The 2020 US presidential election has turned out to be one of the most closely fought contests in recent history. Although the scales seem to be tipping in the favour of Democratic candidate Joe Biden, a confirmed result is still some way off.
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APN spoke with Yle News' Vanessa Deggins, who said that validation of vote tallies will be conducted on a state by state basis. She noted that in some states, large numbers of absentee or mail-in ballots can be accepted for days after the election, potentially delaying a final count.
"Every state sets their own rules and every state has these backups to check the processes to make sure that everything is valid. And this has been in place for hundreds of years. So this is the normal process that we’ve gone through for every presidential election," she added.
Local elections and circumcision
Vanessa also examined a little-known municipal residency error that has the potential to shut some international students living in Finland out of local government elections due next spring.
The case turns on some people mistakenly registered as temporary, rather than permanent residents in Turku. As a result of the blunder these persons will not be eligible to vote in the election -- or to receive some Kela benefits.
Meanwhile APN examined a citizens initiative to criminalise female circumcision due for a vote by lawmakers on Friday. The proposal is making waves in the Jewish community, as it could also affect the ritual of circumcising boys.
"In essence it would criminalise Judaism in Finland," Yaron Nadbornik, President of the Central Council of Jewish Communities in Finland, told APN.
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This week's show was presented by Denise Wall and Zena Iovino. The producer was Ronan Browne and the audio engineer was Panu Willman..
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