larry madowo was there for us now. larry. madowo was there for us now. lar . , . , , ~ ., larry.e a war zone- _ larry. this city feels like a war zone. we _ larry. this city feels like a war zone. we have - larry. this city feels like a war zone. we have armed | war zone. we have armed soldiers on the streets of the capital, 21,500 national guardsmen who are all around the capital, the perimeter of the capital, the perimeter of the united states capital, where that ceremony will take place tomorrow. and to make sure nobody has a direct line of sight to the capital balcony, where the actual event takes place, there have been barricaded set up around there, garage is closed, even bridges coming into the city will be closed tomorrow. and alerts went out to residents of the city a minute ago saying, make a plan for tomorrow, several road and bridge closures will be in place and affect commute times. this is a heightened state of security after the storming of the capital on january six, and this 59th inauguration being declared a national special security event. the secret service is

in atlanta, georgia for us is the bbc‘s larry madowo. larry, bring us right up to date.olls close in about an hour here, where the results, we should start to know them at it half hour or so. 7pm eastern, counties will start to upload results. it's expected republicans turned out more today than the democrats, and the republicans need a big turn out to basically wipe out the lead the democrats had in the early voting period. it'll be a very important race, as you've been mentioning, control of the us and it hinges on it. there's national and international attention. what's bring ina international attention. what's bring in a republican strategist. how do you feel about the races tonight, do you think they're up against will hang on to both seats? i believe republicans have what we need to hang on to hang onto both seats. if rural georgia came out in big numbers, we'll be fine. earlier this morning, starting at our purdue was leading by two points, and kelly was leading by two points, and kelly was not trailing by much —— and senator perdue. if we look at the primary elec

larry madowo, bbc news, virginia. highest number of daily covid—related deaths since the start of this pandemic. 1,325 more people have lost their lives. close to 80,000 deaths in the united kingdom. to add to that grim figure — a record number of new cases — more than 68,000 positive tests recorded in the past 2a hours. it comes as the mayor of london sadiq khan has declared a "major incident" in the capital. here's our health editor, hugh pym. two brothers enjoying a swim on a foreign holiday. exactly a year later, one of them died with covid—19. he's a big chap, there's no denying that, he can swim all day long. he was running on christmas day. james remembers his brother, david, who was 36. they both tested positive and were isolating but david's condition worsened overnight and he didn't survive. we were going to sit there and rough it out. well, it didn't work for us and my advice would be... i don't want to scaremonger people and i don't want to be dramatic, but i think people... if you're in that situation, if

larry madowo in washington, dc.ination programme once he's president. in a divided country, getting the virus under control is likely to be his biggest challenge as president. this report from our north america correspondent nick bryant contains some flashing images. we normally associate new york with the self—confidence of america. but the coronavirus crisis has shown us the frailties of the world's most powerful land. siren wails in the final weeks of the trump presidency, there have been days where more than 4,000 americans have died — a higher death toll than on september the 11th. it's bizarre, it's scary, it's frightening. angelina proia lost herfather. they're not in the same reality. her mourning made more painful by family members who refuse to believe the coronavirus took his life. she's angry at donald trump for spreading misinformation and downplaying the pandemic. furious, angry, confused... ..disconnected, abandoned. those are all ways to describe how i feel. there are 350,000 plus people who've died

i'm larry madowo in georgia, where the election is incredibly tight and incredibly important — and voterstional spotlight. if of the national spotlight. revoking his lose both thl democrats if revoking his lose both the seats, democrats will have control in the senate. —— if republicans. and as a third lockdown is introduced in england, official figures suggest covid was infecting 2% of the population in the last week. and prosecutors in the us state of wisconsin say they won't bring criminal charges against the police officer who shot the black man, jacob blake, leaving him paralysed.

possibilities and to open our hearts just a little bit more to one another. 0ur correspondent larry madowongton with more. the highlight of the day was that memorial service that joe biden and kamala harris attended at that reflecting pool which provided this really beautiful ceremony but also iconic imagery. that happened just about an hour after america recorded 400,000 deaths from the coronavirus. it's a crisis that president donald trump has downplayed, even though he's taken credit for the fast rollout of the vaccine. two vaccines now approved for emergency use in the us, the moderna vaccine and the pfizer—biontech vaccine. president donald trump spending his last full day as president at the white house, just two or three blocks from where i am standing, across the street is blair house where president—electjoe biden and his wife, doctorjill biden are spending the night. typically they are usually invited there by the outgoing president but in this case, that did not happen. who invited them 7 the state department. and tomorrow they start the day in church but the last four years hav

larry madowo, bbc news, virginia. these dramatic events here in washington the coronavirus outbreak is also of great concern here and there was a record number of deaths, 4000 americans died from that virus in america and the president—elect has said that dealing with the virus in the vaccine will be his priority and infact in the vaccine will be his priority and in fact he's going to give out all the available coronavirus vaccine doses and not hold back some for a second dose, so he's emily was happening there in britain. we had oui’ happening there in britain. we had our own very grim record today, the uk has had the highest number of deaths in one day since this pandemic began, 1325 people died within 20 days a positive test. the highest since records began. this is really difficult for the uk because we are now inching up to one of those milestones, 80,000 deaths which if you cannot imagine what it's like i'm one of our programmes showed the london 0lympic stadium back from the 2012 olympics, fully during the open

in atlanta, georgia for us is the bbc‘s larry madowo. house voting been going?ting been going? this is a very hotly anticipated election. james, there is $833 million that's been spent on the selection. it's paid for a lot of advertisers everywhere, people can be found in the papers and television outside, even on dating apps, so you can see campaigns have been floating with voters, campaigns likejohn also off, kelly loeffler, david perdue and refile warnock all have a chance at going to the senate. polls just closed two minutes ago, so polls just closed two minutes ago, so we polls just closed two minutes ago, so we will start to see early results. counties are starting to upload the unofficial results into portals, so we should know who has won and lost in the hours ahead. i'm not looking for those results on dating apps, i'll look for you to tell them to me. we had one presidential race, to runoffs— our people in georgia exhausted by voting?” georgia exhausted by voting?|j spoke georgia exhausted by voting?” spoke to one person who said yes. they just wanted

in atlanta georgia for us is the bbc‘s larry madowo. you have spent a lot of time in georgia.s it looking?m is looking too close to call at this stage even though the polls have closed. it is too early to tell who will be the winner because it has essentially been a joint ticket for the republicans, david perdue and kelly left now running together against the what they have been calling radical left, the democratic candidatesjon radical left, the democratic candidates jon ossoff and i radical left, the democratic candidatesjon ossoff and i am missing the name on the pole day, the reverend warnock, from the same church where martin luther preached, and they are mounting a very strong challenge in this expensive race where $833 million has been spent trying to win these seats. right now the exit polls say it is too close to call. it won't be one republican or one democrat. the exit polls point to the fact that if it goes in one direction it could be both seats to the democrats or the republicans. the turnout is likely to be crucial. republicans have been very good in georgia at

the bbc‘s larry madowo is in atlanta, georgia.arting to see more results come in, 56% of the vote, we expect the birds to come in, and the democrats have a slight lead and both of those races are. wheezyjon 0ssof with about 87,000 votes more than his challenger in that race, and also in the other race, and also in the other race we see raphael warnock with about 70,000 votes more than senator kelly, so essentiallyjon 0ssof than senator kelly, so essentially jon 0ssof is beating perdue, and we see both democrats leading, but this is a point to lead, so almost meaningless at this stage because there are still a lot of votes to count and this could all change, especially when the boat start to come in from the more republican leaning northern counties in georgia. let's talk about the process involved, a lot of money, $833 million has been spent on this race, and there has been attention from other states, texas, florida, and as far as california, we have a democratic canvasser who far as california, we have a democratic ca nvasser wh

the bbc�*s larry madowo sent this report from capitol hill.is now like a fortress, and you see this going all the way around. this place is usually open. i spoke to one person who's lived here for 19 years, he lives down the road. he says this is heartbreaking for him because he says the beauty of the american democracy is that government institutions are open to the people. he can walk right past this place, and he has done for many years. he walks and he runs past the steps of the us capitol, the white house, the supreme court, and all of that is now fortified. but this is because the inauguration on the 20th of january has been designated by the us department of homeland security as a national special security event, which means all the resources of the federal government are being brought together to make sure that the president—elect, the vice president—elect and everybody attending that event is safe. another step that's been taken is that even congressmen and senators have to go through metal detectors, which they didn't have to do befo

in atlanta georgia for us is the bbc‘s larry madowo.we are starting to see more of the results coming in now. 56% of the expected voters come in and the democratic candidates have a slight lead in both of those races. we see jon 0ssoff with about 87,000 votes more than his challenger in that race. also, in the other race we see reverend warnock with about 70,000 more votes tha n warnock with about 70,000 more votes than kelly loeffler so essentially he is beating perdue right now and the democrats essentially are leading but it is maybe a two—point lead, so it is almost meaningless at this stage because there is still a lot of the vote to be counted and it could all change, especially when the boats coming from the more republican leading northern counties in georgia. let's talk about the process which has cost a lot of money. $833 million have been spent in the race and there has been attention not just from the race and there has been attention notjust from the states but from other states like texas, florida and as far as california,

the bbc‘s larry madowo is in atlanta, georgia.set up an in—person victory party here in adelante in in—person victory party here in adela nte in case in—person victory party here in adelante in case they win the night while the democrats plan a virtual celebration. but we may not know the winner, certainly not tonight. it may go into tomorrow morning, possibly later. this will come down to turn out and we won't know the final turnout until 1pm eastern, that isjust know the final turnout until 1pm eastern, that is just after 6pm gmt when they are required to report how many people turned up on election day to determine how many outstanding votes are still out there so it will be quite a while. it was always going to be a close race but the race is tightening with these early votes. there are razor thin margins between the candidates. the republican incumbents, that is david perdue and senator kelly loeffler, they align with president trump and supported his unsuccessful attempt to overturn the vote and that means that they are runn

possibilities and to open our hearts just a little bit more to one another. 0ur correspondent larry madowongton. bring madowo is in washington. us all up to speed on what bring us all up to speed on what has been happening today. today, last full day in office, he did that farewell address, essentially pointing out he will not be president for the next four years but did not mentionjoe biden by name but suddenly the highlight of the day was that memorial service thatjoe biden and kamala harris attended at that reflecting pool which provided that beautiful ceremony but iconic imagery. that happened just about an hour after america recorded 400,000 debt from the coronavirus. it's a crisis that president donald trump is downplayed, even though his taken credit for the fast fallout of the vaccine. emergency use in the us, the pfizer biontech vaccine, but joe biden has said for his first day in office, he will sign a raft of executive orders to make the coronavirus response the centipede �*s of his administration and bring the country back from that crisis, the coronavirus crisis and the econom

the bbc�*s larry madowo sent this report from capitol hill. capital grounds. you see this going around all the way, and i spoke to one person who has lived here for 19 years, saying this is heartbreaking for him because the beating of the american democracy is that people can walk into government institutions, he walks past and �*s runs past this place every year, and all that now fortified because the inauguration on the 20th of january has been designated by the department of homeland security is a special security event, which means all the resources of the federal government are being brought together to make sure that the president—elect, the vice president—elect, the vice president—elect, and everyone attending that event is safe. even congressmen and senators have to go within metal detectors, which they do not have to do before. staff, aides and guests have had to go through metal detectors, and even congressmen are having to go through that, and some republicans are not happy about that event. it's all leading into this big event wher

let's head over to downtown atlanta and speak to the bbc‘s larry madowo.ur spec you were going to be moving to atla nta you were going to be moving to atlanta because so much was happening there. our georgians fed up happening there. our georgians fed up with elections or want to get over or are the excited and turning out to the polls in big numbers? some people are turning out part of it because there's so much money spent here that everyone that can be reached has been reached. $833 million has been spent on these two senate runoffs. so every person knows there's an election and those that want to devote have voted already. they're still a big question of how much is enough to where the democrats steal both seeds, or will the republicans hold both of them. because the whole thing comes down to turn out. president trump was here in georgia yesterday and present a joe biden was here in metro atlanta. estimates say if the turnout is anything below 800,000 voters today, then the republicans will lose this thing. they need a turnout of 800000 and above to be

larry madowo by atlanta.r local state issues and what are this is a washington calculation. i've been hearing from many voters who tell us they care about local georgia issues. however the race has become very nationalised. it is a joint ticket for the two democrats and republicans and the democrats have embraced the national leadership. they have been braced chuck schumer, leader of the senate, and nancy pelosi, speaker of the house. and on the other side, david perdue and and it met kelly loeffler have embraced president trump. they have chosen to go along this effort to try and essentially turn the vote in his favour though he lost georgia and the election. and so that is what it is become such an important issue across the nation because it's not just georgia but will determine who controls congress and ifjoe biden has any chance at passing certificate legislation. if at least the republicans keep even one see, thatis the republicans keep even one see, that is all gone with a win. how we understand what i

raphael warnock‘s opponent, republican kelly leffler, has not yet conceded. 0ur correspondent larry madowo networks take on abc, cnn and nbc are projecting raphael warnock will win that senate seatin raphael warnock will win that senate seat in georgia, becoming the first black senator from georgia to represent this southern state in the us senate. there are very few black senators in the us congress generally so it's a very important moment for raphael warnock who preaches at the same ebony setback church that the reverend martin luther king preached at so a very historic background for him —— at the same church. senator kelly loeffler said there was still a path to victory for her and she is not conceding but democrats are celebrating because for the first time in this election cycle it looks like they might have control of the senate because they will have a 50 seat against the republicans' 50 and vice president kamala harris can cast their vote that breaks the tie. more on that story in the next hour. police in hong kong have arrested dozens of pro—democracy politicians and activists i

capital today resembles more of a warzone than washington as you'd usually find it, as my colleague larry madowoike ou blocked off where you are. it is. like you said. — blocked off where you are. it is. like you said, it _ blocked off where you are. it is. like you said, it feels _ blocked off where you are. it is. like you said, it feels very - blocked off where you are. it is. like you said, it feels very much like a _ like you said, it feels very much like a war— like you said, it feels very much like a warzone. like you said, it feels very much like a war zone. so much to armed security— like a war zone. so much to armed security all — like a war zone. so much to armed security all around here. so we are about _ security all around here. so we are about four — security all around here. so we are about four blocks away from the bbc. we are _ about four blocks away from the bbc. we are about three blocks away from the white _ we are about three blocks away from the white house. this is a checkpoint that has been set up by the national guard, essentially not checking _ the national guard, esse

and i'm larry madowo.ama i am a mile east of the capitol where a strong security presence is here to keep the armed protesters as far away from the capitol as possible. hello and welcome to washington, where injust over an hour, joe biden will take his oath of office and be sworn in as the 46th president of the united states. in so doing, mr biden will become the oldest us president in history and his vice—president, kamala harris, will be the first female, black and south asian—american vice president. this is the scene live at capitol hill. you can see the dignitaries are starting to arrive. the marine corps band which has played since the days of thomas jefferson corps band which has played since the days of thomasjefferson at inaugurations is also there to welcome the dignitaries. it is a smaller crowd than normal. there would usually be thousands of people seated on the inaugural platform, but because of covid—19 there are distancing protocols in place. you can hear the music piping up as the dignitar

larry madowo, bbc news, virginia.re weeks, with schools likely to remain closed until the february half—term. first minister mark drakeford says that although coronavirus case rates have fallen since the lockdown was introduced in december, some measures may need to be strengthened. earlier, i spoke to our correspondent mark hutchings in cardiff. i think it's a conclusion that had foregone written all over it, really. the first minister referring there to the hospital figures and also concern, particularly in north—east wales, where this new variant seems to have been transmitting rather sharply. there is no real surprise, either, i don't think, about the decision on schools, as unwelcome as it might be for many pupils and their families. only on monday we were told that schools would be staying closed to most pupils until at least january 18. it's now until at least january 29 and as you say, more likely until after the february half term unless transmission rates come down significantly. one other notable developmen

businesses and offices all over town are boarded up. 0ur north america correspondent larry madowo is d about, and hejoins now. larry, can you just show us the scene where you are?- larry, can you just show us the scene where you are? laura, this is becomin: scene where you are? laura, this is becoming a — scene where you are? laura, this is becoming a very — scene where you are? laura, this is becoming a very common _ scene where you are? laura, this is becoming a very common sight - scene where you are? laura, this is becoming a very common sight in l becoming a very common sight in washington, dc, notjust the mall or the white _ washington, dc, notjust the mall or the white house or the capital. buildings are boarding up increasingly. this is happening right— increasingly. this is happening right now _ increasingly. this is happening right now. i've been walking around the city, _ right now. i've been walking around the city, you — right now. i've been walking around the city, you see a lot more buildings _ the city, you see a lot more buildings boarding up because they're — buildin

i'm joined by our larry madowo on the streets of washington. what is the mood there?is of anticipation. we are _ what is the mood there? of the mood is of anticipation. we are about - what is the mood there? of the mood is of anticipation. we are about two i is of anticipation. we are about two and a half hours away from the inauguration. this is the east end, about a mile away from the east end of the capital, where this is close to a section that has been set inside in case there are demonstrators, they are allowed to have their first amendment rights, but not close enough to the perimeter. there is a non—scalable fence that is all around the capitol, 25,000 troops on the streets on the streets of the capital, and i want to show you what is happening here. this far out, you see the national guard, you see us customs and board are police, you see the washington metropolitan police, there are us capitol police, every arm of law enforcement is involved in this operation which involves so many troops, more soldiers on the streets of washington than there are deployed in

our correspondent, larry madowo, is in atlanta — closely watching the developments.s a very important moment for raphael warnock who preaches at the same ebenezer baptist church that the reverend martin luther king preached at so a very historic background for him and a historic moment for him to go to the senate and to defeat senator kelly loeffler who said this evening there was still a path to victory for her and she is not conceding. the democrats are salivating right now because, for the first time in this entire election cycle, it looks like they might have control of the us senate because they will have 50 seats against the republicans' 50 seats and vice president kamala harris can cast the vote that breaks the tie. prosecutors in the american state of wisconsin say a policeman investigated over the shooting of the black manjacob blake in the city of kenosha last august will face no charges in connection with the incident. the shooting by the white officer left mr blake paralysed and sparked deadly street clashes. here's our north america correspondent, david