Voting In Texas & Election Day Result
Votes aren’t really counted until the polls close the evening of Election Day. This includes every type of ballot cast during the election - in-person early voting ballots, absentee ballots, and Election Day ballots. Texas voting results may take longer to certify due to the fact it's a populous state that is trending towards a more diverse political climate.
Mail-in ballots take longer to tally in general. This is because mail-in ballots have to be processed individually and manually processed and qualified. Also mail-in ballots that are postmarked before November 3rd can still be received by local elections offices by 5 p.m. And ballots sent by voters who are either overseas or in the military can be received by 7 p.m. on the fifth day after election day.
Processing And Qualifying Mail-In Ballots in Texas -
Texas has the Early Voting Ballot Board (EVBB). It is a group of people that counts the early voting, and absentee ballots. When the EVBB can begin processing and qualifying mail-in ballots greatly depends on how large the county is. For counties with a population of 100,000 or more (or entities having a joint election with a county of such a size), the EVBB may begin processing and qualifying mail-in ballots 12 days before Election Day. But, for counties that have a population less than 100,000, the processing and qualifying of mail-in ballots can begin on the last day of in-person early voting (Oct 30th).
Qualifying and processing is different from counting. The former is to determine if the ballot is acceptable. Once they are accepted, the EVBB enters the voter’s name on the poll list. This is when counting begins by the ballot board or central counting station, depending on the county.
Counting Ballots in TX -
For Texas counties with a population of 100,000 or more (or entities having a joint election with a county of such a size), the EVBB may begin counting mail-in ballots after the polls close on the last day of in-person early voting, or October 30th. But, for counties that have a population less than 100,000, the counting of mail-in ballots cannot begin until the polls open on Election Day.
The results may not be released until the polls close on Election Day, in either case. With all of that said, mail-in ballots can take longer to count, and if there is a larger influx of these ballots, it can slow down the amount of time it will take to see the final results.
Exit Polls -
Exit polls are used to collect demographic data on voters and why they voted the way they did. These polls are taken immediately after voters have exited the polling station. Exit poll results are released before the official voting results are tallied and a winner is declared on Election Day, which makes this information crucial prior to seeing official vote counts. The results of these polls cannot be reported if it would characterize the outcome of a race before the polls close in that state.
The National Election Pool is a consortium of American news organizations which is conducted by Edison Research. These news organizations consist of ABC News, the Associated Press, CBS News, CNN, FOX News and NBC News. These news organizations share the same data that is collected by Edison Research. Any of these organization’s websites would be a good place to find exit polling data.
Polling and Forecasts for Senate Races -
Just like with exit polling, you can find live polling and forecasts on the races for the U.S. Senate. A number of different sites track this information for you, which are included below:
Center For Politics
270towin
The Economist
Early Voting Results In Texas
Each of the 254 counties in Texas gets to choose how people vote in-person. Bigger counties have voters cast their ballots on machines called direct-recording-electronic-voting machines (DREs). Those votes go from the machines into the main system where votes are counted. Individual counties have their own type of DREs, but they are pretty much the same across the board. Once early voting is completed, the votes aren’t tabulated, but brought to the controller office, which is where they will remain untouched until Election Day.
Live data and the result of races specific to Texas -
Early voting totals are always the first numbers the public sees. This is after the polls close and the totals are counted and tabulated. Live Texas election result data of races can be found at: texas-election.com, and kvue.com. Texas-election.com provides you with election data specific to each county in TX. Also, you can find early voting results in Texas at electproject.
Election Winners & Recounts
When elections are called -
After the voting results are made live, the exact date when an election is called varies, depending on the race and the office the candidate or candidates are running for. Technically, it is when an election is certified. A good indicator is when news organizations such as Reuters and the Associated Press call it. Exact dates for when elections are called aren’t set in stone because there’s always a possibility of recounts.
What Happens After Voting Results Come In And A Winner Is Determined?
After a winner is determined, the losing candidate gives his concession speech. This speech plays a crucial role in the process because this is when the candidate accepts the legitimacy of the election results. Soon after, the victorious candidate delivers his speech acknowledging the same. The president is sworn in January 20th or January 21st if the 20th falls on a Sunday. Members of congress are sworn in on the opening day of the new congress.
The swearing-in dates for state legislatures can be found at Ballotpedia.com.
TX Voting Results and Recounts -
Texas state law automatically requires a recount if the results are tied. Only a candidate can request a recount, and that is usually not the winner. When it comes to a ballot measure, such as the 10 constructional amendments Texas voters considered in 2019, a specific purpose committee that is involved in the election or 25 eligible voters that come together can request a recount.
What are the grounds for a recount in Texas?
It mostly depends on the numbers. If a candidate lost an election and the number of votes they are behind is less than 10% of the total number of votes the winner had, or any qualified candidate for a run off, the losing candidate can request a recount.
Example:
Winning Candidate: 3000 votes
Losing Candidate: 2750 votes
Since the 250 votes were less than 300 (10% of 3,000) the candidate that lost can request a recount. The math used above also applies to votes for a ballot measure.
A candidate can request a recount of the total number of votes that were received by all candidates in a race that is less than 1,000 votes.
One other scenario that warrants a recount is if an election judge swears they counted paper ballots incorrectly. This measure has to be certified by the Secretary of State, but this doesn’t happen often.
The deadline to request a recount is by 5 p.m. five days following the election, or two days after the canvass, which is where every ballot is accounted for and validated. The length of time it takes for the canvassing to be complete totally depends on how long the process takes. If a recount is approved, it has to happen within 7 days. By Texas state law, it is the governor’s office that ultimately certifies the results of special elections such as the Texas House District 100 race.