Fox News projected that former Vice President Joe Biden would win the state of Arizona, marking a major victory for Democrats in the 2020 presidential race.
“The Fox News Decision Desk can now project that former Vice President Joe Biden will win the state of Arizona, dramatically narrowing the president’s pathway to reelection. It is the first state of the night where Trump loses a state he won in 2016,” Chad Pergram, a Fox News congressional reporter, tweeted .
The New York Post noted Trump had opened a lead in the state early in the evening, with an eight-point margin as 75 percent of the expected votes had been counted.
If the final results confirm Biden’s victory, it will be the first time a Democrat has taken the state since Bill Clinton won in 1996. It would also mean that Biden will only need to take two of the three toss-up states in the Midwest, as The Inquisitr previously reported, something that polls say is likely to take place.
“If Trump wins Florida, North Carolina and Ohio, but [if] Biden wins Arizona, Biden is an 85% favorite in our election scenario generator. There’s a 6% chance of an Electoral College tie, though,” FiveThirtyEight tweeted .
Trump nabbed the state’s 11 electoral votes over Hillary Clinton in 2016 in an upset that shocked many.
Votes continue to be counted across the country, with some states confirming they won’t be finalizing their counts until Wednesday. Trump has opened a lead in Florida and Ohio, two important battleground states. Meanwhile, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin are still up for grabs.
Democratic candidate and astronaut Mark Kelly was also projected to take a Senate seat over Republican Martha McSally, The New York Times reported. McSally was appointed to fill the late Sen. John McCain’s seat after she lost her 2018 bid.
Kelly held a 10-point lead with 75 percent of the expected vote tallied. If the results hold, it will be the first time Arizona is represented by two Democratic senators since 1953.
Pundit Greg Sargent noted that Democrats flipping the state should be considered a big deal.
“This is Ground Zero for Trump’s immigration crackdown, the place where he delivered his biggest speeches on the issue. It’s Arpaio-land. This furthers the trend in which Trumpism is becoming a liability in the southwest,” he tweeted .
The state proved to be more liberal in its initiative voting as well. Constituents approved the use of recreational cannabis, as High Times noted in a tweet .
