President Donald won the state of Florida and secured its 29 electoral college votes, the Associated Press reported Tuesday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump wins Florida.
— Zeke Miller (@ZekeJMiller) November 4, 2020
Florida, a must-win for Trump, is among the most important states in the 2020 election, and legal battles over the status of certain mail-in ballots could take place across the state.
Polls gave Biden a slight lead going into Election Day, according to The New York Times. Trump greatly improved his performance in Miami-Dade county, keeping Biden to under 60 points in a county former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton won with more than 63 points.
Fox calling #Florida for #Trump now! pic.twitter.com/Hl5i3We7fL
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) November 4, 2020
UPDATE: Biden has taken Florida lead but Republicans still confident. They believe the pan handle counties will deliver them the state #2020Elections #2020Election @9NewsAUS https://t.co/Wtc7khDC7c
— Tim Arvier (@TimArvier9) November 4, 2020
The recipe for a Republican win in Florida is keeping the Democratic candidate on a short leash in suburban and urban areas while carrying the state in the panhandle and other rural areas. Trump took Florida by just one percentage point over Clinton in 2016.
Polls show Trump vastly improved his performance with both Latino and black voters in the state and matched his 2016 performance in rural counties. (RELATED: Lil Pump Attends Donald Trump’s Rally In Florida)
Hispanic voters per early 2020 exit polls:
Florida:
2016: Clinton +27
2020: Biden +8Georgia:
2016: Clinton +40
2020: Biden +25Ohio:
2016: Clinton +41
2020: Biden +24CNN
— Political Polls (@PpollingNumbers) November 4, 2020
Trump calls Florida his home state and made huge efforts to win it, going so far as to host a midnight rally in the state on Monday evening. Democrats held a more than 100,000 vote lead in the state’s early voting, but Republicans who waited to vote on Election Day soon closed the gap.