Democrat Joe Biden overtook President Donald Trump in the vote count in Pennsylvania and Georgia Friday morning, closing in on a presidency that hinges on the outcome of tight contests in key battleground states.

Both races remained too early to call with votes still being counted. Neither candidate has reached the 270 Electoral College votes needed to win the White House, though Biden has the advantage after eclipsing Trump in Wisconsin and Michigan, two crucial Midwestern battleground states. Biden leads Trump by nearly 6,000 votes in Pennsylvania and just over 1,000 in Georgia.

On Thursday, Trump advanced unsupported accusations of voter fraud to falsely argue that his rival was trying to seize power in an extraordinary effort by a sitting American president to sow doubt about the democratic process.

“This is a case when they are trying to steal an election, they are trying to rig an election,” Trump said from the podium of the White House briefing room.

Trump’s campaign engaged in a flurry of legal activity to try to improve the Republican president’s chances, saying it would seek a recount in Wisconsin and filing lawsuits in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Georgia.

In response to information uncovered regarding Loras Hall’s namesake, a committee was formed to provide long-term principles guiding St. Thomas in renaming campus structures, St. Thomas President Julie Sullivan announced in an email Thursday.

The Committee to Establish Principles on Renaming was created in response to the namesake of Loras Hall being found to have enslaved a woman for 16 years, Sullivan wrote. The committee will begin its work in November and conclude some time in the spring semester.

The committee will review literature on the history and theory of naming and renaming, consider other institutions and communities that have addressed renaming decisions, consult experts within and around the St. Thomas community, and provide opportunities for community members to share their views.

After research is complete and the work of the committee is done, a separate guidelines committee with relevant knowledge will be consulted with each specific renaming proposal. That guidelines committee will make a recommendation based on the established principles, then submit it for approval with President Sullivan and the Board of Trustees.

Emily Rudie can be reached at rudi7985@stthomas.edu.