How are the votes counted?

The verification and counting of votes involves numerous processes to ensure control and security and is carried out before, during and after election day.

Once polls close, local precincts will count ballots cast in person on Election Day, as well as any verified absentee or absentee ballots. Processes vary by state, but typically involve verifying absentee voter signatures and ensuring ballots are properly filled out. Provisional ballots, used when there is doubt about a voter's eligibility, are retained for later verification.

The verified ballot papers are then counted, mostly digitally, but in some cases also manually. The counts are then sent to the district election offices for aggregation and verification.

This process involves thousands of local election officials, who are either appointed or elected depending on the state. Partisan and non-partisan observers can monitor the vote count.

The state election authorities then compile the results at the district level and, after another round of verification, confirm the final results.

The results are communicated through the media – the Guardian receives results data from the Associated Press.

It may take days or weeks for official results to be fully available. This is often due to the verification process of absentee, absentee, and provisional ballots. In some states, mail-in ballots cannot be received and counted until several days after Election Day. High voter turnout and possible recounts in close elections can also slow the release of results.

How are the results reported?

The election results on this page are reported by the Associated Press (AP). AP “calls” the winner in a state when it determines that the trailing candidate has no path to victory. This can happen before 100% of the votes in a state have been counted.

Estimates of the total number of votes in each state are also provided by AP. The numbers will be updated throughout election night and in subsequent days as more voter turnout data becomes available.

Illustrations by Sam Kerr. Cartograms by Pablo Gutiérrez.