‘This is a moment I have dreamed about’: Stacey Abrams presides over Georgia electoral college vote to name Biden official winner

The announcement was met with applause by the slate of electors present

Former Democratic lawmaker and voting rights activist Stacey Abrams presided over Georgia's electoral college and  announced that Joe Biden would receive the state's 16 electoral votes.  

The announcement was met with applause by the slate of electors present.  

The awarding of the votes marks the end of a long and vicious battle in the state over its election results.  

Republicans - including two of the states own senators and Donald Trump - have alleged, without clear evidence, that the state's elections were rife with voter fraud.  

The state's Republican Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger, has rejected the claims and stood by the reported results of the elections despite pressure from his party.

Republican Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue - who are both facing run-off elections in January that will determine which party controls the US Senate - called for Mr Raffensperger to resign, and Sen. Lindsey Graham allegedly pressured him to toss out votes based on signature technicalities.

The Georgia Secretary of State and his family were also harassed and threatened by angry Republican voters.

Ms Abrams said she was honored to be selected to preside over the electoral college, and that she planned to focus on helping the country bounce back from the damage done by the pandemic.

I was honored to preside over today's meeting of Georgia electors and to cast my vote for @JoeBiden and @KamalaHarris, the first Democrats to win GA since 1992," she wrote on Twitter. "Together, we will restore the soul of our nation, build our economy back better and recover from the pandemic."

Early voting in the runoff elections - which are scheduled to take place on 5 January - began Monday.

Ms Abrams told CBS News This Morning that relief for US communities may look drastically different based on who wins the run-off elections. .

"This is a state that is almost evenly divided. The presidential election was decided by fewer than 12,000 votes. But what's at stake isn't divisive, what's at stake is relief for our communities. ," she said.