After an extended election night, the results of the US presidential election have still not fallen.

This frozen situation could last for days, weeks or even months.

All the more so as Donald Trump intends to seize the Supreme Court to contest an "electoral fraud".

In the aftermath of an eventful election night, Americans still do not know the name of their new president.

Between the two candidates, the gap is tight.

For now, there are 237 votes for Joe Biden against 213 votes for Donald Trump.

But nothing is settled since seven states have not yet finished counting the ballots.

A certain frustration is felt throughout the world, which has its eyes riveted on this US presidential election.

And the ambient uncertainty is gone to last ... 

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A particular electoral system

We will have to be patient before knowing the name of the new president of the United States.

Blame it on a deceptive operation since in France, we are more used to election days with results that fall quite quickly, practically from 8 p.m. on the evening of the vote.

But in the United States, it's not the same configuration at all.

First, because the country is far too big: there are over 230 million voters in 50 states and the District of Columbia.

We must therefore imagine what an election would be at the level of the European Union and its 27 member countries.

Above all, each American state has specific electoral rules and therefore its own counting rate.

For example, some of them give postal services a delay in delivering postal ballots that were validated before election day but that have not yet arrived at the polling stations.

After the Americans vote, it is the turn of the voters to elect the President of the United States.

It takes 270 votes from voters to win the election.

Which means that, even in normal times, we already wait several days or even weeks before having a consolidated result or a serious estimate ... And all this outside of legal recourse.

PODCAST - (Re) listen to Mister President

Political scientist Olivier Duhamel tells you the incredible story of the American presidential elections since 1948, from Truman to Obama, from Kennedy to Clinton, including the Bushes, father and son ... 

>>> Find the 12 episodes on our Europe1.fr site, on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, SoundCloud or your usual listening platforms.

Trump wants to go to court 

But this uncertainty, one would expect.

With the Covid-19 epidemic and the enormous political polarization, we have broken absolute records in postal voting: more than 100 million ballots.

The stakes were therefore enormous.

Donald Trump himself has made it a central element of his electoral strategy by denouncing for months this type of ballot, supposed to disadvantage him, as being a source of fraud intended to "steal his victory". 

And it is for the same reasons that he fought to appoint a conservative judge to the Supreme Court before the presidential election.

He knew that his re-election could depend on a decision of this body to which he also asked this morning to stop the counting of votes by correspondence in the States where they are still in ballot.

But, according to experts, the results would have to be extremely close and its arguments strong for the country's highest court to agree to intervene.

>> READ

- US Presidential: the legal battle has already started

In 2000, the epic duel between George W. Bush and Al Gore over the scores in Florida had held America in suspense for 36 days.

This is also the reason why it is provided by the Constitution that the college of the electors not designate the president of the United States until December.