American voters want certainty. Instead they have doubt, division and a nation under threat

If Joe Biden had prevailed in Florida or Texas, we could have retired for the night. But we now face days and even weeks of uncertainty.

By Emily Tamkin

A Democrat supporter attends a watch party in Miami, Florida, on 3 November. (Photo By getty)

On 4 November, Americans woke up not knowing who the next US president will be. We knew going into this election that voters – and the world – would be left without a definitive result until some time after the polls had closed. In this, our pandemic election, more votes were cast ahead of election day than at any other time in the republic’s history, either by early in-person voting or mail-in votes. And in some swing states – Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania – those votes cannot be counted until election day. We were in for the long haul.

Make no mistake: this is an unprecedented test for American democracy.