Still no clear winner in Pa.

HARRISBURG » Counting of Pennsylvania ballots continued Wednesday, with results still unclear for the presidential contest as well as a host of down- ballot races, including for congressional seats and three row offices.

Election officials are tabulating ballots in a state that held its first general election in which voters did not need an excuse to vote by mail. More than 3 million applied to do so.

President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden are hotly contesting Pennsylvania’s 20 electoral votes, with both campaigns seeing a victory in the state as crucial to their chances of winning the White House.

As of 5 p. m. Wednesday, the vote totals for Chester County

— acknowledged as among the most important counties in the national election — show Biden with a significant lead of more than 30,000 votes on the ballot.

The Chester County Office of Voter Services reported unofficially that Biden had 147,824 votes to Trump’s 117,425. That is a difference of 54 percent to 43 percent — or 24,606 votes — ahead of the margin Hillary Clinton drew in 2016 when she tallied 140,188 votes to Trump’s 115,582 votes.

Those results are not final. The count is expected to continue through Thursday, at least.

Dr. Gordon Eck, the chairman of the Chester County Republican Committee, said Wednesday that he expected both candidates to try to take the advantage of reading the polling results.

“On the national level, it is not surprising that both parties are claiming victory, as paths exist for both candidates to win,” Eck said in a statement. “Hopefully all lawfully cast votes will be counted and the outcome will be clear and accepted by all.”

His counterpart, Chester County Chairman Dick Bingham, seemed more philosophic.

“How this will end is unknown at this moment,” he said in an email. “Any projection of the eventual winner, as President Trump

attempted to do late Tuesday evening, is clearly premature. I personally like ( Vice President) Biden’s chances in Pennsylvania.”

While county officials tally votes from what is shaping up as massive turnout, several Republican- led

lawsuits are being pursued, and Trump’s campaign sought to halt vote counting temporarily, seeking what it calls greater transparency. There have been no reports by law enforcement of fraud or ballot concerns out of Pennsylvania.

The Trump campaign, state election offi cials, Republican candidates and others have gone to court in recent weeks to settle

fi ghts over aspects of state election law, particularly its year- old law that greatly expanded mail- in voting.

The candidates visited at least once a week since the beginning of September, and more money has been spent on political advertising only in Florida, according to the political ad tracking fi rm Kantar/ CMAG.

In 2016, Trump won Pennsylvania by a mere 44,292 votes, or less than 1 percentage point, and any slight shift in part of the electorate this year is signifi cant, campaign strategists say.

Trump’s victory then made him the fi rst Republican to win Pennsylvania since 1988.