ATLANTA — With Election Day finally here, we are just hours away from getting our first look at the election results of the highly-contested presidential race between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump.
Political analysts say the election is a toss-up between Vice President Harris and former President Trump. Seven battleground states will decide the outcome: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
There are still many questions about the timing of the results on Tuesday night, with states such as Georgia expected to have results in before midnight, but other states such as Pennsylvania expected to have election results come in later due to state law that makes counting ballots a longer process on Election Day.
Who is winning the 2024 Presidential Election?
After polls close on Nov. 5, at 7 p.m., you can use the election map below to follow live results in the 2024 Presidential Election between Harris and Trump. Use the navigation tools in the map to see results by state and by county. The first batch of election results will not come in until after 7 p.m.
When will we know election results?
Results will begin to be announced on Election Night after the polls close in each state. But it could take some time before we know who is expected to become the next president.
The results are expected to come down to the seven swing states mentioned at the top of the story.
Those states stretch across four different time zones: Georgia's polls close first at 7 p.m. North Carolina's polls close at 7:30 p.m. Pennsylvania and most of Michigan's polls close at 8 p.m., with the rest of Michigan's polls closing at 9 p.m. along with Arizona and Wisconsin. Nevada's polls close at 10 p.m. EST.
Elections are administered locally, so the results will vary from state to state and even county to county. The U.S. does not have a nationwide body that collects and releases election results.
In Georgia, results typically start to trickle in around 7:30 p.m. However, depending on how many people vote early or by absentee ballot, this could impact how quickly we see results-- possibly shortly after 7 p.m. for some races.
On Election Day, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said Georgia is expected to have results by the end of the night. Raffensperger said this is due to a smooth voting process on Election Day and the state's early voting turnout.
According to SB 202 in Georgia, election officials can start scanning verified ballots before Election Day, but they cannot be tabulated until polls are closed on Election Day. So, we won't know precisely how long it'll take to count and verify the ballots.
However, knowing who our next president will be could take some time if other states are still counting ballots. It is very much possible that the final presidential race results won't be known on election night.
11Alive is committed to helping you vote confidently by understanding the 2024 election issues that impact you. Our goal is to educate and inform our audience about the election process. We plan to do that by verifying facts, providing context, and explaining the system. Get more election resources here at /vote.