The United States is holding one of its closely watched midterm elections, with all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 Senate seats up for election. Democrats are trying to take control of the House and Senate from President Donald Trump’s Republican Party.
When will US midterm election winners be declared?
However, closely contested races may take several days to settle, as noted by Aljazeera. There is no fixed deadline for declaring all the winners of the 2026 US midterm elections. Several election races could have clear winners on Tuesday night itself.
US midterm election results 2026: When will counting begin?
News organisations, including The Associated Press (AP), study the reported results to decide whether there are enough votes to declare a winner. A candidate may be leading in the early vote count without having officially won the race. In-person early votes and Election Day votes are reported on election night, but mail-in voting results are released over the following days. This data was reported by The Associated Press news agency. This gives an indication of how quickly the state has reported a large share of its votes in the past.
Election officials release vote counts as ballots are processed. Polls will also close in parts of Florida, Kansas, Michigan, North Dakota, South Dakota and Texas. Alaska uses a ranked-choice voting system to decide the winner in certain elections. Under this system, voters rank candidates in order of preference. In some Arizona counties, voters can drop off their mail-in ballots on Election Day. These ballots must go through signature checks before they can be counted. This verification process can take additional time. Nevada sends mail-in ballots to all registered voters. Mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day can arrive up to four days later. Voters also have six days after Election Day to correct problems with their ballot signatures. These additional days for receiving and verifying ballots could delay the final results until the following week. Like Alaska, Maine uses ranked-choice voting in certain elections. Ballots postmarked by Election Day can still arrive and be counted over the following days. Recounts and legal challenges could delay the final results further. If the difference between two candidates is very small, a recount may be required. Candidates can also challenge election results in court. These recounts and legal cases could delay the final outcome by several days, weeks or even longer. Republicans currently control both chambers of Congress.
6 pm EST (11 pm GMT on Tuesday): Parts of Indiana and Kentucky. 7 pm EST (12 am GMT on Wednesday): Most of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Vermont and Virginia, along with the remaining parts of Indiana and Kentucky and most of New Hampshire. 7:30 pm EST (12:30 am GMT on Wednesday): North Carolina, Ohio and West Virginia. 8 pm EST (1 am GMT on Wednesday): Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, the remaining parts of New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Washington DC. 8:30 pm EST (1:30 am GMT on Wednesday): Arkansas. 9 pm EST (2 am GMT on Wednesday): Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, Wisconsin and Wyoming, along with the remaining parts of Kansas, Michigan, North Dakota, South Dakota and Texas. 10 pm EST (3 am GMT on Wednesday): Montana, Nevada and Utah, along with parts of Idaho and Oregon. 11 pm EST (4 am GMT on Wednesday): California and Washington, along with the remaining parts of Idaho and Oregon. 12 am EST (5 am GMT on Wednesday): Hawaii and most of Alaska. 1 am EST (6 am GMT on Wednesday): The remaining parts of Alaska, including the western Aleutian Islands. During the 2024 general election, about 99% of the votes had been counted by 10:51 pm EST (3:51 am GMT on the following day). During the 2024 election, the first results were reported at 7:36 pm EST (12:36 am GMT on Wednesday), just six minutes after polling stations closed. By 11:03 pm EST (4:03 am GMT on Wednesday), about 90% of the votes had been reported. During the 2024 election, about 90% of the votes had been reported by 11:36 pm EST (4:36 am GMT on Wednesday). During the 2024 election, the first results from Pennsylvania came in as polling stations closed at 8 pm EST (1 am GMT on Wednesday). During the 2024 election, about 90% of the voting results in Wisconsin had been released by 2:22 am EST (7:22 am GMT on November 6). Earlier reporting noted: US midterm elections forecasts put Democrats ahead in Senate and House races Washington DC [US], November 3 (ANI): Voters in the United States are heading to the polling booths in a high-stakes midterm elections on Tuesday, with more than 230 million eligible voters able to cast their ballots to decide the balance of power in Congress, as election forecasts indicate that Democrats are leading in several key battleground states. Earlier reporting noted: All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 seats in the Senate are being contested, while voters in 36 states will also elect their governors. Earlier reporting noted: More than 57 million Americans have already cast their ballots through early voting, as per ABC News, with voters also able to participate through mail-in voting or in person on election day.
Because election officials need time to count and verify ballots, some races may take several days to produce a clear result. Therefore, voters may know the early results on Tuesday night, but the final outcome of some closely contested races may take longer.
Some polling stations in Indiana and Kentucky will be the first to close at 6 pm EST. If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote, additional rounds of counting are required to identify the winner. If the 2026 Senate race in Alaska requires another round of ranked-choice counting, the next round is scheduled for November 18, according to Al Jazeera. If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote in a race with two candidates, additional counting is required. The reported vote count reached 90% by 12:48 am EST (5:48 am GMT on Wednesday).
However, the first vote counts will not necessarily tell us who has won a particular race. Closely contested races could therefore take longer to settle. More polling stations will close across different states during the evening. Vote counts will continue to come in throughout Tuesday night and into Wednesday, as noted by Aljazeera . California conducts most of its elections through mail-in voting. Large batches of mail-in ballots may arrive and undergo verification several days after polling stations close. This could delay the results of closely contested House races by several days or even weeks. Ballots must be taken to Augusta, the state capital, for further counting. Washington conducts its elections by mail. This means the initial results may not include every valid vote. The following five states could provide an early picture of the results: Florida generally counts votes quickly. Ohio usually includes most of its early and absentee voting results in its first vote-count update. North Carolina is also expected to include most of its mail-in voting results in the first update of the night.
The first results are expected after polling stations begin closing on Tuesday evening.
