President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden remain locked in a heated race to see who will win the White House this week. With more than half of the country having submitted their vote either in person or by mail, the focus has shifted to three battleground states that propelled Trump to victory four years ago. 

Counting ballots in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania is expected to go on past Election Day, which would mean the final outcome of the race may not be known right away. Millions more Americans submitted their vote by mail this election than in 2016, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic and in turn has contributed to delays in counting the vote in these states. 

It was in a series of victories in these midwestern states that President Trump was elected in a victory that was all the more surprising given each state’s tendency to support Democrats nationally.

Biden’s campaign invested large sums into campaign events and advertising in each of these states, seeing them as his surest path to victory over President Trump. It was expected that a recent surge in COVID-19 cases and a collapse in the president’s support across America’s suburbs would be enough to guarantee a win for Biden. 

However, President Trump has performed better than expected nationally in spite of low approval ratings over his mishandling of the pandemic.

The president was declared the winner in other states that are critical for his re-election including North Carolina, Ohio and Florida. He has also blunted what were expected to be competitive races in Republican strongholds like Texas and Georgia where pollsters ranked each race a Toss-Up only recently.

To win the White House, either candidate has to win a total 270 electoral votes across the country to be declared victorious.