Georgia’s presidential election results are particularly significant this year, as the presidential race between Donald Trump and Joe Biden will be hugely impacted by the state’s collective decision. Georgia is one of a small handful of swing states expected to weigh heavily for each candidate’s chances of reaching 270 electoral votes. The state went red for Trump in 2016, but is now considered to be a toss-up between the two candidates.
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Live Election Results & Map Updates for the Presidential Race in Georgia
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Georgia’s swing state status in 2020 marks a shift for the state, which was considered a strong red state in previous presidential elections. The last time Georgia’s 16 electoral votes went to a Democratic presidential candidate was in 1992, the year that Bill Clinton defeated then-incumbent president George H.W. Bush. You can see Georgia’s entire election history on 270towin’s website.
Georgia’s sudden status as a swing state has drawn both presidential candidates to campaign heavily in the state in recent weeks. On the left, Biden has campaigned in the state, as well as his VP pick, Senator Kamala Harris, and former President Barack Obama. Biden said at a drive-in rally in Atlanta last week, “We win Georgia, we win everything.”
On the right, Trump has visited the Peach State recently, as well. During a rally at an airport in Rome, Georgia, Trump said, according to WSBTV, “Two days from now, can you believe it? Two days. We’re going to win this state again.”
Georgia Polls Reflected a Dead Heat Between the Two Candidates in the Days Leading Up to the Election
Georgia’s polling for the two candidates in the days leading up to the election has been as close to a toss-up as any other state in the country. Some polls for Georgia have reflected a Biden advantage in the last month, with a few reflecting an advantage of as much as 9 points for the Democratic candidate. Others have indicated a slight margin advantage for Trump, with one reflecting as high as a 5 point advantage for the incumbent president.
FiveThirtyEight’s cumulative analysis of the polls offered a 1.2 point advantage to Biden, giving him a 48.5% chance of winning Georgia, compared to Trump’s 47.4% chance of winning the state. On the other hand, RealClearPolitics’ analysis of another set of polls offered a slight advantage to Trump over Biden, of about one point.
According to USA Today, approximately 3.9 million Georgians voted early, which almost matches the total amount of voting that took place in the state in 2016, approximately 4.1 million votes. An additional 2 million people in the state are expected to vote on Election Day, the newspaper reports.
Black voters and Latino voters in particular have been turning out to vote in droves in the state of Georgia. 124% of the total 2016 turnout for Black seniors had already been surpassed by Election Day, with over 239,000 Black voters over the age of 65 having participated in early voting. Additionally, Latino voters also surpassed their 2016 vote totals with early voting alone.
Georgia Does Not Count Absentee Ballots That Arrive After Polls Close on Election Day
In early October, a federal appeals court reinstated a Georgia law that requires absentee ballots to be received by the end of the day on Election Day. That means that any ballots sent in after this date will not be counted.
For those who chose to vote in person on Election Day in Georgia, they likely didn’t have to wait for long to cast their vote. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said that most Georgians only had to wait in line for an average of three minutes, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“We are having a successful election in Georgia today,” Raffensperger said, per the publication. “That’s what everyone wants from government — they want it to be responsive to the people, and they want it to work. So we’ve made it work.”
Follow the 2020 Presidential Race Results Across the Country, as Electoral Votes Are Tallied
Heavy has partnered with Decision Desk HQ to bring you live presidential election results across the country. Here is the latest with the race to 270 electoral votes:
Click here for the dynamic elections data.
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