Why Counting the Vote Can, and Should, Take Time

Everyone remembers the four days it took to officially call the 2020 presidential race for Joe Biden. While that election seemed to take an inordinate amount of time, it’s normal for it to take several days to process all of the ballots.

Vote counting takes time, especially when the race is as close as the 2024 election appears to be. This year’s election is projected to have fewer mail-in ballots, and thus may take less time to call than the 2020 race, but each state still has its own election administration procedures on how, and when, to process ballots. These are standard processes that, yes, can cause the election results to take more time. They also are part of the system of checks and verifications that keep our elections fair and free.

In every election, teams of people from both parties work together at every step of the voting, counting, and reporting process to ensure that results are verified before they are officially certified. At the ACLU, we’ve kept close watch on this process. Below, we outline three main things that impact when the election is called.

2020’s infamous four-day wait for the presidential election to be called can, at least partially, be attributed to the large numbers of people who voted by mail during the pandemic. We know that processing mail-in ballots can be time consuming. Currently, some states allow election workers to begin this lengthy process before Election Day, while others still do not. In 2020, the majority of mail-in ballots came from Democratic-leaning voters. If this election follows this pattern, there may be a late-in-the-day surge of votes in certain states.

Some states, such as Nevada and California, allow mail-in ballots that are postmarked by Election Day and arrive a specified number of days after Election Day to still be counted. This means that unofficial election results in some states may come days after Election Day.

Every state has its own rules and procedures for how to count the vote.

For example, not all states offer early voting, or only offer short periods of early voting, which can possibly lead to long lines and bottlenecks on Election Day that extend the time it takes to gather all the votes. Additionally, many states, such as Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, do not begin processing any ballots – including mail-in or absentee ballots – until Election Day. It is therefore possible, and in some cases likely, that results won’t be projected until after Election Day. In other states, like Georgia and Michigan, pre-processing of mail-in and absentee ballots is allowed before Election Day, so projected election results in those states may come sooner, including on Election Night or the following morning.

Canvassing is the process of counting ballots, ensuring all ballots are accounted for, and that only valid ballots are counted.

Importantly, many states also have automatic recount procedures that trigger at certain points, such as if the race is within 0.5 percent, that can also extend the canvassing process. For swing states, like Pennsylvnia, or, more recently, Nevada, the margin of victory for either candidate may be small. In these scenarios, states may recount the vote, or presidential candidates may call for a recount, which means that the states that could determine the outcome of the election may not be called until November 6th or even later.

At the ACLU, we know that these checks and verifications are standard procedure to ensure that every vote is counted. We also know that select nationwide processes can help expand access and improve the right to vote, including same-day and online voter registration across states, required early-voting access in all states for a set period, and no-excuse vote-by-mail to allow voters across the country to request and cast an absentee/mail ballot with no excuse or reason necessary.

This election, we’ll be watching the results roll in and knowing that our work doesn’t stop when the polls close. Ensuring the future of democracy requires us to safeguard our right to vote today. Join us and demand that every vote be counted and every validated result be certified to protect our freedoms.