With voters deciding thousands of races across the United States on Tuesday (November 3, 2026), keeping track of the contests to watch and when results may arrive can be tricky.
uncertain
results → decide → contests
Here is a rundown of the major races, hour by hour, and an indication of how long vote-counting may take.
uncertain
counting → take → hour
The first polls of the night close in most of Indiana and Kentucky, but statewide winners will not be declared in either state until the last polls close at 5:30 a.m.
asserted
polls → close → a.m.
Winners could be declared in the states’ easternmost congressional districts.
uncertain
Winners → declare → districts
Key contests include competitive U.S. House races in Indiana’s 5th and Kentucky’s 6th congressional districts.
asserted
contests → include → 5th
.All polls close in six states, including Georgia, South Carolina and Virginia, which typically complete most of their vote counting on election night.
asserted
which → close → night
In the 2024 general election, vote counting in all three states reached the halfway mark during the 8 p.m. hour.
asserted
counting → reach → hour
The Associated Press (AP) declared Republican Donald Trump the winner of Georgia’s competitive presidential contest at 11:28 a.m.
Most Florida polls also close at 5:30 a.m., including those in every competitive congressional district.
asserted
polls → declare → district
Statewide winners will not be declared until polls close in the Central Time Zone at 6:30 a.m.
6:00 a.m.:
asserted
polls → declare → a.m.
Polls close in North Carolina, Ohio and West Virginia.
asserted
Polls → close → Carolina
All three states counted votes relatively quickly in 2024, reaching the halfway point at about 7:30 a.m. and roughly 90% by the 9:30 a.m. hour.
asserted
states → count → hour
The AP declared a winner in Ohio’s competitive 2024 U.S. Senate race at 9:57 a.m.
Key contests include U.S. Senate races in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Ohio; gubernatorial races in Georgia and Ohio; and U.S. House races in Florida, Indiana, South Carolina, Virginia, Ohio and North Carolina.
asserted
contests → declare → Florida
This is prime time on election night, with polls fully or partially closing in nearly half the states, including Florida, Maine, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania.
asserted
polls → close → Florida
Florida typically counts votes quickly, with results from much of the state beginning to come in during the 5:30 a.m. hour.
asserted
results → count → hour
In 2024, 90% of the vote had been counted by 6:37 a.m.
asserted
% → count → a.m.
In 2024, vote counts in New Hampshire and Pennsylvania reached the halfway mark at 8:42 a.m.
asserted
counts → reach → a.m.
They reached 90% at 12:12 p.m. in New Hampshire and 11:18 a.m. in Pennsylvania.
asserted
They → reach → Pennsylvania
Maine did not reach the halfway mark until 12:54 a.m.
Polls in almost all of Michigan and Texas also close at 6:30 a.m., including in the states’ most competitive congressional districts.
asserted
Polls → reach → districts
Statewide winners will not be declared until the final polls close at 7:30 a.m.
Polls close in Arkansas at 7:00 a.m.
Key contests include U.S. Senate races in Florida, Maine and New Hampshire; gubernatorial races in Florida and Pennsylvania; and U.S. House races in Alabama, Maine, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Texas.
asserted
contests → declare → Alabama
This is election night’s other major logjam, with polls closing in 15 states, including the midterm battlegrounds of Arizona, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New York, Texas and Wisconsin.
asserted
polls → close → Arizona
In 2024, vote counts in Iowa, Nebraska, New York and Wisconsin reached the halfway mark at about 10 p.m.
asserted
counts → reach → p.m.
Minnesota reached 50% at 9:59 a.m. Iowa and New York completed 90% of their counts just before midnight, while Minnesota, Nebraska and Wisconsin reached that threshold early the next day, around 12:30 p.m.
Kansas, Michigan and Texas begin releasing votes during the 8 p.m. hour, but Michigan lagged behind the other two in 2024.
asserted
Michigan → reach → 2024
Kansas and Texas reached 90% counted during the midnight hour, while Michigan did not reach that point until 3:20 p.m.
Although polls close in Arizona at 7:30 a.m., the state does not begin releasing results until 8:30 a.m.
Key contests include U.S. Senate races in Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska and Texas; gubernatorial races in Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New York, Texas and Wisconsin; and U.S. House races in Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York and Wisconsin.
asserted
contests → reach → Arizona
Polls close in Montana, Nevada and Utah, as well as in the eastern portions of Idaho and Oregon.
asserted
Polls → close → Idaho
Key contests include U.S. House races in Montana, Nevada and Utah, along with congressional and gubernatorial races in Arizona, where polls close at 7:30 a.m. but results are held until 8:30 a.m.
9:30 a.m.:
asserted
results → include → a.m.
All polls close in California and Washington, as well as the remaining polls in Idaho and Oregon.
asserted
polls → close → Idaho
Elections in California and Washington are conducted primarily by mail.
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Elections → conduct → mail
Mail ballots postmarked by Election Day will be counted if received by November 10 in California and November 23 in Washington.
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ballots → postmark → Washington
In the 2024 general election, about 38% of the vote in California and 33% in Washington was not counted on election night.
asserted
% → count → night
The count reached 90% in Washington by November 9, four days after Election Day, and in California by November 14, nine days after Election Day.
asserted
count → reach → Day
Key contests include the California governor’s race, California’s Proposition 40 and U.S. House races in California and Washington.
asserted
contests → include → California
The final polls of the 2026 midterms close at 11:00 a.m. in the Aleutian Islands, home to Alaska’s westernmost polling location.
asserted
polls → close → location
In Alaska in 2024, about 25% of the total vote was not counted on election night.
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% → count → night
Most of the state’s mail voting results are not expected before November 18, the deadline for receiving overseas and military ballots.
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Most → expect → ballots
Mail and early in-person ballots accounted for about 35% of the total vote in 2022 and about 45% in 2024.
asserted
Mail → account → 2024
The Aporia
