The blue wave will ultimately not take place.
Democrats and Joe Biden won't get a resounding US presidential victory, as the polls predicted.
While the two candidates are neck and neck in the race for the presidency, the suspense promises to be breathless before the publication of the final results.
The latter could in fact not be known for several hours, or even several days.
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As of noon Wednesday, the last eight states had not yet published their results, including among them six
swing states
, these strategic states whose color changes from one election to another.
Michigan also, a traditionally democratic state which had yet voted for Donald Trump in 2016. In total, these states have 97 electors.
That is to say largely enough to win one or the other of the candidates and enough to make a wait that promises to be interminable last.
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The risk of very tight scores
In several of the states, the risks of very tight scores prevent a prompt announcement of results.
Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, three states still undecided, were narrowly won by Donald Trump in 2016 with respectively 0.72, 0.23, 0.77 percentage point ahead of Hillary Clinton.
In this context, it is very likely that no net result will emerge for several days in these strategic states.
The long counting of postal votes
Postal voting has been much larger this year than in previous elections, due to the coronavirus outbreak.
This news risks slowing the publication of the results, because the counting is slower than when the vote is done physically in the offices.
The American postal services, in great economic difficulties, are also overwhelmed, and accumulate delivery delays.
In Pennsylvania and Georgia, authorities have warned that the results may not be known until Thursday.
While Democratic voters are more likely to vote by mail, it is possible that a state's early prognoses are pointing the results in the wrong direction.
In addition, postal voting increases the risk of incorrect ballots, in particular because of the problem of missing or non-compliant signatures.
Several states - including the strategic Michigan and North Carolina - therefore leave the possibility to voters who would have made a mistake to vote again.
An additional step which risks slowing down even further the final proclamation of the results in these States, and therefore of the winner of the elections.
Actions in court until December 8
Donald Trump quickly denounced “massive” fraud on the part of the Democratic camp.
For weeks, the outgoing president has been promising to go to court to challenge results that would be unfavorable to him.
In the US electoral system, states have a
"
safe period
"
(
"safe harbor period"
) five weeks after Election Day - or until December 8 - to address electoral disputes.
In 2000, Florida's results had been the subject of numerous legal appeals, when the two candidates - George W. Bush and Al Gore - vied for victory.
It was only several weeks later, and at the cost of innumerable operations of recounting of votes that the
swing state
was granted to the Republican candidate, thus opening the doors of the White House to him.