US election 2020: Joe Biden says he has 'clear majority' and on course for convincing win
The Democrat jumps into the lead in Georgia and Pennsylvania for the first time, as counting continues.
Saturday 7 November 2020 06:01, UK
Joe Biden has said he will win the presidential race with a "clear majority" and over 300 electoral college votes.
The Democratic candidate was speaking after he overtook Donald Trump in the vital remaining battleground states, with the keys to the White House appearing tantalisingly close.
Mr Biden has jumped into first place in Republican-held Georgia and Pennsylvania for the first time, meaning if he can stay out in front he will clinch the presidency.
He said he had received over 74 million votes so far - the most of any presidential candidate ever - and was beating Mr Trump by four million.
US election 2020 live: Follow the latest updates
Mr Biden, speaking in Delaware late on Friday night, stopped short of a final declaration of victory, but also tweeted: "The numbers tell us a clear and convincing story: We're going to win this race."
The counting of crucial postal votes is still underway, with results due to be updated throughout the day.
The 77-year old said the Democrats had "rebuilt the blue wall in the middle of the country" - while pulling into the lead in Georgia, Pennsylvania and doubling their advantage in Nevada.
"We're on track for over 300 Electoral College votes," he said.
"And look at the national numbers: We're going to win this race with a clear majority of the nation behind us."
In a thinly veiled swipe at Mr Trump, he added: "Your vote will be counted. I don't care how hard people try to stop it. I will not let it happen."
Sky News understands Mr Biden's campaign team are "thrilled" at the developments, with staff said to be "elated" and "confident".
But Mr Trump said in a statement he is no longer contesting "any single election" but "our entire election process".
"We will pursue this process through every aspect of the law to guarantee that the American people have confidence in our government; I will never give up fighting for you and our nation," he added.
Despite his campaign's attempts to delay a result, it looks like a nail-biting finish is in sight as the race to get to 270 Electoral College votes enters its final stretch.
Mr Biden is on 253 - and if he picks up 20 more with highly-prized Pennsylvania, he will win the White House and make Mr Trump the first one-term president since George HW Bush.
A result there was expected imminently, but an election official said it could be several days before the numbers are confirmed because of having to wait for ballots from members of the armed forces and voters living overseas.
Even without the Rust Belt jewel, Mr Biden would still get over the line with two of Nevada, Arizona, Georgia and North Carolina.
The most senior Democrat in Congress, Nancy Pelosi, is already treating victory as a given, saying it is "clear" Mr Biden will win and referring to him as "president-elect".
"His election is historic," she said - despite no more declarations having been made yet.
In Georgia, a recount will get underway due to the race being so tight.
Disputing Mr Trump's unsubstantiated claims of mass voter fraud, Gabriel Sterling, a local Republican official there overseeing the count, said "we're not seeing any widespread irregularities".
And Mitt Romney, the former Republican presidential candidate who ran in 2012, said it is "wrong" to claim the election was rigged - warning that doing so "damages the cause of freedom here" and "recklessly inflames destructive and dangerous passions".
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has tried not to wade into the row about the legitimacy of the election.
But he said he has "every confidence" in the checks and balances of the US system and promised to "work closely" with whoever wins.
Several records have already been broken this election - with Mr Biden, who is leading in the popular vote, getting the most votes achieved by any presidential candidate in history.
And Mr Trump has surpassed the total number of backers he had in 2016 by 3 million votes.
Analysis: Trump may lose, but eroded trust in democracy will last
By Sally Lockwood, news correspondent, in Pennsylvania
We could have known the result in Pennsylvania before now had postal votes been allowed to be counted before election day.
Instead, on-the-day ballots had to be calculated first under state electoral rules which revealed a lead for Mr Trump.
That margin has evaporated as mail-in ballots were tabulated.
Democrats were more likely to vote by post but the president has used his early lead as an opportunity to cry foul and fraud.
The Trump campaign's requests to discount postal votes by filing legal challenges in battleground states seem desperate attempts to delay the inevitable.
They already lost court rulings in three states yesterday.
A small number of ballots are being called into question and they would be unlikely to make any material difference to Joe Biden's current trajectory.
The more defining consequence of these legal disputes is an erosion of trust in America's democracy.
Mr Trump's repeated calls to "stop the count" may well have inspired an armed man to drive to Pennsylvania last night allegedly plotting to stop vote counters in the convention centre. The suspect now in police custody.
The Republican candidate's time in the White House may soon be over - but to the bitter end he is sewing dangerous distrust and division.
There will be no gracious concession speech, no unifying message, just alleging the election has been stolen from him - a parting gift to a country battered and bruised after a traumatic year.