election 2020 Story and Graphics by Noor Baber
joe biden
kamala harris
The general election in the United States was held on Nov. 3, 2020. Voters cast their ballots for either Democratic nominee Joe Biden or incumbent President Donald Trump. Nearly four days after the election, on the morning of Nov. 7, major news networks called the election for Joe Biden, as the former Vice President had won the 270 electoral votes necessary to win the election. In addition, more Americans had voted for Biden than any other presidential candidate in history—more than 79 million, according to data from the Associated Press. As of Nov. 23, according to ABC News, Joe Biden had won 306 electoral votes, flipping the swing states of Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Arizona. Biden and his running mate, Kamala Harris, held an event on Nov. 7 in Wilmington, Delaware, to celebrate their win. In his victory speech, president-elect Biden pledged “to be a president who seeks not to divide but unify, who doesn’t see red states and blue states, only sees the United States.” Biden also emphasized the importance of rebuilding “the soul of America,” and promised to heal a deeply divided nation. An important part of Joe Biden’s speech was the coronavirus, a major issue that the president-elect will have to solve when he takes office in January. Biden also paid tribute to the now more than 266,000 Americans who have died from coronavirus. So far, Biden’s win has yet to be certified, as the electoral college is officially meeting on Dec. 14 to verify the results of the election.
Vice President elect Kamala Harris’s win is quite historic, breaking many figurative glass ceilings. According to NPR, Harris is the daughter of Indian and Jamaican immigrants. Harris is the first woman to be elected to the second highest position in America. She is the first person of Asian descent and African descent to be elected Vice President. In her victory speech, Harris was wearing a white suit, paying tribute to the suffrage movement of the 1900s. She thanked those who had worked to involve more Americans in voting and the democratic process. Harris remembered her mother, who came to America from India at a young age, as well as all of the women who worked to gain equal rights. She noted her historic win, proudly saying, “But while I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last, because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities.” Harris also stated that she and president-elect Biden would work to solve the crises which plague America today: ending the coronavirus pandemic, rebuilding the economy, solving systemic racism and combating climate change.
