Scott Powers
Democratic former Vice President Joe Biden declared Wednesday afternoon that he believes he will win the presidency though he stopped short of declaring himself the winner.
Biden called for all the votes to be counted, even though preliminary counts coming out of Nevada, Arizona, and Michigan show him ahead and he would reach the necessary 270 electoral votes if he wins those three states and nothing else changes.
His call was in some ways a response to President Donald Trump‘s lawsuits seeking to stop the vote counting in Michigan and Pennsylvania, though Biden never mentioned Trump in his seven minutes of remarks Wednesday from Wilmington, Delaware, and broadcast on most news networks.
Biden also expressed confidence that he can still win Pennsylvania once all the votes are counted. He wouldn’t need it however.
“After a long night of counting, it’s clear that we’re winning enough states to reach 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency. I’m not here to declare that we won. But I am here to report that when the count is finished, we believe we will be the winners.”
Biden’s measured declaration was in stark contrast with one Trump made early Wednesday morning, when he declared full victory. Since then, however, Biden has picked off Wisconsin and Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District from Trump’s previous holds, apparently he has won Arizona and Michigan, based on some reports, and leads in Nevada. That would give Biden 270 electoral votes regardless of what happens in Pennsylvania.
Biden also pointed out that he is winning the popular vote by more than 3 million votes and already has exceeded 70 million votes in his column, a record. But nationwide popular vote totals are irrelevant, and he knows it.
The rest of Biden’s speech was a call for Americans to reunite, presumably under his administration, in his mind.
“Once this election is finalized and behind us, it will be time for us to do what we’ve always done as Americans: to put the harsh rhetoric of the campaign behind us, to lower the temperature, to see each other again, to listen to one another, to hear each other again, respect and care for one another, to unite, to heal, to come together as a nation,” Biden said.
“I know this won’t be easy. I’m not naive. Neither of us are,” he said, referencing his running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris, who joined him for the remarks. “I know how deep and hard the opposing views are in our country on so many things. But I also know this as well: to make progress we have to stop treating our opponents as enemies. We are not enemies. What brings us together as Americans is so much stronger than anything that can tear us apart.”
