When will we find out who won?

Americans will vote for their next president in the general election on Tuesday, November 5th.

Once voting closes, it’s possible that the winner may not be predicted for hours, days, or even weeks, depending on the intensity of the contest. Here’s what you need to know.

Kamala Harris, a Democrat and now Vice President, and former President Donald Trump, a Republican, have been neck-and-neck for weeks.

Polls have tightened nationally and in battleground states as Nov. 5 approaches, so some local victories could be so slim that they could require recounts.

Some results may also be released more slowly this year due to changes in state methods: Includes all seven swing states That will ultimately determine the outcome of the race – which has been managing their elections since 2020.

On the other hand, vote counting has sped up in places like Michigan, with far fewer mail-in ballots cast this time than in the last election held during the coronavirus pandemic.

That means there are multiple possible outcomes — a winner is declared on election night, the next morning or possibly days or weeks later.

The 2020 election took place on Tuesday, November 3, but US television networks did not declare Joe Biden the winner until the morning of Saturday, November 7.

As Americans went to sleep on election night, Trump’s supporters believed victory was imminent, but in reality, both candidates were within reach. Becoming president-elect requires 270 Electoral College votes.

While the vast majority of states announced election results within 24 hours, a handful of key states, including Pennsylvania and Nevada, did not.

However, Pennsylvania, with 19 electoral votes, has always leaned Democratic. A new batch of ballots counted from the battleground state on Saturday morning gave networks confidence in predicting a Biden victory there.

CNN ( CNN ) was the first to announce the results, with every other network following suit within the next 15 minutes.

Voters, generally speaking, have become accustomed to the idea that they will know who the next president will be by the time they are deep asleep on election night, or at least in the early hours of the next morning.

For example, in 2016, when Trump first won the presidency, he was declared the winner shortly before 03:00 ET (08:00 GMT) the day after the election.

In 2012, when Barack Obama won a second term, his victory was projected before midnight on voting day.

But a notable recent exception was the 2000 election between George W Bush and Al Gore.

The two campaigns were locked in a tight race in Florida, which was not finalized until the U.S. Supreme Court voted on Dec. 12 to end the state’s recount proceedings, with Bush remaining the winner, moving the race to a close. The key was handed to him.

Nationwide, the first poll will be 1800 EST (2200 GMT) On Tuesday night, the final vote will be 0100 EST (0500 GMT) early Wednesday.

But the match is expected to depend on the result seven swing states – Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

1900 EST (2300 GMT) – Partial voting ends in Georgia and five other states, as well as two more. This is also the time when U.S. television networks may begin making their first calls of the night in less competitive states like Kentucky.

1930 Eastern Standard Time (2330 GMT) – Polls have closed in three states, including North Carolina, where Harris hopes to end a string of losses for Democratic presidential candidates dating back to 2008.

2000 United States Eastern Standard Time (0000 GMT) – Some voting has ended in Pennsylvania, 15 other states and the District of Columbia, as well as in Michigan and four other states.

2100 EDT (0100 GMT) – All remaining polls in Michigan have ended. Voting is also set to close in Arizona, Wisconsin and 12 other states.

2200 EDT (0200 GMT) – Voting has ended in Nevada and two other states, as well as some in two more states.

Typically, ballots are counted first on Election Day, followed by early and mail-in ballots, challenged ballots, and then overseas and military ballots.

Local election officials—sometimes appointed, sometimes elected—verify, process and count individual votes in a process called canvassing.

Verifying ballots includes comparing the number of voters to the number of active voters; removing, unfolding and inspecting each ballot for tears, stains or other damage; recording and investigating any inconsistencies.

Counting the votes involves feeding each ballot into an electronic scanner and then tabulating the results. Some situations require manual counting or double-checking the count.

Each state and locality has strict rules governing who can participate in canvassing, the order in which ballots are processed and which parts are open to the public, including how partisan observers can monitor and interfere with the vote count.

Tight margins will force media outlets to wait longer before making predictions, but they also raise concerns of recounts and legal challenges.

In Pennsylvania, for example, an automatic statewide recount takes effect if there is a half-percentage point difference between the winner’s and loser’s votes. In 2020, the profit margin was just over 1.1 percentage points.

More than 100 pre-election lawsuits have been filed across the country, including Republican challenges to voter eligibility and voter roll management. Continued court rulings in these cases are shaping the campaign every day.

Other situations that could cause delays include any election-related chaos, especially at polling locations, and impediments to counting votes, such as a burst water pipe at a ballot processing station in Georgia in 2020.

Once every valid vote is included in the final results and after processes such as a recount are completed, the election results are certified — first in local jurisdictions and then statewide.

The state executive (usually the governor) then certifies the so-called slate of electors will represent their state in the Electoral College. These electors meet in their respective states on December 17 to cast their votes and send their ballots to Washington.

On January 6, the new U.S. Congress held a joint session to count votes, presided over by the current Vice President.

After the 2020 election, Trump refused to admit defeat and rallied supporters to march on the U.S. Capitol as Congress met to confirm Biden’s victory.

He urged Vice President Mike Pence to reject the results, but Pence refused.

Even after the riot was quelled and members of Congress regrouped, 147 Republicans failed to vote to overturn Trump’s defeat.

Election reforms have since made it harder for lawmakers to object to certified results sent to them by states and clarified that the vice president does not have the authority to unilaterally reject electoral votes.

Still, election observers expect there may be efforts at the local and state levels to delay certification of the 2024 vote.

Trump, his running mate Vance and top Republican leaders on Capitol Hill have repeatedly refused to make it clear they would accept the election results if he loses.

The President-elect will be inaugurated on Monday, January 20, 2025, at the U.S. Capitol.

This will be the 60th presidential inauguration in American history.

At this event, the new president will be sworn in, pledge to uphold the Constitution, and then deliver an inaugural address.