Voting tallies still being counted in many states after Election Day has run its course
COLLEGIAN STAFF
Close poll numbers have left results undetermined for the presidential election.
This has especially been the case in swing states, which are states that could be won by either party. Texas, Michigan, Florida and Ohio were all magnets for attention with their small margins.
For the majority of the night, those four states slightly favored President Donald Trump, but it was still difficult to determine what the end results would be.
Results were finalized in Ohio first, then in Florida and finally in Texas. Trump won in all three states.
Nevada, Michigan and Pennsylvania have kept people waiting throughout the day on Nov. 4 to see which candidate has come out on top.
The tallying process is taking significantly longer this year because of the record numbers of people who voted early. Texas’ early-voting numbers exceeded the 8.9 million in 2016, according to The Associated Press. This year, 9.7 million people voted early in Texas.
Final results should be expected several days after the general elections, and will likely look different from what was seen in the early results, according to GBH.
This influx was especially evident locally.
“In Tarrant County, more people have voted early than in all of 2016,” a report by NBC DFW said.
Absentee ballots were another reason for delays. Their popularity increased due to COVID-19, and many states lifted restrictions on this method of voting to accommodate those wanting to avoid risking exposure to the virus, according to CNN. The Texas Tribune said 973,083 ballots were cast by mail during early voting.
Several hours into election night, in the midst of all the uncertainty, both candidates gave speeches and made public statements on Twitter to address their supporters.
“We feel good about where we are,” Biden said in his tweet. “We believe we are on track to win this election.”
Trump’s message displayed similar optimism.
“We are up BIG, but they are trying to STEAL the Election,” he said. “We will never let them do it. Votes cannot be cast after the Polls are closed!”
It was flagged by Twitter shortly after it was posted as possibly misleading about the ongoing election.
While the presidential race carried on, local elections were also in progress. Republican candidates predominantly pulled ahead in Tarrant County.
Twenty-three out of 36 precinct districts voted for Republican representatives according to AP Election Results. Despite the favored Republican candidates, a handful of Democratic county commissioners and constables took the lead in their races.
Roy Charles Brooks was the only Democratic candidate for county commissioner to win. For constable positions: Robert J. Mc- Ginty, Pedro Munoz, Sandra Lee and Michael Campbell were the Democratic winners.
Live updates can be found on CNN, ABC and NPR.
Alyson Oliver, Linda Puga and Jose Romero contributed to this story.
