Here's Where Michigan Is Still Counting Votes and How Those Counties Voted in 2016

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Although Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden narrowly leads incumbent President Donald Trump in the key swing state of Michigan, about 100,000 voters have yet to be counted.

A clearer picture of the Midwestern state's overall results are expected later on Wednesday, but Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson has cautioned that the counting will take time due to the tens of thousands of ballots still outstanding as a result of the unprecedented level of mail-in ballots. About 5.2 million ballots have already been counted in Michigan and Biden leads Trump by approximately 30,000 votes.

"We're going to ensure that the results of our elections accurately reflect every single ballot vote that was cast. And this is particularly important in close races, as the numbers of outstanding ballots is still greater than the margin of difference between many races with leading candidates," Benson said during a virtual briefing Wednesday.

"When we have the first unofficial tabulation, which we hope will come some time in the next 24 hours, we will finalize official protocols moving towards an official tabulation, which could take even more time," she said.

Biden and Trump
This combination of photos shows Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden in Wilmington, Delaware, and President Donald Trump in Washington, D.C. during election night speeches early November 4. ANGELA WEISS,MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty

Michigan stopped accepting mail-in ballots as of 8 p.m. on Tuesday. Any ballots received after that deadline have been disregarded by local election officials. Here's a closer look at the counties that are still counting ballots and how Trump performed there in 2016.

Wayne County

Precincts fully reported: 67.89 percent

Biden: 489,165 votes (66.87 percent)

Trump: 231,845 (31.69 percent)

In 2016, Trump won 228,993 votes (or 29.3 percent of the total votes) in Wayne County. Former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton won 519,444 (66.4 percent).

Oakland County

Precincts fully reported: 99.6 percent

Biden: 437,133 (56.29 percent)

Trump: 327,197 (42.13 percent)

In 2016, Trump won 289,127 votes (or 43.6 percent of the total votes) in Oakland County. Clinton won 342,976 votes (51.7 percent).

Macomb County

Precincts fully reported: 95.3 percent

Biden: 218,305 (45.4 percent)

Trump: 256,574 (53.3 percent)

In 2016, Trump won 224,589 (53.6 percent) compared to Clinton's 176,238 (42.1 percent).

Kent County

Precincts fully reported: 84.9 percent

Biden: 141,078 (46.6 percent)

Trump: 153,472 (50.6 percent)

In 2016, Trump won 147,959 (48.3 percent) compared to Clinton's 138,567 (45.2 percent).

Genesee County

Precincts fully reported: 78.2 percent

Biden: 102,322 (50.1 percent)

Trump: 97,439 (47.8 percent)

In 2016, Trump won 84,174 (42.9 percent) compared to Clinton's 102,744 (52.4 percent).

Trump won Michigan by just 10,704 votes in the last presidential election, giving him a margin of victory of 0.2 percent. Biden currently leads Trump by a margin of about 0.9 percent.

About the writer

Jason Lemon is a Senior Politics Editor at Newsweek based in Brooklyn, New York. Prior to taking on the editor role, Jason's reporting focused on U.S. politics and international affairs. He joined Newsweek in 2018, and had previously worked as an editor at a Middle Eastern media startup called StepFeed. He also worked a year as a contributor to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and has bylines in The Christian Science Monitor, The Palm Beach Post, Al Fanar Media and A Magazine. He is a graduate of the American University of Beirut in Lebanon and Andrews University in Michigan. You can get in touch with Jason by emailing j.lemon@newsweek.com. Languages: English, Spanish, French and Levantine Arabic


Jason Lemon is a Senior Politics Editor at Newsweek based in Brooklyn, New York. Prior to taking on the editor role, Jason's reporting focused ... Read more