MICHIGAN election administrators have officially certified Joe Biden's electoral victory in the state to deal a huge blow to Donald Trump's hopes of challenging the election result.
The Board of State Canvassers, which has two Republicans and two Democrats on it, confirmed Biden's 154,000-vote victory with a 3-0 vote - with one board member abstaining from the vote.
Michigan was one of the states where Mr Trump had posed a legal challenge, following his defeat to Mr Biden in the presidential election earlier this month.
"The people of Michigan have spoken," said Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer in a statement.
"President-Elect Biden won the state of Michigan by more than 154,000 votes, and he will be our next president on January 20," she said, before adding that it was "time to put this election behind us".
Trump's legal team described the certification as "simply a procedural step" and insisted that it would still be challenging the result.
The news of Michigan's certification came just an hour or so before President Trump appeared to give the green-light for the transition between his and Biden's administration to begin.
Taking to Twitter, Trump wrote on Monday: "Our case STRONGLY continues, we will keep up the good fight, and I believe we will prevail!
"Nevertheless, I am recommending that Emily and her team do what needs to be done with regard to initial protocols, and have told my team to do the same."
Losing his grip on Michigan could be well be the first nail in the coffin for Trump's legal challenge, with other 'contested' states like Georgia, Arizona, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania expected to produce the same result.
