News Roundup 11/04/20
Political Divide in America Remains Strong
Even after an inconclusive election night on Tuesday, Nov. 3, it is clear that based on results, the division between political parties in our country remains wide. It appears to be widening as Republican America has become more Republican, and Democrat America has become more Democratic. More rural and smaller cities and towns that President Trump won in the 2016 election remained red. More urban and larger cities remained blue. Under normal circumstances, this would be of no surprise. But in the midst of a pandemic and in a time of racial retribution, the turnout in this year’s election is confirmation of the profound division that this country clutches.
Source: The Wall Street Journal
Trump’s False Claim of Victory
President Trump falsely declared victory as he spoke in the White House around 2 a.m. early on Wednesday, Nov. 4. After expressing shock over the unconfirmed results of the election, he stated,
“Frankly, we did win this election.”
Currently, news organizations still have not confirmed a winner of this year’s election, and projected results are extremely tight, due to millions of ballots that still have not been counted after local Republican officials insisted that ballots must only begin being counted on Election Day. President Trump also stated:
“We’ll be going to the U.S. Supreme Court,” and added, “We want all voting to stop.”
From Delaware, Joe Biden commented,
“As I’ve said all along, it’s not my place or Donald Trump’s place to declare who’s won this election. That’s the decision of the American people. But I’m optimistic about this outcome.”
Source: The New York Times
Proposition 22 Passes, Classifying Rideshare Drivers as Independent Contractors
California voters have approved Proposition 22, which classifies app-based drivers (Uber, Lyft, Doordash) as independent contractors rather than employees. Results show that the measure was ahead by a 58-42 margin, with more than 6.3 million votes in favor of Proposition 22, and 4.5 million opposed. The campaign, funded by Uber and Lyft, is shown to be the most expensive ballot measure in California history. This measure was a response to AB5, a law passed by the California state Legislature, which not only classified drivers as employees, but forced Uber and Lyft to reclassify how they paid and employed contract workers.
Source: ABC 7
Proposition 16 Rejected by California Voters
Voters in California have rejected Proposition 16, voting to keep a ban on affirmative action in the state. In 1996, affirmative action became illegal under Proposition 209. This measure prohibited discrimination of sex, race, or national origin. In this election, Proposition 16 would have retracted this, and California’s state and local governments, and public universities, would have been able to utilize affirmative action programs that rely on details like race and sex.
Source: Vox
Explosion of Mail-in Ballots this Morning Decelerates Final Tally
As of last night, Nov. 3, thousands of absentee ballots remained uncounted in key battleground states, such as Pennsylvania, Nevada, Georgia, and Michigan. In Pennsylvania, around 10 times as many mail-in ballots were received this year, than in past elections. These ballots are proposed to favor Biden. Unlike Republican voters, who were encouraged to vote in person, Democrats were urged to vote early by Biden’s campaign. This has caused some fluctuation in results, and keeps this election up in the air until all of the absentee ballots are counted.
Source: CNN