GA Blue: Biden Sees Votes Pickup In Georgia

Taking a razor-thin edge over U.S. President Donald Trump in the vote count in Georgia, former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has moved closer to clinching another 16 votes in the Electoral College.

The latest tally from Reuters finds Biden with 253 votes in the Electoral College to Trump’s 214. To win, a candidate needs 270 electoral votes.

As of 4:59 a.m. EST, CBS News found Biden has a small 917 vote lead over Trump in the battleground state. By 11 a.m. EST, that number has raised to just over 1,000 votes.

Following the report bump on Friday, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger announced the state will likely head to a recount due to the small margin separating Biden and Trump.

As of Friday, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports there are about 10,000 absentee ballots outstanding, on top of some military, overseas and provisional ballots that have yet to be counted.

The president’s campaign team filed a series of lawsuits challenging the vote count, arguing without evidence that the system is riddled with fraud. In a speech Thursday evening, President Trump accused his rivals in the Democratic Party of “trying to steal the election.”

Officials in Georgia previously called for patience amid the slowed vote count. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said Thursday the slow pace was a reflection of the effort to protect the integrity of the election.

“We’re on pace to accomplish that responsibly, ensuring that the voice of every eligible voter is heard,” he said in a statement. “It’s important to act quickly, but it’s more important to get it right.”

Georgia last went to a Democrat in 1992 for Bill Clinton.