Ranked Choice Voting and Seven Deadlocks Prolong Senate Race Results

Vote counting begins Tuesday night, but final results for the Senate could take days or even weeks to emerge.

The House race is expected to resolve faster because of larger margins, whereas the Senate contest features seven highly competitive states. Two states use ranked choice voting, a system that can extend the time required to declare a winner. Control of the Senate could depend on a single seat, making the process more drawn out than the House tally.

Polls close in stages across the country, starting at 7 p.m. Eastern Time with Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, South Carolina, Virginia, and Vermont. Georgia’s Senate race features Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff against Republican Rep. Mike Collins, with Ossoff holding the advantage. The governor’s race is tighter, pitting Republican Rick Jackson against former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger noted that new laws require counties to report results within an hour of polls closing.

South Carolina presents an unexpectedly tight Senate battle between Sen. Darline Graham and Democratic nominee Annie Andrews. National polls suggest a toss-up, while the Cook Political Report indicates a Republican advantage. In North Carolina, polls close at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time, bringing the state’s Senate race into focus. Former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper faces Michael Whatley, a former Republican National Committee chairman. This is the most likely Senate flip for Democrats, as the party has not won a Senate seat in the state since 2008.

Ohio, also closing at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time, hosts one of the seven tight Senate races that could define chamber control. Republican Sen. Jon Husted and former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown are deadlocked. The governor’s race sees Democrat Amy Acton leading Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, who recently ran an attack ad featuring Acton’s estranged mother. The backlash to that ad may impact both Husted and Ramaswamy. By 8 p.m. Eastern Time, polls close in more than half the country, including Florida, Pennsylvania, and Maine.

Florida’s governor’s race favors Republican Byron Donalds, though his lead is slight, reflecting a national trend of Republicans lagging in traditional strongholds. The state’s redrawn congressional maps face their first test, with seven competitive House seats identified by the Cook Political Report. Pennsylvania, also closing at 8 p.m. Eastern Time, has seen its three toss-up House races tilt toward Democrats in the final month. Maine’s Senate race pits incumbent Republican Susan Collins against Democrat Troy Jackson, a late entry who is making the contest competitive.

The 9 p.m. Eastern Time block includes Arizona, Iowa, Michigan, and Texas, where Senate races could decide control of the chamber. In Texas, Democratic state Rep. James Talarico faces Republican Ken Paxton, with Talarico potentially taking an early lead as mail-in ballots are counted. Kansas sees Democrat Adam Hamilton challenging incumbent Republican Sen. Roger Marshall in a race that has become too close to call. Iowa’s open Senate race features Republican Ashley Hinson against Democrat Josh Turek, with Democrats holding their best chance for a pickup in the governor’s race.

Michigan’s Senate race between Democrat Abdul El-Sayed and Republican Mike Rogers remains a toss-up, despite heavy spending on Islamophobic ads by Republicans. The governor’s race favors Democrat Jocelyn Benson. By 10 p.m. Eastern Time, polls close in Montana, Nevada, and Utah. Montana’s 1st Congressional District is a toss-up between Democrat Sam Forstag and Republican Aaron Flint. Nevada’s governor’s race is a toss-up between incumbent Republican Joe Lombardo and Democrat Aaron Ford.

The final major block closes at 11 p.m. Eastern Time, covering California, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. California voters approved a new congressional map in 2025, which has made the state less competitive for Republicans. The close House races in the state have mostly tilted toward Democrats in the final weeks. This shift marks the end of the voting period for the Pacific Northwest and California, concluding the initial phase of the election night results.