In the 2016 election, Donald Trump won Michigan by 0.3 percent, or 10,704 votes. But this election, Joe Biden could turn Michigan blue: as of Wednesday evening, pollsters expect Biden to be the winner in Michigan. With 97% of the vote reported in Michigan, Biden holds a 1.2% lead over Donald Trump. (If Biden takes Michigan, he will win 16 crucial electoral votes.

Biden's lead is already being contested by the Trump campaign. The Trump campaign has filed a lawsuit to halt the vote counting process in Michigan and Pennsylvania. Trump has "claimed" Michigan on Twitter (opens in new tab), but official sources (opens in new tab) predict Biden as the winner in the state.

The Trump campaign will likely request an official recount once all votes have been counted. (The Trump campaign has already announced that it will request a recount in Wisconsin.) (Open in new tab) Here's how it works:

In Michigan, if the trailing candidate is less than 2,000 votes behind, the state will automatically hold a recount. Currently, Trump is ahead by 67,140 votes, or 97% of the vote. This means that Michigan will not conduct an automatic recount this time.

That's right. According to the Michigan legislature, the Trump campaign may request a recount within 48 hours after the polls open if it believes there is a "reasonable possibility of winning the election" or can "make a good faith claim of fraud or error." (opens in new tab)

According to Ballotpedia, once the request petition is filed, the election administrator must complete the recount within 30 days. (Open in new tab) The recount process, of course, magnifies the uncertainty of the election and can delay a confirmed winner.

The client pays (in this case, the Trump team). If the recount changes the outcome of the election, the fee is refunded.

As the results of the vote counts in key battleground states become available, a contested race is expected from the backbenchers.

For now, patience is the best option. (Might we suggest taking a little walk away from the Scroll of Doom?) If the U.S. can firmly declare a winner, we can all move on to the next step, the most important one in this country.