Polling stations close on Tuesday for a period of seven hours, starting at 6:00 PM oriental time in parts of Indiana and Kentucky and ending at 1 am in western Alaska. Here’s a guide to when the first polling stations in every state close, and which races to watch at each point. (In some states, polling stations stay open later in some areas than others. You can confirm your local closing times here.)
Show times in:
Note: The poll closing times are shown only at the state level. Not all polling stations in every state close at the same time, and polling stations in some areas may close earlier than stated if all registered voters in that polling district have already voted.
How long it takes to get results and call off races varies widely from place to place, and as in 2020 it’s important to keep in mind that early results can be misleading. Democrats are much more likely than Republicans to vote by mail, meaning the first-reported ballots may appear artificially blue early in the count, while states that report in-person votes may appear artificially red early in the count.
6:00 PM
Eastern time
Pacific
Mountain
Central
oriental
Alaska
Hawaii
Indiana
Kentucky
what to watch
Kentucky voters will decide whether to approve an anti-abortion constitutional amendment that, if passed, would ensure implementation of a near-complete abortion ban currently being challenged in state courts. In Indiana, a House race in the First Congressional District is leaning toward Democratic, but if it flips to Republicans, it could be an early sign of a red wave.
7 p.m.
Eastern time
Pacific
Mountain
Central
oriental
Alaska
Hawaii
Florida
Georgia
New Hampshire
south carolina
Vermont
Virginia
what to watch
In Georgia, the race between Senator Raphael Warnock and his Republican challenger, Herschel Walker, could determine which party controls the Senate, but it will require a runoff election on Dec. 6 if neither candidate achieves a majority. We also look at the race between Governor Brian Kemp and his Democratic challenger, Stacey Abrams.
Florida has also been keeping a close eye on the Senate and Governor races. And in Virginia, the appearances of Democratic incumbents in the second, seventh and tenth districts may offer early indications of whether the party has a chance of retaining its majority in the House — or how bad its losses are.
7:30 pm
Eastern time
Pacific
Mountain
Central
oriental
Alaska
Hawaii
North Carolina
Ohio
West Virginia
what to watch
The focus here is on the open Senate races in North Carolina (between Representative Ted Budd, a Republican, and Cheri Beasley, a Democrat) and Ohio (between Representative Tim Ryan, a Democrat, and JD Vance, a Republican). Republicans prefer to win both races, but if the Democrats have a better-than-expected day, these are two places we can see the evidence. We’ll also be looking at a handful of competitive House races, including in North Carolina’s 13th District and Ohio’s Ninth District.
8 pm
Eastern time
Pacific
Mountain
Central
oriental
Alaska
Hawaii
Alabama
Connecticut
Delaware
Illinois
Kansas
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Mississippi
Missouri
New Jersey
North Dakota
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
south dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Washington, DC
what to watch
Pennsylvania is home to a close Senate race between Lt. gov. John Fetterman, a Democrat, and Dr. Mehmet Oz, a Republican. Control over the management of future elections is at stake in the Pennsylvania and Michigan governor’s race, where voters will choose candidates for governor, secretary of state and attorney general. Michiganders also vote on whether or not to include abortion rights in their constitution.
Kansas Democratic Governor Laura Kelly is in an exciting reelection race, as is Maine Governor Janet Mills. There are also governor races in Oklahoma and Texas, where Republicans are highly favored, but Democratic disruptions are not out of the question.
8:30 in the evening
Eastern time
Pacific
Mountain
Central
oriental
Alaska
Hawaii
Arkansas
There are no competitive races in Arkansas, where Republicans are expected to easily retain the governorship, all four House seats, and one Senate seat for the election. But at this hour, you can expect a steady stream of results from the states whose polls closed half an hour earlier.
9 o’clock in the evening
Eastern time
Pacific
Mountain
Central
oriental
Alaska
Hawaii
Arizona
Colorado
Iowa
Louisiana
Minnesota
Nebraska
New Mexico
New York
Wisconsin
Wyoming
what to watch
Arizona is one of the top two states to watch right now. In addition to a major Senate race, it has races for governor, secretary of state and attorney general with Republicans who have questioned the legitimacy of the 2020 election and who, if elected, could change the governance of future elections. The second major state is Wisconsin: Senator Ron Johnson, a Republican, is up for re-election against Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes, and there is a close run for governor.
In Colorado, Senator Michael Bennet prefers winning reelection over a relatively moderate Republican, but he could fall if the day is really bad for Democrats. In Minnesota and New Mexico, Democratic governors have Trump-backed opponents. In New York, Governor Kathy Hochul faces a surprisingly strong Republican challenge, and there is a slew of competitive House races after a court approves a new congressional card.
10 p.m.
Eastern time
Pacific
Mountain
Central
oriental
Alaska
Hawaii
Idaho
Montana
Nevada
Oregon
Utah
what to watch
Nevada is the last big swing state of the day, and pretty much everything is up for grabs: The races for the Senate, three of the four seats in the House, the governor, and the secretary of state are all competitive. Specifically, the contest between Senator Catherine Cortez Masto and her Republican opponent, Adam Laxalt, is one of three (the others being Georgia and Pennsylvania) most likely to determine Senate control — and the secretary of state for race would rule the roost. take control of Nevada. elections for a Republican, Jim Marchant, who has called for the decertification of voting machines and the manual counting of all ballots.
There is also an unexpectedly competitive Senate race in Utah between Senator Mike Lee, a Republican, and Evan McMullin, an independent candidate. And Oregon has a neck-and-neck race from the governor between Tina Kotek, a Democrat, and Christine Drazan, a Republican.
11:00 p.m.
Eastern time
Pacific
Mountain
Central
oriental
Alaska
Hawaii
California
Washington
what to watch
Washington Senator Patty Murray faces a strong Republican challenge, though she remains a favorite to win. Aside from that, the main action at this hour will be in the House, with a thrilling race in Washington’s Eighth District and at least half a dozen in California.
Midnight
Eastern time
Pacific
Mountain
Central
oriental
Alaska
Hawaii
Alaska
Hawaii
what to watch
Alaska has competitive races for both the Senate and the House, and neither is a straightforward Democrat-versus-Republican affair. For the Senate, it is between Senator Lisa Murkowski, a moderate Republican, and Kelly Tshibaka, a right-wing Republican, with a Democrat far behind. For the state big house seat, it’s between Representative Mary Peltola, a Democrat who won an upset victory in an August special election, and two Republicans, Sarah Palin and Nick Begich.
Don’t expect quick results in either race. Alaska officials won’t be done counting absentee ballots for about two weeks, and after that, if no candidate wins a majority, the state’s electoral system will have to play out.