Nov 7, 2018

Midterm madness: The election results we still don't know

Stacey Abrams, Georgia's Democratic candidate for governor. Photo: Jessica McGowan/Getty Images

While the bottom line of Tuesday's midterm elections is clear — Democrats have taken control of the House while Republicans added to their majority in the Senate — a number of significant races have yet to be called as the sun rises on Wednesday.

Driving the news: In Georgia's gubernatorial race, Democrat Stacey Abrams has vowed not to concede against her Republican opponent Brian Kemp until "every vote gets counted." Kemp currently holds 50.5% of the vote, but the race could face a runoff if neither candidate ultimately ends up over 50%. The race has been marred by voter suppression and conflict of interest allegations against Kemp, who has presided over the election as Georgia's secretary of state.

Other outstanding high-profile races:

  • In Arizona's Senate race, Republican Martha McSally is up on Democrat Kyrsten Sinema 49.3% to 48.5% with about 99.3% reporting. Per The Arizona Republic, "an official victor may not be known for days — and maybe longer, if the final tally were to trigger a recount or legal challenge."
  • In Florida's Senate race, former Republican governor Rick Scott is up on Democrat incumbent Bill Nelson 50.2% to 49.8% with 100% reporting. Scott has declared victory, but the race is statistically too close to call and Nelson has called for an automatic recount, which must take place under state law if the margin of victory remains less than 0.5%.
  • In Mississippi's Senate special election, Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith and Democrat Mike Espy are headed to a runoff later this month after both candidates failed to reach the 50% threshold.
  • In Texas' 23rd district, one of Axios' 8 for 2018, AP withdrew its call for Republican incumbent Will Hurd at about 4 a.m. ET. The margin between him and Democrat Gina Ortiz Jones is only about 700 votes.

The previously outstanding races that have now been decided:

  • In Montana's Senate race, incumbent Democrat Jon Tester defeated Republican challenger Matt Rosendale, per the AP.

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Axios
Updated 3 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 10 p.m. EST: 32,135,220 — Total deaths: 981,660 — Total recoveries: 22,149,441 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 10 p.m EST: 6,975,980 — Total deaths: 202,738 — Total recoveries: 2,710,183 — Total tests: 98,481,026 — Map.
  3. Politics: House Democrats prepare new $2.4 trillion coronavirus relief package.
  4. Health: Cases are surging again in 22 states — New York will conduct its own review of coronavirus vaccine.
  5. Business: America is closing out its strongest quarter of economic growth.
  6. Technology: 2020 tech solutions may be sapping our resolve to beat the pandemic.
  7. Sports: Pac-12 will play this fall despite ongoing pandemic — Here's what college basketball will look like this season.
  8. Science: Global coronavirus vaccine initiative launches without U.S. or China — During COVID-19 shutdown, a common sparrow changed its song.
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Jacob Knutson
6 hours ago - Sports

Pac-12 will play football this fall, reversing course

A view of Levi's Stadium during the 2019 Pac-12 Championship football game. Photo: Alika Jenner/Getty Images

The Pac-12, which includes universities in Arizona, California, Colorado, Oregon, Utah and Washington state, will play football starting Nov. 6, reversing its earlier decision to postpone the season because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Why it matters: The conference's about-face follows a similar move by the Big Ten last week and comes as President Trump has publicly pressured sports to resume despite the ongoing pandemic. The Pac-12 will play a seven-game conference football season, according to ESPN.

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Dave Lawler, author of World
6 hours ago - World

Global coronavirus vaccine initiative launches without U.S. or China

Data: Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance; Map: Naema Ahmed/Axios

A global initiative to ensure equitable distribution of coronavirus vaccines now includes most of the world — but not the U.S., China or Russia.

Why it matters: Assuming one or more vaccines ultimately gain approval, there will be a period of months or even years in which supply lags far behind global demand. The COVAX initiative is an attempt to ensure doses go where they're most needed, rather than simply to countries that can produce or buy them at scale.

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