Trump files lawsuit to stop vote-counting in crucial battleground Michigan

Move comes as wire service calls neighbouring Wisconsin for Democratic nominee, who is inching closer to presidency

The Trump campaign filed a lawsuit trying to stop the counting of all outstanding ballots in Michigan as several news outlets project former Vice President Joe Biden will win the crucial battleground and inch closer to winning the presidency.

“As votes in Michigan continue to be counted, the presidential race in the state remains extremely tight as we always knew it would be. President Trump’s campaign has not been provided with meaningful access to numerous counting locations to observe the opening of ballots and the counting process, as guaranteed by Michigan law,” campaign manager Bill Stepien said in a statement.

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“We have filed suit today in the Michigan Court of Claims to halt counting until meaningful access has been granted,” he added. “We also demand to review those ballots which were opened and counted while we did not have meaningful access. President Trump is committed to ensuring that all legal votes are counted in Michigan and everywhere else.”

The president and his team are vacillating wildly between calling for all votes to be counted everywhere, and statements and legal moves to halt the tallying of ballots.

Mr Stepien’s statement came minutes before the Associated Press called neighbouring Wisconsin, and its 10 electoral votes, for the former vice president, moving him closer to the 270 needed to secure the presidency in his third try. 

That puts the wire service’s official count at 248 for Mr Biden and 214 for the incumbent.

As Mr Biden’s campaign signalled confidence their candidate will cross 270 possibly on Wednesday, Mr Trump pushed back on Twitter, buoyed by his correct assertions for months that his campaign’s polling was more accurate than public surveys conducted by professional polling firms and news outlets.

“Last night I was leading, often solidly, in many key States, in almost all instances Democrat run & controlled,” Mr Trump tweeted on Wednesday morning before his campaign demanded a full recount in Wisconsin. “Then, one by one, they started to magically disappear as surprise ballot dumps were counted. VERY STRANGE, and the “pollsters” got it completely & historically wrong!”