What to expect after polls close on Election Day in Massachusetts
BOSTON - Tuesday is Election Day, but what can you expect after the last ballots are cast in Massachusetts?
Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. After that, it will be a waiting game for one of the closest elections in history. Political analysts say to expect the unexpected.
When will election results come in?
Experts say that results for New England races like New Hampshire governor, the five Massachusetts ballot questions, and the Senate will come in roughly 90 minutes after polls close. But the presidential race is a different story.
"However as far as the presidential race goes, depending on your point of view, it could be either the long goodbye or a slow-motion car crash," WBZ Political Analyst Jon Keller says.
If 2024 is anything like the 2020 election, it could take days to see results.
"Some states I believe Wisconsin has already indicated it's going to take them 2-3 days to tally all their votes. The advent of early voting and the expansion of absentee has complicated the job," Keller says.
What states to watch?
All eyes will be on the seven battleground states; Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. CBS News Director of Elections and Surveys Anthony Salvanto says that polls are the first indication of how a race is unfolding, followed by how counties are voting.
"As county votes start to report, we will first urge patience. I will remind folks that in 2020 here's an example from Georgia. When we got all the votes, it was a narrow Joe Biden victory. But if you had seen that at, let's say, 8 p.m. just an hour after polls closed, it would have looked like this where only a few counties had reported, many of them Republican-leaning," Salvanto says.
CBS News will also be tracking the balance of power in Congress throughout the evening. You can watch Salvanto track the results live as results come in.
The number one thing experts say to do on the night of Election Day is to practice patience.
"Predicting is something I learned many years ago not to do, and this election in particular," Keller says.
