Biden Moves Ahead Of Trump In Bucks Co. With 28K Votes To Go

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — Democratic former Vice President Joe Biden moved ahead of Republican President Donald Trump in Bucks County late Wednesday, as poll workers continued to count mail-in ballots cast in the race.

Thursday morning, there were about 28,000 mail-in and absentee ballots left to count in Bucks, according to county officials.

At about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, Biden's vote total in Bucks County was 177,019, compared to 173,467 for Trump. Biden's lead was expected to widen further in the county Thursday as mail in ballots — which have heavily favored Democrats in Bucks and across the nation — continue to be counted.

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Locally, Trump had taken a lead in early tallies, when most of the votes counted were the ones cast in person on Election Day. At the start of the day Wednesday, Trump had led Biden by 23,189 votes in Bucks County.

With concerns about the ongoing coronavirus pandemic on their minds, Democratic candidates and officials, from Biden on down, had urged their supporters throughout the campaign to vote remotely by mail when possible. Trump and some other Republicans, meanwhile, downplayed the threat and tried to cast doubt on the reliability of mail voting.

The votes that had been counted in Bucks County by Thursday morning included votes cast at the county's 304 precincts, plus more than 129,000 mail-in and absentee ballots. The overall number was expected to increase slightly in coming days, as ballots that were postmarked by Election Day may be counted if they arrive by Friday.

In a news release Thursday morning, Bucks County officials said that about 77 percent of mail-in votes had gone to Biden so far.

The tally in Bucks County, and the rest of the state, was being watched closely Thursday morning as Pennsylvania's 20 electoral votes remained in play in an election that's still technically undecided.

RELATED: PA Election Results: Trump's Lead Over Biden Narrowing

Statewide, Trump had 3,215,983 votes to Biden's 3,051,565 as of 6:50 a.m., according to the Associated Press. But a large amount of mail-in ballots, many from Democratic-leaning urban centers like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, remained to be counted. Keystone State Democrats have said they believe they have more than enough votes to win.

Meanwhile, the Trump campaign on Wednesday sued to stop the counting of votes in Pennsylvania

The campaign says it's suing to halt the counting of votes over concerns about "transparency," attempting to intervene in existing Supreme Court litigation over Pennsylvania's three-day extension for mail-in ballots and filing suit to challenge an extension of the deadline for mail-in and absentee voters to provide proof identification.

Here's a look at where other Bucks County races stood at the start of the day on Thursday. Check in to your local Patch site for the latest at the day goes on.

• Republican State Rep. K.C. Tomlinson (15,840) led Democrat Harold Hayes (13,933)
• Republican State Rep. Meghan Schroeder (21,444) led Democrat Marlene Katz (16,331)
• Democratic State Rep. Perry Warren (21,862) led Republican Charles Adcock (15,958)
• Democratic State Rep. John Galloway (17,342) led Republican Jeanine McGee (12,331)
• Democratic State Rep. Tina Davis (17,272) led Republican Kelly Bellerby-Allen (10,806)
• Republican State Rep. Frank Farry (23,841) led Democrat Lauren Lareau (14,209)
• Democratic State Rep. Wendy Ullman (18,145) trailed Republican challenger Shelby Labs (20,630)
• Republican State Rep. Todd Polinchock (20,767) led Democrat Gary Spillane (15,859)
• Republican State Rep. Craig Staats (20,748) led Democrat Robyn Colajezzi (12,769)
• Republican State Rep. Wendi Thomas (22,624) led Democrat Ann Marie Mitchell (17,390)

On Wednesday, incumbent RepublicanU.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick was declared the winner in his re-election bid against Democrat Christina Finello.

For full coverage of the election in Pennsylvania, go here.