Earlier this month, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis boasted about the speed at which Florida counts and reports the results on election night, claiming “there is no reason why this cannot be done in every state in America.”
The truth is, there are many reasons why some states report election results faster than others – and it’s all prescribed by state law. Understanding why results won’t be final on November 5 is critical as we head into what is expected to be another close election.
Verifying and counting votes takes time.
Our elections are built with a set of rigorous checks and balances in place, ensuring we have accurate, fair, and secure elections every step of the way. But this process takes time based on the procedures determined by state law.
Before votes may be counted, election officials will take steps to ensure that each vote is cast by an eligible voter. This process varies by state and by vote method, whether in-person or by mail, but one important layer of review is known as “processing,” which is when local officials check the information (signature, ID number, witness/notary signature) provided by the voter on the outside of the return envelope and compare it to the voter’s registration record to confirm the information matches.
When workers can start processing ballots has a big impact on the timing of reporting later on. Most states allow election workers to review mail ballots before Election Day to confirm the voter’s eligibility, which gives them a head start on the process. Six states, however, will only allow election officials to begin processing absentee and mail ballots on Election Day.
Counting is the first notable post-election process for election workers after polls close – but there are key differences across states in how and when they begin tallying the votes. Some states do not allow counting to begin until polls close, which can make reporting of results take longer. Others allow counting to begin on Election Day before polls close, and states like Florida and Georgia allow both processing and counting to start before Election Day.
Some states have an advantage in reporting results.
One reason that Florida can report results on election night is because state law allows for both processing and counting to start before Election Day. Florida law allows county officials to begin tabulating mail ballots weeks before Election Day. In addition, Florida ends early in-person voting two or three days before Election Day, depending on the county, and does not allow mail ballots to be dropped off at voting precincts on Election Day (though voters can take ballots to their local elections office).
As a result, election workers in Florida get three additional days to process and count ballots – without having to process and count any additional in-person early ballots as in other states. While this shorter, less flexible early voting period speeds up the counting process, the shorter window can also limit voting opportunities for Floridians.
By contrast, it may take days or even weeks before a winner can be officially announced in closely-fought states like Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, where election workers are – with few exceptions – forced to wait to begin officially processing mail ballots until Election Day. Under Wisconsin law, for example, clerks can’t start officially processing and counting absentee ballots until polls open at 7 a.m. on Election Day, even though clerks may check return envelopes for completeness as they are received.
Also consider Arizona, where voters can, and traditionally will, drop off a substantial percentage of their mail ballots in the final few days before Election Day. Election officials must conduct the rigorous and time-consuming process of verifying these ballots which arrive close to Election Day, and will often need several days to do so.
Results released on election night are unofficial and always incomplete.
Despite what DeSantis’ tweet suggests, there is not a single state – Florida included – that counts every vote on election night. Where there are large enough margins between the winning and losing candidates, the media can project the winners in races even if final certification can still take days and even weeks. In 15 states and D.C., completed mail ballots must be postmarked by Election Day but can continue to be received after. In other states, such as Pennsylvania, mail ballots must be received by Election Day in order to be counted. States also accept ballots through the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) if they are postmarked on or by Election Day. For these types of ballots, election workers need additional time after Election Day – and counting these ballots can often make the difference between winning and losing in closely-watched states.
Additional layers of review help ensure every vote counts.
In addition, 32 states and D.C. have an important process in place – known as “ballot curing” – that helps voters fix minor errors on their ballot and gives local election officials another chance to verify the voter’s identity. Common, simple errors subject to ballot curing could include forgetting to include a Social Security number or driver’s license number. Some states give voters one or two days after Election Day to cure their ballot; others give voters much more time to ensure their vote is counted.
For example, in Pennsylvania, voters in counties offering a cure process have until the sixth day after the election to fix what are often just minor technical errors. While determining a projected winner in a race may take longer due to ballot curing , it is nonetheless critical to ensuring all eligible voters – especially people of color and young people who are more likely to have their ballots rejected – have the opportunity to make their voices heard.
Finally, “provisional ballots” – as mandated in 44 states by the federal Help America Vote Act – come into play when there is uncertainty about a voter’s eligibility, such as when the potential voter’s name is not on the voter rolls, a required identification document isn’t available or when another issue arises. In these situations, the election official is required to offer the voter a provisional ballot instead of a regular ballot and the voter then has a certain amount of time to prove their identity for the ballot to be counted. While this process may take extra time, it ultimately is another check that ensures accessibility and security in our election systems.
For all these reasons, Governor DeSantis’ tweet is misleading – and a reminder of how easily misinformation about reported results can be exploited to discredit our free and fair elections. Not knowing the winner on election night says nothing about the integrity of our elections or the accuracy of the results. In fact, it tells us our robust system of checks and balances is working – just as it should be.
Learn more about ballot return deadlines in specific states by exploring our State Voting Rights Tracker.