Celebrating Crowds Cheer US Postal Service Workers After Biden Declared Winner
By Theresa Waldrop and Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN
(CNN) -- People cheered US Postal Service workers in New York and New Jersey on Saturday after a days-long count of mailed-in ballots in key states finally led CNN and other news organizations to declare Joe Biden the winner of the presidential race.
Joe Altenau, who took a video of the scene in Brooklyn, said he's "incredibly thankful for all the work the USPS has done to safely deliver millions of votes for Americans throughout the country during this pandemic."
"Huge ???? for this @USPS driver in Brooklyn this afternoon," Altenau tweeted. "Great day to celebrate everyone who helped ensure a safe #Election2020."
For Altenau, Biden's win means returning to a focus "on science, truth and empathy and a president who will look out for the best interests of all Americans, not just those who voted for him."
In Pennsylvania alone, there were almost 2.6 million mailed-in ballots, according to the state's election website. That's 10 times the number of absentee ballots it receives in a normal election, officials said. USPS officials earlier told CNN they've handled tens of millions of ballots nationwide over the course of the election.
Because poll workers in Pennsylvania weren't allowed to process those votes until election day, President Donald Trump ended that day with a comfortable margin over Biden.
More Democrats than Republicans voted absentee because of the pandemic though, and Trump's lead slowly eroded there and elsewhere in the following days, with Biden ahead in the state by Friday morning. CNN and others projected Biden as the election winner on Saturday.
"USPS approves," Judith Kafka tweeted about the scene at in Brooklyn Saturday.
In Jersey City, New Jersey, crowds cheered for a postal worker, who was enthusiastically hugged by one celebrant, a video shows.
"Big love for the @USPS in Jersey City today," tweeted Mahen Gunaratna, communications director for New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy.
More than 98% of Pennsylvania's ballots had been counted as of Saturday afternoon.
CNN has not declared a winner in four states where ballots are still being tallied -- Alaska, Arizona, Georgia and Nevada.
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