When polls close tonight, results will arrive in waves, not all at once, and this hour-by-hour guide sets out what to expect as Tuesday, 3 November 2026, turns into election night. The first polls close at 6 p.m. Eastern in parts of Indiana and Kentucky, covering 15 House districts, according to published closing schedules. No national result can be called from that first wave alone, but it will give the first counted ballots of the night. At 7 p.m. Eastern, polls close in Georgia, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia and parts of Florida and New Hampshire, including the South Carolina Senate special and the Georgia Senate and governor races. At 7:30 p.m., North Carolina, Ohio and West Virginia close, including the Ohio Senate special and the North Carolina Senate race, covering 31 House districts.
The big 8 p.m. wave
At 8 p.m. Eastern, the largest early wave arrives: Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee and the rest of Florida, New Hampshire and Texas, among others, covering 163 House districts. That wave includes the Kansas, Maine, Michigan and Texas Senate races and the Michigan and Texas governor races, making 8 p.m. the moment when the night’s shape first becomes visible. At 8:30 p.m., Arkansas closes, followed by 9 p.m. closings in Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas (remainder), Louisiana, Michigan (remainder), Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming, including the Iowa and Nebraska Senate races. At 10 p.m., Montana, Nevada and Utah close, and at 11 p.m., California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington close, covering 62 House districts.
After midnight, and after tonight
At midnight Eastern, Hawaii and parts of Alaska close, with the rest of Alaska closing at 1 a.m. Eastern on Wednesday. Races that are close, or that depend heavily on mail ballots, may remain uncalled well beyond those times. States certify official results in the weeks after Election Day, and close races can go to recounts under state law. The Associated Press, whose calls are used by many results hubs, adds a race only after it calls it, with the call time recorded. Until a race is called, polls, forecasts and market prices remain opinions, not results, and early leads can change as more ballots are counted.
