MEDIA CONTACT:
Dana Juniel, Movement Advancement Project
October 10, 2024
It’s Election Day. You've cast your ballot at your local polling place. Proudly wearing an "I Voted" sticker on your shirt, you feel like a responsible citizen participating in democracy. When you get home, your favorite news outlet has already projected a winner. But, you wonder: "Is it truly possible to count, verify, and certify a presidential election in just a few hours?"
Today the Movement Advancement Project (MAP) released a new report, Beyond the Ballot: Understanding Post-Election Processes in America. The report explains the critical processes that take place after voting ends that help to protect the accuracy, integrity and security of our election system. In a time where voter confidence is suffering and election denialism is surging, it’s important that voters understand how their vote is counted, why results take time, and how results are verified and finalized. In addition, this report seeks to help voters resist further partisan divides and potential misinformation as we look ahead to the November 2024 elections.
“The likelihood of a close election places increased importance on voter’s understanding of post-election processes and why it takes time for democracy to work,” said Brian Hinkle, Senior Voting Policy Researcher at MAP. “For many voters, the election process feels complete once they have cast their ballot. But in reality, that is just the first step in a deliberate and specific process to get to final election results.”
Although they play an important role in protecting the security and accuracy of our elections, post-election processes are much less understood than the policies and requirements for casting a vote. This new report outlines the steps that occur beginning Election Day to make sure that election results are verified, accurate, and secure.
Using MAP’s Democracy Maps, which track dozens of election-related policies, this report illustrates how state laws vary on important points of post-election processes—such as ballot pre-processing, post-election audits, and the certification process. The report also details why these differences lead to certain predictable outcomes, such as some states taking longer than others to release their final election results.
How Does Your Vote Get Counted
Our election system is complex and varies across every state. But, as shown in the infographic below, there are general steps that every state follows in the post-election process.
1 — Polls close and voting ends. Polling place closing times vary from state to state, and even county to county, with the first polls closing at 6pm Eastern time, and the last polls closing in Alaska at 1am Eastern time.
2 — Counting of ballots. Also referred to as “tabulation,” this process ensures that all ballots - early votes, mail ballots, in-person votes on Election Day, and ballots from service members and overseas voters – are counted. Due to differences in state election policies, population size and more, some states need more time than others to count votes in accordance with their laws. During the initial counting of ballots, unofficial results begin to be released and picked up by media outlets.
3 — The canvass process begins once the initial counting of ballots is complete. During this process, local officials and state authorities account for every ballot cast and verify that those ballots are valid, in addition to identifying any discrepancies. Officials then prepare the official results and vote tallies and report them to the authorities in charge of finalizing results through the certification process.
4 — Election audits often overlap with the canvass process. When properly used, these nonpartisan audits are a tool that allow states to verify the accuracy and performance of voting equipment and vote counting machines. Audits act as a safeguard, using statistical methods and random samples of ballots to verify the results of the canvass. This process can also uncover any potential irregularities that occur during vote counting.
5 — Certification. Finally, the election is certified, meaning the outcome of the election becomes official. This process happens at both the local and state level, with the final certification always performed by the chief election authority of the state. The timeline for certification varies by state to allow the vote counting and canvass process to progress according to the relevant laws and state-specific factors. For presidential elections, this process involves additional steps at the national level involving the Electoral College.
Key States to Watch in November
Due to the variation in post-election policies, as well as attempts to disrupt the counting and certification processes in 2020, certain states may take longer to announce their election results. Key states to watch include:
Pennsylvania and Wisconsin
State law does not allow mail ballots to be processed prior to Election Day
Potential for attempts by county officials to disrupt the certification process
Prediction: delays in counting mail ballots and for unofficial election results
Michigan
New policies allowing limited pre-processing of ballots
New law aimed at reducing attempts to disrupt the certification process
Prediction: reduced challenges in announcing election results compared to 2020
North Carolina
New law shortening the return deadline for absentee ballots to Election Day
New voter ID law will likely lead to an increased number of provisional ballots
New law changing when early voting numbers can be reported
Prediction: delays in counting mail ballots and for unofficial election results
Georgia
New rule allowing local election authorities to delay or refuse to certify election results, if deemed questionable under vague standards
Potential new rule requiring hand counting of ballots at polling places on election night
Prediction: delays and controversy around ballot counting and certification process
Arizona
Potential attempts by county officials to delay or disrupt the certification process
Potential attempts by county officials to unilaterally conduct full hand counts of ballots
Prediction: controversy around ballot counting and certification process
Nevada
Potential attempts by county officials to delay or disrupt the certification process
- Potential attempts by county officials to unilaterally conduct full hand counts of ballots
- Prediction: controversy around ballot counting and certification process
Since the 2020 election and the events of January 6th, there is a widening gulf between states and political parties in terms of what constitutes a truly secure election. The likelihood of another close election in 2024 places increased importance on fostering an understanding of the processes covered in this report. Best practices like relying on accepted technology to count votes quickly and accurately, allowing pre-processing of absentee ballots before Election Day, utilizing nonpartisan audits, and preventing the disruption of the certification process will help rebuild voter confidence, while protecting the accuracy, integrity and security of our elections.
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MAP's mission is to provide independent and rigorous research, insight and communications that help speed equality and opportunity for all. MAP works to ensure that all people have a fair chance to pursue health and happiness, earn a living, take care of the ones they love, be safe in their communities, and participate in civic life.
