Trump's Chance to Win Arizona Now Eliminated

President Trump's campaign was reportedly "livid" when Fox News called Arizona for Joe Biden on Election Night, followed hours later by the Associated Press. More than a week later, remaining outlets including CNN, NBC, and the New York Times have called the state for Biden, who is the first Democratic presidential candidate to win Arizona since Bill Clinton in 1996. The outlets called the race Thursday evening after a batch of around 4,000 ballots from Maricopa County went 53% for Biden and 43% for Trump, reports the Arizona Republic. Biden's lead of 11,343 votes in the state is now larger than the estimated number of ballots still to be counted.

With Arizona's 11 Electoral College votes, Biden is now at 290, 20 more than is needed to win, and it will rise to 306 if a recount confirms his victory in Georgia. The Times notes that it is "remarkable" that Arizona, a former Republican stronghold that went for Trump by a margin of 3.5 points in 2016, was even in play. Before Bill Clinton, the last Democrat to carry the state was Harry Truman in 1948. CNN reports that demographic changes helped turn the state blue this election, along with concerns about Trump's handling of the pandemic and anger over the president's attacks on Sen. John McCain. (The state's Republican attorney general said Wednesday that he had seen no evidence of election fraud.)