Heading into the election, we are facing only partially charted territory.  This year, based on the votes so far, several states are going to have an unusually high number of mail-in ballots, especially in states that have somewhat restrictive rules on mail-in absentee ballots.  As voters in state with a high percentage of late arriving mail-in absentee ballots know, when 35% of the vote remains to be counted after election day, it is not unusual to see tight races go back and forth as more ballots are counted.  So here is what you need to know about the rules for processing ballots.

Generally speaking, for this purpose, there are four different ways to vote in the U.S.  First, there is the traditional in-person vote on election day.  Second, there is early in-person voting at vote centers.  Third, there is the traditional mail-in absentee ballot.   Finally, there are provisional votes.

For counting purposes, early in-person voting will generally be released on election night.  In some states, the early voting numbers are released shortly after the polls close.  For the in-person election day vote, that count tends to take a little bit longer.  Since everyone in line at poll closing time votes, precincts actually close a little bit later than the official time.  And, in many states, the ballots are then taken to a counting center.  So it may take several hours to get the “election day” vote. Continue Reading...