Election 2020 Today: Secure election, China salutes Biden

A coalition of federal and state officials say they have no evidence that votes were compromised or altered in last week’s presidential election, rejecting unsubstantiated claims of widespread fraud advanced by President Donald Trump and many of his supporters

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Here’s what’s happening Friday in Election 2020.

TODAY’S TOP STORIES:

SECURE ELECTION: A coalition of federal and state officials say they have no evidence that votes were compromised or altered in last week’s presidential election, rejecting unsubstantiated claims of widespread fraud advanced by President Donald Trump and many of his supporters. The statement from cybersecurity experts, which trumpets the Nov. 3 election as the most secure in American history, amounts to the most direct repudiation to date of Trump’s efforts to undermine the integrity of the contest.

CHINA CONGRATULATES BIDEN: China has become one of the last major countries to congratulate President-elect Joe Biden who is expected to make few changes to U.S. policy toward Beijing on trade, technology and other conflicts that have soured relations. China, along with Russia, avoided joining the throng that congratulated Biden last weekend after he and running mate Kamala Harris won the White House. “We respect the choice of the American people. We congratulate Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris,” a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman says.

VOTING PROBES: The Justice Department has already begun looking into two specific allegations of voting irregularities. One is a claim from the Trump campaign that thousands of people may have improperly voted in Nevada. The other is an allegation from a postal worker in Pennsylvania that a postmaster had instructed workers to backdate ballots mailed after Election Day. Neither case appears to hold much water, according to details about the probes.

HEALTH CARE: Biden is unlikely to get sweeping health care changes through a closely divided Congress, but there’s a menu of narrower actions he can choose from to make a tangible difference on affordability and coverage for millions of people. There’s bipartisan interest in prescription drug legislation to limit what Medicare recipients with high costs pay for medications and to restrain price increases generally. And millions of people already eligible for subsidized coverage through “Obamacare” remain uninsured.

GEORGIA SENATE: Trump won’t be on the ballot in January as Georgia voters settle two Senate runoffs that will determine who controls the chamber at the start of Biden’s tenure. But the contests offer the first measure of Trump’s imprint on the GOP since his defeat. The question remains whether Trump agrees with Republican allies who see the unusual twin billings as a way for him to mitigate his own loss and help his party on the way out.

QUOTABLE: “The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history." — A statement from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency about this year's general election.

ICYMI:

Israel’s settlements could test ties with Biden

Republican senators push for Biden to receive intelligence

Top CEOs largely silent on Trump election denial, for now

McEnany wears 2 hats as WH press secretary, campaign adviser

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Find AP’s full election coverage at APNews.com/Election2020.