ahead by a nose

In Canada or in the USA or anywhere, an election is not a horse race. No matter what is being reported online or on TV, nobody is ahead, nobody is behind. In the most recent U.S. election, the president was chosen when all the votes were in. Counting ballots happens, then the winner is determined. And of course, in this case, votes will be recounted and maybe contested in court. But the whole “who’s ahead” thing is moot. It’s a construct of the media. We would all be better off if they just said, "OK folks, the votes are in, we'll let you know in a couple days when we finish counting and we'll double check. Then you can start arguing." It's a pipedream but it's also quite true.