Election Results

1. Why don't all polls close at exactly the same time?

• They don't close at the same time because people are allowed to cast a ballot as long as they’re in line at the polling station by closing time, so they actually close later than closing time.

2. What do poll workers at each site have to do once voting is complete in order for votes to be counted?

• Poll workers have to shut down the voting machines and download or pull the memory card or stick that stores the votes. They might also run or print out a summary of the voting machine.

3. In what ways are the actual vote counts delivered from actual polling places to the central location of election administration?

• The results may be read over the phone, some machines have a modem that connect directly to a telephone line, and some memory cards or sticks are physically delivered.

4. Why might the votes come in slower from rural areas?

• They are far from the county seat or official headquarters, which can slow down and complicate the vote tabulation process.

5. Why might journalists be the first source of election results in some states but not in all states?

• In some states, the election commission doesn't report anything that night, so the journalists are the first to report. In others, as the votes are tallied it will show up on the state's official website.

6. Why may absentee ballots slow the official election results?

• Counting those ballots can take days, so they can't finalize results.

7. What are provisional ballots?

• They are “just in case” voting ballots and are distributed if someone shows up to vote and his or her name doesn’t appear on the voter rolls, the incorrect information is listed, or it looks like that person already voted.

8. Why are the official results made public much later than when the election is "called"?

• The official results are made public much later because they have to be canvassed, where each vote is counted and verified, then officially certified, first by the local counties and then by the secretary of state or state Board of Elections. There can also be disputes.

9. Why was the speed of getting election results emphasized during the Progressive Era?

• The faster the votes are counted, the less time there is for someone to mess with it and cause fraud.