Washington: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday narrowed the
margin of difference between him and Joe Biden when he won the election in the
state of Alaska, taking his electoral college tally to 217 after winning three
electoral votes.

The Republican Party has also retained the Senate seat,
giving the party 50 seats in the 100-member United States Senate, PTI reported.

When the election was called in Alaska, Trump had received
56.9 per cent of the total votes counted and President-elect Joe Biden from the
Democratic Party with 39.1 per cent, it said.

With this win, Trump’s tally of electoral college votes has
increased to 217, as per the count maintained by The New York Times.

Biden has already been declared winner with 279 of the 538
electoral college votes. Trump has refused to concede and has filed lawsuits in
multiple states, challenging election results.

The results in Georgia are still in contention, with the
secretary of state of there announcing a recount of votes by hand on Wednesday
considering the little difference of votes between Biden and Trump.

“With the margin being so close, it will require a full
by-hand recount in each county,” Brad Raffensperger told reporters at a news
conference in Atlanta.

With Georgia still contentious, and North Carolina result
are yet to be announced—where Trump is leading – the contest between the
president and his rival intensifies more.

Georgia holds 16 and North Carolina 15 electoral votes. If
Trump wins from both states, his tally will improve to 248, still far from the
magic mark of 270. But however unlikely that situation, if it comes to pass it will be the beginning of trouble of Biden, who is
already begun to be termed by the media as the President-elect.

Alleging voter fraud, Trump has sued in states of
Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Arizona in last one week.

The experts have so far dismissed the litigious exercise as
an irritant and unbecoming of a US president, but Trump seems to be in no mood to
back down.

His adventure found an ally yesterday in Mike Pompeo, his Secretary
of State, when he told reporters that he was looking forward to a “smooth
transition” into the second administration for the Trump administration.  

The election results in Alaska also gave the Republican
Party an edge over the Democrats in the Senate. Republican senator Dan Sullivan
won his Senate re-election bid. This gives the Republicans 50 Senate seats,
while the Democrats have 48. The two Senate seats are going in for elections on
January 5.

“President Trump and Senate Republicans win Alaska,
overwhelmingly and by a massive 20 point spread!” Ivanka Trump, daughter of
Trump and a presidential advisor, said in a tweet.