NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / World

US election: Five states that will determine Donald Trump v Joe Biden

NZ Herald
4 Nov, 2020 03:43 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

President Donald Trump speaks in the East Room of the White House. Photo / AP

President Donald Trump speaks in the East Room of the White House. Photo / AP

Dozens of states have been called in the US presidential election, but it is still very much up in the air.

Donald Trump claimed Florida in an early win, and he's seeing leads in key battleground states, but there are still votes to count.

Trump won in Indiana, Arkansas, Kentucky, West Virginia, South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Oklahoma Nebraska, Louisiana, Wyoming, South Dakota, North Dakota, Missouri, Utah, Wyoming, Idaho, Ohio, Texas, Iowa and Tennessee.
Joe Biden won in Vermont, Massachusetts, Maryland, Delaware, Illinois, Connecticut, New Mexico, New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Maine, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Washington, Oregon, Virginia, Hawaii, Minnesota, Arizona and California.

NYT Update:

Michigan results with 56% in:
Trump 53%
Biden 45%

Pennsylvania results with 63% in:
Trump 57%
Biden 42%

Wisconsin results with 72% in:
Trump 51%
Biden 47%

— Political Polls (@PpollingNumbers) November 4, 2020

Joe Biden won in Vermont, Massachusetts, Maryland, Delaware, Illinois, Connecticut, New Mexico, New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Maine, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Washington, Oregon, Virginia, Hawaii, Minnesota, Arizona and California.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

It leaves Biden on 238 Electoral College votes out of 270 required to win the White House. Trump trails narrowly with 213 Electoral College votes.

There are just seven states yet to be called – Alaska, Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

But just five of those – Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Georgia and Northern Carolina – could go either way, meaning they're the interesting ones to watch.

But experts say the votes from the last three could take particularly long to tally up -meaning we could be in for a frustrating wait.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Either way, the victory will be narrow.

After Biden's win in Arizona, the Democrat would likely have to win two of the three 'blue wall' states - Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania - to secure victory.

Biden had trailed in all three, but the remaining votes to be counted will favour the Democrat, the BBC reports.

There are more than 1.4 million vote-by-mail ballots left to count Pennsylvania, and it could take days to tabulate them all.

Discover more

World

What happens if Trump and Biden tie in votes?

04 Nov 08:24 AM
Entertainment

How many votes Kanye West actually got - and why he's not going anywhere

04 Nov 08:09 AM
World

'We did win this': Trump claims victory, threatens court action

04 Nov 03:38 PM
Opinion

Steve Braunias: The quick sound Fox jumps all over the rival shows

04 Nov 04:00 PM
A live broadcast of President Donald Trump speaking from the White House is shown on screens at an election-night party. Photo / AP
A live broadcast of President Donald Trump speaking from the White House is shown on screens at an election-night party. Photo / AP

The big cities in Michigan (Detroit) and Wisconsin (Milwaukee) are also yet to fully report, and they will heavily tilt toward the Democrats.

Latest results showed Biden led in Wisconsin by the slimmest of margins - 0.6 per cent according to US Politics Poll.

Meanwhile, Georgia is a wildcard, with the race too close to call because an estimated 4 per cent of the vote remains to be counted. That includes mailed ballots from two counties Biden is winning: metro Atlanta's DeKalb County, as well as Chatham County, which is home to Savannah.

Several counties in the Atlanta area also stopped counting votes after running into technical difficulties.

Wisconsin, 95%+ in:

Biden 49.6%
Trump 49.0%

— US Politics Polls (@USPoliticsPoll) November 4, 2020

If you’re wondering about Wisconsin’s recount rules…

If a candidate comes within 1 percentage point of the winner, the candidate may request a recount. (The threshold was narrowed after Jill Stein's 2016 recount.) There is no trigger for an automatic recount.

— Jessie Opoien (@jessieopie) November 4, 2020

If Biden does win Wisconsin & holds on in Nevada, he’ll be at 254 electoral college votes.

He’d then need 16 more, out of:
Michigan (16)
Pennsylvania (20)
Georgia (16)
North Carolina (15)

So, basically any one of MI, PA or GA would be enough. NC would get him an EC tie.

— Michael Appleton (@michelappleton) November 4, 2020

MICHIGAN - 16 electoral votes

Donald Trump: 51.5% - 2,275,601

Joe Biden: 46.9% - 2,070,685

Reporting: 82%

— The Spectator Index (@spectatorindex) November 4, 2020

If you’re wondering about Wisconsin’s recount rules…

If a candidate comes within 1 percentage point of the winner, the candidate may request a recount. (The threshold was narrowed after Jill Stein's 2016 recount.) There is no trigger for an automatic recount.

— Jessie Opoien (@jessieopie) November 4, 2020

MI Presidential Election Results

Trump (R): 51% (2,217,540 votes)
Biden (D): 47% (2,019,899 votes)

Estimated: 78-92% votes in

More results here: https://t.co/P8otcaDgvj

— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) November 4, 2020

A Democratic win in Georgia would mean Biden only has to carry one of those Midwest states.

Trump can win a second term but he needs to win two of either Pennsylvania and Wisconsin or Pennsylvania and Michigan.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Dana Sherrod, right, celebrates with fellow Republicans while watching Election Day results on television during the Republican watch party at Krause's Cafe in New Braunfels, Texas. Photo / AP
Dana Sherrod, right, celebrates with fellow Republicans while watching Election Day results on television during the Republican watch party at Krause's Cafe in New Braunfels, Texas. Photo / AP

The road home for Trump would likely also need to include wins in North Carolina and Georgia, where he leads by only a narrow margin.

A Japanese and a US flags are placed in front of a TV monitor showing a news programme live broadcasting on the US presidential election between Trump and Biden. Photo / AP
A Japanese and a US flags are placed in front of a TV monitor showing a news programme live broadcasting on the US presidential election between Trump and Biden. Photo / AP
Save

    Share this article

Latest from World

live
World

Trump confirms timeline for US strike on Iran decision

19 Jun 11:09 PM
World

Manga prophecy sparks flight cancellations to Japan amid quake fears

19 Jun 10:45 PM
World

US bases that could attack Iran — and become targets

19 Jun 10:43 PM

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from World

Trump confirms timeline for US strike on Iran decision
live

Trump confirms timeline for US strike on Iran decision

19 Jun 11:09 PM

It comes after Iran’s missiles hit Soroka Hospital, leaving it in flames.

Manga prophecy sparks flight cancellations to Japan amid quake fears

Manga prophecy sparks flight cancellations to Japan amid quake fears

19 Jun 10:45 PM
US bases that could attack Iran — and become targets

US bases that could attack Iran — and become targets

19 Jun 10:43 PM
Premium
James Acton: Why we can’t bomb our way out of this

James Acton: Why we can’t bomb our way out of this

19 Jun 09:59 PM
Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP