2020 Election Results: Biden Wins Michigan, Sen. Gary Peters Wins Reelection
(CBS DETROIT) - With Joe Biden's projected win in Michigan, the current CBS News electoral vote estimate is Biden 253 and Trump 213.
On Wednesday afternoon President Donald Trump's campaign filed a lawsuit in the Michigan Court of Claims to stop the counting of ballots, CBS News reports.
"As votes in Michigan continue to be counted, the presidential race in the state remains extremely tight as we always knew it would be," Bill Stepien, Trump's campaign manager said in a statement. "President Trump's campaign has not been provided with meaningful access to numerous counting locations to observe the opening of ballots and the counting process, as guaranteed by Michigan law."
The Trump campaign is also demanding to "review those ballots which were opened and counted while we did not have meaningful access," according to CBS News.
Michigan's Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson gave remarks and provided an update on the state's counting process Wednesday night.
Polls closed in most of the state at 8 p.m. Tuesday, while part of the Upper Peninsula is in the Central Time zone and closed at 9 p.m. Benson said there are "hundreds of thousands" of ballots in Michigan's largest jurisdictions still being counted. This included Detroit, Grand Rapids, Flint, Warren and Sterling Heights.
Benson has continued to tell Michiganders, "No matter how long it takes, (you) can be certain (your) ballots will be counted."
In the 2016 election, Michigan emerged as a key battleground state with Trump being the first Republican nominee to win Michigan since 1988 with George H.W. Bush.
Early Wednesday morning, President Donald Trump falsely claimed he had won the presidential election, causing Twitter to flag the president's tweet since ballots were still being counted.
The president said during his remarks at the White House early Wednesday morning, "We were getting ready to win the election. Frankly, we did win this election. ... This is a major fraud in our nation. We want the law to be used in a proper manner. So we'll be going to the U.S. Supreme Court, we want all voting to stop."
In the 2020 election, former Vice President Joe Biden has led Michigan polls, which may suggest the state may flip back.
Early Wednesday morning after making remarks in his home state of Delaware, telling his supporters to "keep the faith," Biden said it's not his place or the President's place to declare the winner of the 2020 election, "it's the voters' place."
The presidential race has not been called yet because neither candidate has secured the 270 electoral college votes which is needed to claim victory.
Wednesday afternoon, Biden gave remarks as the outcome of the election remained unclear, but said "we're winning enough states to get to 270."
In Michigan Biden said he's leading Trump "by over 35,000 votes and it is growing."
Wednesday night, incumbent Democrat Gary Peters said it was "an honor to serve" Michiganders in the Senate for another six years.
Democratic Michigan Sen. Gary Peters won reelection Wednesday, defeating Republican challenger John James in a tight race.
The 61-year-old Peters continued Democrats' dominance of Senate elections in the battleground presidential state. Republicans have won just once there since the 1970s, despite having spent heavily to try to unseat Peters in one of their few pickup opportunities.
Peters is a former congressman, state lawmaker, lottery commissioner and investment adviser who served in the Navy Reserve. He ran by emphasizing his bipartisan work, his ranking as one of the most effective senators and James' support for President Donald Trump.
"I am sincerely honored that the voters of Michigan have once again put their trust and confidence in me to represent them in the United States Senate," Peters said in a statement. "As we look ahead, I am energized to keep working to move our state forward and continue putting Michigan first."
Earlier in the day, James retweeted his campaign consultant's claim that he had "won this race" — despite Peters later taking and building his lead — drawing criticism from Democrats. James' campaign could not be reached for comment Wednesday night.
Peters, 61, was one of two incumbent Democrats running for reelection in a state Donald Trump won in 2016 — a presidential battleground no less and a rare place on the Senate map for Republicans to play offense in 2020. James, a 39-year-old Black businessman and Iraq War veteran, was waging a stiff challenge as he aimed to become the first Michigan Republican to win a U.S. Senate seat in a quarter-century.
Stay updated with CBS Detroit throughout the day for MI House Results.
For live updates on Michigan 2020 elections results visit here.
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