2020 U.S. ELECTION: What you need to know right now

[October 12, 2020]  (Reuters) - -With three weeks to go until election day, President Donald Trump tries to put his COVID-19 diagnosis behind him by kicking off his return to the campaign trail with a rally in the battleground state of Florida.

-U.S. networks aim for credibility, not speed, on Nov. 3 as executives recall hasty projections on election night in 2000 which were later retracted.

-How does the Electoral College work? The role of electoral votes and how they affect the result of a U.S. presidential election.

-Twitter flags a Trump tweet in which he claims he is immune to coronavirus. The social media platform left it up but added the disclaimer that it violates rules about misleading information related to COVID-19.

-Democratic challenger Joe Biden says 'chicanery' at the polls is the only way he can lose the election, amid Trump's efforts to suppress the vote and cast doubt on the security of mail-in ballots.

-With three weeks to go until the election, a court ruling allows the Republican governor of Texas to continue limiting counties in his state to a single drop-off site for absentee ballots.

-A Pennsylvania judge dismisses a lawsuit by Trump's re-election campaign to block drop boxes in the state, as the U.S. faces its largest test of voting by mail due to the coronavirus pandemic.

GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

In a rare show of support, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg tweets her endorsement of Joe Biden and says climate change and the environment are on the line.

INVESTOR VIEW

Goldman Sachs says the election result will not impact its bullish oil and natural gas outlook but added a significant Democratic victory would be beneficial for the sectors.

President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden participate in their first 2020 presidential campaign debate held on the campus of the Cleveland Clinic at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S., September 29, 2020. REUTERS/Brian Snyder/File Photo

BY THE NUMBERS

People in seven European countries overwhelmingly want Joe Biden to win the election, an opinion poll shows with 80% of Danes and 58% of Italians supporting the Democratic candidate. However, barely 10% think the vote will be fully free and fair.

ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Expected events and Reuters coverage on Oct 12:

-Latest updates from the White House as Trump's doctor says he is no longer a transmission risk following a COVID-19 test

-Trump rally in Sanford, Florida (7 p.m. ET/2300 GMT)

-Reuters/Ipsos public opinion poll from six battleground states: Arizona, Florida, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina (5 p.m. ET/2100 GMT)

-The Oct. 15 presidential debate is officially cancelled.

(Reporting by Gayle Issa; Editing by Giles Elgood)

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