US elections: Donald Trump officially wins state of Michigan even as vote recount looms
The Michigan Board of State Canvassers announced that the Republican candidate defeated his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton by 10,074 votes.
United States president-elect Donald Trump on Monday officially won the state of Michigan after the final vote count was tallied. The Michigan Board of State Canvassers announced that the Republican Party candidate had defeated his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton by 10,074 votes, The New York Times reported.
The win gave Trump 16 electoral college votes, taking his total count to 306, well above the 270 required to win the election. Clinton secured 232 electoral college votes in the November 8 elections.
The news of Trump’s fresh win comes even as calls continue for a vote recount in three states, including Michigan. The campaign to fund and promote a vote recount is being led by Green Party nominee Jill Stein. Last week, the Wisconsin Election Commission said they would begin the process of recounting the nearly three million votes cast in the elections after Stein paid the required fee. Stein said her aim was to verify the integrity of the US voting system and not undo Trump’s win. Clinton’s campaign also joined the efforts.
However, Trump dismissed the efforts to push for a recount of votes as a “scam”. “This recount is just a way for [Green Party candidate] Jill Stein, who received less than 1% of the vote overall and wasn’t even on the ballot in many states, to fill her coffers with money, most of which she will never even spend on this ridiculous recount,” Trump said in a statement. “The people have spoken, and the election is over.”