The number of new daily coronavirus cases recorded in the U.S. surpassed 100,000 for the time, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.
The data showed 102,831 new Covid-19 infections were recorded on Wednesday, up from 91,530 cases on Election Day.
The data also showed that 1,097 deaths were recorded Wednesday, lower than the 1,134 deaths reported the previous day. In total, the coronavirus has killed 233,734 people in the U.S.
The grim daily record comes after data showed a soaring number of hospitalizations due to the virus in many states, with the surge most pronounced in the Midwest and Southwest.
Missouri, Alaska, Ohio, Iowa, Indiana, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and New Mexico were among the states that hit record highs in terms of a seven-day average number of current hospitalizations, according to data from the Covid Tracking Project.
Officials in Iowa and Missouri have warned that hospital bed capacity could soon be overwhelmed.
The crisis facing hospitals comes as the U.S. focuses on political uncertainty following Tuesday's presidential election. The tally of more than 100,000 daily cases Wednesday beats the previous record of 99,321 cases recorded on Friday.
— CNBC's Noah Higgins-Dunn and Terri Cullen contributed reporting to this story.