PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

A handful of pivotal states remained in play Thursday in the tightly contested U.S. presidential race. But there are outstanding ballots left to be counted in the coming days. North CarolinaThe situationWith ballots left to count, the race is too early to call. As long as those ballots are postmarked by Nov. 3, state election officials have until Nov. 12 to count them. And when it comes to mail ballots, Biden was outperforming Trump.

Polls closed Tuesday night and yet on Wednesday, hours later, neither Donald Trump nor Joe Biden had the 270 electoral votes needed to secure a win in the 2020 U.S. presidential election. Election Day is over, so what’s the holdup? Vote tabulations routinely continue beyond Election Day, and states largely set the rules for when the count has to end. This embed is meant to serve only as a preview of what outcomes America could in the U.S. presidential election. As much as it pains me to write this, it’s possible this presidential election could end in a 269-269 Electoral College tie.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – “Perhaps 2020 was the year that we finally vanquished the ghosts of Bush vs. Gore,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said while addressing the Sunshine State Wednesday, one day after President Donald Trump declared victory in Florida in the 2020 U.S. presidential election. “People are actually looking at Florida and asking the question, ‘Why can’t the states be more like Florida? I also think the fact that he has really helped us with a lot of Florida issues, I think, helped him,” DeSantis said. I don’t think that was done without some type of motive -- whether it’s ratings, whether it’s something else,” DeSantis said.

It’s important to remember that the winner of the presidential election is not determined by the popular vote but rather the Electoral College. To win the presidency, one candidate needs to secure 270 electoral votes. The 538 electoral votes up for grabs this year represent the following, according to nationalpopularvote.com:435 U.S. So how will presidential candidates Donald Trump and Joe Biden win electoral votes? Click on different U.S. states to see how they typically vote and what role they could play in the presidential election.

First things first, if you’d like to vote in any election, you must register to do so. As far as when you can vote, Florida law requires that early voting be held for at least for eight days. Below is a county-by-county breakdown of information Central Florida voters need to know, specific to where they live. Federal OfficesState OfficesFlorida SenateState Senate District 5 -- MarionState Senate District 7 -- FlaglerState Senate District 9 -- Seminole, VolusiaState Senate District 11 -- OrangeState Senate District 13 -- OrangeState Senate District 15 -- Orange, OsceolaState Senate District 17 -- Brevard, Indian RiverState Senate District 20 -- PolkClick here to see who’s running in each district. Florida House of RepresentativesState House District 22 -- MarionState House District 23 -- MarionState House District 24 -- FlaglerState House District 25 -- VolusiaState House District 26 -- VolusiaState House District 27 -- VolusiaState House District 28 -- SeminoleState House District 29 -- SeminoleState House District 30 -- SeminoleState House District 31 -- Lake, OrangeState House District 32 -- LakeState House District 33 -- Lake, SumterState House District 39 -- Osceola, PolkState House District 40 -- PolkState House District 41 -- PolkState House District 42 -- Osceola, PolkState House District 44 -- OrangeState House District 47 -- OrangeState House District 48 -- OrangeState House District 49 -- OrangeState House District 50 -- Brevard, OrangeState House District 51 -- BrevardState House District 52 -- BrevardState House District 53 -- BrevardState House District 56 -- PolkClick here to see who’s running in each district.

LAKE COUNTY, Fla. – Lake County Supervisor of Elections Alan Hays said they have started to count the 2020 Election vote-by-mail ballots coming in. Florida is one of more than 20 states that can count absentee or vote-by-mail ballots ahead of Election Day, up to 40 days before Nov. 3. Hays gave News 6 a look inside at the process of tabulating the ballots. Hays said they’ve mailed out 82,610 vote-by-mail ballots, and said, so far, they’ve had 32,000 returned to the county election office. He added that being able to tabulate as many ballots as possible now, puts them in a good position on Election night.

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Monday, Oct. 5 was the last day for Florida voters to register to vote in the 2020 General Election. Being the last day, the Orange County Supervisor of Elections office was very busy, both inside and outside. Orange County’s Supervisor of Elections Bill Cowles said the department will have record breaking numbers of registered voters for the 2020 General Election. Cowles said the number of registered voters is constantly changing due to people registering online, in person and through mandated sites like libraries. As of Monday at noon there were already at over 849,000 registered, compared to 776,721 in 2016.

After weeks of preparation and anticipation, the first of three presidential debates is now over. Democratic nominee and former vice president Joe Biden and the Republican incumbent nominee, President Donald Trump, met face-to-face on the same stage for the first time during this election year and debated various issues and questions posed by moderator Chris Wallace. So, what did you think of responses and ideas presented by Biden and Trump? Let us know your reaction by clicking on an emoji below each statement that was made.

The deadline for those ballots to be sent ahead of the general election is Sept. 19. Anyone who wishes to vote by mail in the general election must request a mail-in ballot by Oct. 24. The mandatory early voting period for the general election begins Oct. 24 and runs through Oct. 31. A 10-day extension exists only for overseas voters for the Presidential Preference Primary and General Election only. A full list of important general election deadlines can be found here.

The Lake County Supervisor of Elections Alan Hays said in Florida the term “absentee ballot” was replaced by the term “vote-by-mail” in 2016. He said thousands of residents in Lake County are already scheduled to receive a vote-by-mail ballot. However, Hays said, for those looking to vote-by-mail, there are some important dates to keep in mind. “We cannot mail them after eight days before the election; that eighth day before the election is the last time we’re allowed to mail the ballots,” said Hays. But not every county in Florida starts mailing their vote-by-mail ballots on the same day.

Click or tap here for deadlines in each state to register for the primary election and the general election in November. This is where you really want to start familiarizing yourself with your state’s Secretary of State or Department of State website. People can be eligible to vote by mail if they are:Going to be away from their county on Election Day and during early voting. Absentee/mail-in ballots must be received by 7 p.m. on Election Day. Ballots from voters overseas must be received by the fifth day after Election Day, while ballots from members of the armed forced must be received by the sixth day after Election Day.

Face The Nation’s Margaret Brennan previews Democratic debatePublished: February 25, 2020, 10:29 amThe CBS News senior foreign affairs correspondent spoke with News 6 anchor Justin Warmoth live on News 6 at Nine after interviewing former vice president and Democratic candidate Joe Biden.

Face The Nation’s Margaret Brennan previews Democratic debatePublished: February 25, 2020, 10:24 amThe CBS News senior foreign affairs correspondent spoke with News 6 anchor Justin Warmoth live on News 6 at Nine after interviewing former vice president and Democratic candidate Joe Biden.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Much of the nation’s attention this year has been on President Trump’s impeachment trial, but the focus will shift to Iowa on Monday as the Democratic presidential candidates have their first big test. The Iowa caucuses kick off a busy month for the remaining candidates, and right now the race is wide open. Following the New Hampshire primary on February 11, elections in Nevada and South Carolina will close out the month. “[Scott] is looking good to the Republican party nationally because he’s going after Biden who’s considered one of the front runners. He has some name recognition already and this didn’t hurt.”The Florida primary will be held on March 17.