US Election: Here Is Why Results May Not Come Until Days After Nov 5

US Presidential Election result will possibly take days to determine, given tight margins expected in seven swing states, reports stated. In US due to mail-in ballots and the time required to count all votes, a winner may not be declared for several days. It means necessarily a winner may not be announced on November 5.

This is due to the reason that mail-in ballots take longer to count, and different states have different procedures for processing these votes. Some key states only begin counting on Election Day, resulting in delays.

The upcoming US Presidential Election result on November 5 is expected to yield uncertain results, as tight contest is expected between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump which may delay the announcement of the winner, according to Reuters.

According to the reports, votes counted after polling closes might show one candidate in the lead initially before the other catches up, reminiscent of the red mirage observed in 2020 when Trump initially led before Biden claimed victory.

This disparity often arises in US elections due to the demographic distribution of voters, with Democrats concentrated in urban regions where vote counting is more time-consuming.

According to a report by Reuters, Democrats' preference for mail-in voting, which is slower to tally compared to in-person votes, has been influenced by Trump's previous unfounded claims concerning the reliability of mail ballots.

Trump’s stance on early and mail-in voting remains inconsistent as the election approaches.

The upcoming US election results will be decided by seven battleground states, each with its own rules for handling and counting ballots.

Take for instance Arizona. It is where nearly 90% of voters cast their ballots early, most by mail, in 2020. As per reports, election officials can begin processing and tabulating mail ballots upon receipt, but results cannot be released until one hour after polls close.

In Georgia, early in-person voting is popular, with officials expecting 65% to 70% of ballots to be cast at early poll locations, reportedly.

Reports also stated that absentee or mail ballots, which may comprise around 5% of the vote, can be processed two weeks before the election, though workers must wait until Election Day to begin counting them.

Michigan has instituted early in-person voting for the first time since the 2020 election, permitting jurisdictions with more than 5,000 people to begin processing and tabulating mail ballots eight days before Election Day. Reports stated that officials hope that these changes will allow the state to report results more quickly than in 2020 when mail ballots could not be processed in advance.

In Nevada slow vote counting in 2020 led to memes, but officials say changes since then should speed up the process. County counties can begin processing mail ballots on October 21 and tabulate early in-person votes on Election Day. Mail voting has grown popular in the state, and late-arriving ballots may favour Democrats.

In North Carolina election officials process mail ballots, with Harris leading early. Trump could close the gap. Results may remain unclear for a week or more, with a canvassing period following election day.

In Pennsylvania and Wisconsin have varying voting patterns, with Pennsylvania having a clear winner for four days after Election Day due to a backlog of mail ballots. The state's new law requires counties to announce the number of mail ballots remaining to be counted at midnight on election night to prevent conspiracy theories.

Wisconsin, like Pennsylvania, does not allow election officials to process or count mail ballots until the morning of the election, causing delays in reporting early votes. In 2020, Milwaukee reported nearly 170,000 absentee ballots, causing Biden to move into the lead.