ATLANTA – Georgia’s 16 Electoral College votes have been cast for Democrat Joe Biden for president.
The state’s Democratic electors, including former candidate for governor Stacey Abrams, met in the state Senate chamber on Monday.
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The electors each marked a paper ballot that was then collected, counted and confirmed by a voice roll call. Abrams then read out the results to the other electors, which included several state lawmakers and Democratic activists.
They were all wearing face masks and kept empty desks between them and only a handful of reporters and support staff were allowed in the Senate chambers because of COVID-19.
The vote formally seals Biden’s win in Georgia, the battleground state where he beat President Donald Trump by about 12,000 votes.
The result of the November election was confirmed by two recounts, including an audit that triggered a full hand tally of ballots.
The Republicans chosen to be electors if Trump won met in a committee room downstairs and cast their votes for Trump. Their votes are not official, but Georgia Republican Chairman David Shafer said the step was necessary if Trump wanted to continue to contest the election.