When Will We Know the Results of the 2020 Election? A Guide to Each State

By Sophia Waterfield On 11/2/20 at 8:02 AM EST

U.S. Vote 2020 Election

The U.S. Presidental Election of 2020 will come to a head on November 3, when millions of Americans will turn out to the polling booth to cast their vote for Donald Trump, Joe Biden or an independent. But when will we know who has won the election?

Each state in the country has its own rules when it comes to ballots, including early voting, mail-in, absentee or in-person on the day. Deadlines vary and depending which states get their tallies recorded first, we might have a clearer picture of the election results before the final states announce their winners.

For example, California, Nevada, Vermont and the District of Columbia have mailed ballots out to all voters in the state, as well as Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Montana—the latter is giving the option by county.

Others have loosened their rules when it comes to requesting an absentee ballot as well as extending the early voting lead times.

Thanks to the coronavirus, gone are the days when elections could be encapsulated in a single day—they now last months. Alaska, for example, won't start counting its early votes or absentee votes until November 10, which could mean counting might not be finished until November 18, according to Project Five Thirty Eight.

California holds the most electoral college votes, followed by Texas, Florida and New York. However, California is known for often taking a relatively long-time to finish its count, with some mail-in votes not coming in until November 20.

In terms of knowing the results on the night, states such as Arkansas, Hawaii, Idaho, Florida, Oregon, Delaware, New Hampshire and others have expressed confidence that they will know their final tallies on November 4, 2020. Colorado has also said between 70 to 80 percent of votes will be counted on election night, according to Colorado Politics.

According to the Project Five Thirty Eight, which is run by ABC News, the polls close at: