US election on knife edge as battleground states count votes

President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden are battling it out for the White House, with polls closed across the United States — and the American people waiting for results in key battlegrounds still up for grabs.

As it stands, there are seven states still left uncalled, including major prizes such as Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — meaning both Trump and Biden still have a path to victory.

US media outlets have projected wins for the Republican incumbent in 23 states including big prizes Florida and Texas, as well as Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri and Ohio — all states he won in 2016.

Biden has captured 20 states including his home state Delaware and big prizes California and New York, as well as the US capital. The former vice president has flipped one state won by Trump in 2016 — Arizona, in the southwest.

Nebraska split its electoral votes between the two — four for Trump and one for Biden. Maine was won by Biden, but so far, he has only three of the four electoral votes on offer, with the last still to be decided.

So far, that gives Biden 238 electoral votes and Trump 213.

The magic number of electoral votes is 270.

The following is a list of the states won by each candidate and the corresponding number of electoral votes, based on the projections of US media including CNN, Fox News, MSNBC/NBC News, ABC, CBS and The New York Times.

In the case of Arizona, AFP used the projection made by the Associated Press.

TRUMP (213)

Alabama (9)

Arkansas (6)

Florida (29)

Idaho (4)

Indiana (11)

Iowa (6)

Kansas (6)

Kentucky (8)

Louisiana (8)

Mississippi (6)

Missouri (10)

Montana (3)

Nebraska (4)*

North Dakota (3)

Ohio (18)

Oklahoma (7)

South Carolina (9)

South Dakota (3)

Tennessee (11)

Texas (38)

Utah (6)

West Virginia (5)

Wyoming (3)

BIDEN (238)

Arizona (11)

California (55)

Colorado (9)

Connecticut (7)

Delaware (3)

District of Columbia (3)

Hawaii (4)

Illinois (20)

Maine (3)**

Maryland (10)

Massachusetts (11)

Minnesota (10)

Nebraska (1)*

New Hampshire (4)

New Jersey (14)

New Mexico (5)

New York (29)

Oregon (7)

Rhode Island (4)

Vermont (3)

Virginia (13)

Washington (12)

STATES NOT YET CALLED

Alaska

Georgia

Michigan

Nevada

North Carolina

Pennsylvania

Wisconsin

* Nebraska splits its five electoral votes — two electors are assigned based on the plurality of votes in the state, and the other three are awarded based on congressional district. Biden took one vote, in the 2nd congressional district.

** Maine has a similar method to Nebraska. Of its four electoral votes, three have been projected for Biden, while the fourth is outstanding. ( Text, excluding headline, courtesy AFP)