Tuesday, people in the United States will go to the polls to pick their next president.
Sometimes, US election returns are released just hours after the polls close, but this year’s close race could make the wait longer.
When do you think the 2024 presidential race will end?
On Tuesday night at 18:00 EST (23:00 GMT), the first polls close. On Wednesday morning at 01:00 EST (06:00 GMT), the last polls close.
People have been able to call the winner of some presidential races late at night or early the next morning.
Because of how close the race is in many places, the media may have to wait longer to say who won this time.
Vice President Kamala Harris of the Democrats and former President Donald Trump of the Republicans have been tied for weeks.
It’s also possible for close wins to lead to recounts.
In Pennsylvania, a key swing state, a recount would be needed if there is a gap of 0.5 percentage points between the votes cast for the winner and the votes cast for the loser. The difference was just over 1.1 percentage points in 2020.
You can also file a legal challenge. Republicans have already filed more than 100 lawsuits before the election. These cases include challenges to who can vote and how the voter rolls are managed.
Any election-related chaos, especially at voting places, is another thing that could cause delays.
On the other hand, some places, like the important state of Michigan, are counting votes faster than before, and a lot fewer votes will be sent in by mail than during the last election, which was during the COVID pandemic.
When did the results of past presidential elections come out?
In 2020, US TV networks didn’t call Joe Biden the winner until four days after the election, when it was easier to see who had won in Pennsylvania.
People have had to wait a lot less in other recent polls.
Trump was named the winner in 2016 just before 03:00 EST (08:00 GMT), a few hours after the polls ended.
If Barack Obama had won a second term in 2012, it would have been clear by midnight on the night of the election.
One race that stood out was the one between George W. Bush and Al Gore in 2000. After five weeks, the race wasn’t over because the US Supreme Court chose to end Florida’s recount. Bush was still the winner, and that gave him the White House.
In 2024, which swing states should you keep an eye on?
Seven swing states are likely to decide the winner. Experts think that both Harris and Trump have a good chance of winning these states:
GA: The polls close at 19:00 EST (00:00 GMT) in the Peach State. The top poll official in Georgia thinks that 75% of the votes will be counted in the first two hours.
The polls close in North Carolina 30 minutes after they do in Georgia. The results for North Carolina should be made public before the end of the night.
Pennsylvania: The polls close at 10:00 EST (01:00 GMT), but experts say it could be at least 24 hours before there are enough votes to come up with a winner.
Michigan: The polls close at 11:00 EST (02:00 GMT). We won’t know the outcome until the end of Wednesday.
Wisconsin: In smaller areas, results should come in soon after the polls close at 11:00 EST, but experts say the state won’t have a result until at least Wednesday.
New Mexico – The first results could come in as early as 10:30 p.m. EST, but the biggest county in the state says people shouldn’t expect them until early Wednesday morning. It could take up to 13 days to count mail-in votes that were sent in on election day.
This state’s votes could also take days to count. Mail-in votes are okay with the state as long as they were sent on election day and get to the state by November 9th.
How does the counting of the votes work?
Most of the time, the votes cast on election day are counted first, then early and mail ballots, ballots that have been contested, and finally ballots sent from overseas or by the military.
In a process called “canvassing,” local election officials (who are sometimes chosen and sometimes elected) check, process, and count each voter’s vote.
Comparing the number of ballots cast with the number of registered voters, taking out, unfolding, and looking at each ballot for tears, spots, or other damage, and writing down and looking into any discrepancies are all parts of verifying ballots.
Each ballot has to be put through an electronic scanner, which then adds up the findings. In some situations, counts need to be done by hand or numbers need to be checked twice.
Each state and city has strict rules about who can be a part of the canvass, the order in which votes are counted, and which parts are open to the public. These rules also cover how partisan watchers can watch and interfere with the counting of votes.
What happens if someone questions the findings of the presidential election?
An idea called the “electoral college” is used after all legal votes have been added to the final count.
In each state, there are different numbers of electoral college votes that can be won. It is these votes, not just the support of voters, that determine who gets the presidency.
What is the electoral college in the US, and how does it work?
What is the process for counting votes in the US?
Most of the time, states give all of their electoral college votes to the winner of the general vote. This was confirmed at meetings on December 17.
Then, on January 6, the new US Congress gets together to count the votes in the electoral college and make sure the new president is set.
After the 2020 election, Trump wouldn’t give up. He got his followers to march on the US Capitol while Congress was meeting to confirm Biden’s win.
He told his Vice-President, Mike Pence, to reject the results, but Pence wouldn’t do it.
Even after the riot was over and Congress got back together, 147 Republicans still voted to overturn Trump’s loss, but they failed.
Since then, changes to the voting process have made it harder for politicians to dispute official results sent to them by different states. They have also made it clear that the vice president cannot reject election votes on his or her own.
Still, people who follow elections think that there may be attempts at the local and state levels to delay the certification of the 2024 vote.
Several times, Trump, his running mate JD Vance, and top Republican leaders on Capitol Hill have refused to say for sure that they will accept the findings if he loses.
What takes place if the scores are tied?
There is a chance that there will be a tie between the two candidates since they both have 269 electoral college votes.
Members of the US Congress’s lower house, the House of Representatives, would vote to choose the president in that case. This is called a dependent election.
The Senate, which is the upper house, would then choose the vice president.
That hasn’t happened in around 200 years, though.
When does the president’s inauguration happen?
The president-elect will start their term on Monday, January 20, 2025, when they are sworn in at the US Capitol for the first time.
People will be able to see the 60th president sworn in.
The new president will be sworn in and promise to uphold the Constitution. They will then give their inaugural speech.
ALSO READ:
As Voting Starts In The US, The Most Recent Polls Show That Harris And Trump Are Tied
