winner at 10:08 pm EST," said the AP report.
Blue Mirage, Red Mirage and more
Votes cast on election day tend to favour Republicans, while Democrats are historically favored in early voting, causing blue and red “mirages” depending on which types of votes each state counts first, says a Forbes report.
The 'red mirage', a major factor in the 2020 race, could show up again in the 2024 vote counting, says the report, adding that it may be less prominent this time.
"The 'red mirage' refers to early vote totals that favour Republicans as ballots cast in-person on election day are counted, while a 'blue shift' occurs as absentee and provisional ballots are totaled (since Democrats traditionally vote by mail more frequently than Republicans)," the report said.
Some American states now count their mail ballots first, potentially leading to a 'blue mirage' in states like Georgia early in the night, followed by a 'red shift' as GOP-leaning in-person votes are added to the total.
Who’s winning where (AP Race Call)
Trump (198):
Florida, Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Minnesota, Louisiana, Wisconsin, New Mexico, Utah, Montana, Georgia, Virginia, Oregon, Arizona
Harris (99)
Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, ColoradoWhich way are swing states leaning? (AP Race Call)
Michigan: Leaning Harris
Wisconsin: Leaning Trump
Pennsylvania: Leaning Harris
Nevada: Not available yet
Arizona: Not available yet
North Carolina: Leaning Trump
Georgia: Leaning TrumpHours extended at 9 precincts in eastern Arizona county
NYT gives Trump 67% chance of a win
According to NYT forecast, Trump has a 67% chance of winning though Harris has slightly more popular votes.