Election Night Viewer’s Guide: Poll Closings and What to Watch Hour by Hour
3 sourcesUpdated Nov 3, 20261 min read
All 435 House seats, 35 Senate seats, and governorships in 36 states are on the ballot. The final NYT/Siena poll released Sunday found Republicans trailing or tied in all seven battleground states. Polls close first at 6 p.m. EST in eastern Indiana and Kentucky. Florida canvassing boards must report early and mail votes within 30 minutes of closing. Trump won 46% of Hispanic voters nationally in 2024 and Miami-Dade by 11 points. Republican PACs shifted money away from the North Carolina Senate race in early October, where Roy Cooper faces Michael Whatley. In Ohio a NYT/Siena poll had Brown up 49% to 44% over Husted. South Carolina has not elected a Democrat senator since 1998. In Maine a NYT/Siena poll had Jackson up 51% to 45% over Susan Collins, who trailed in most 2020 polls and still won. Trump endorsed Collins after calling her not my favorite person, and the vice president campaigned for her in Maine. Collins voted to convict Trump in his 2021 impeachment trial and opposed his tax law and Hegseth's confirmation. Polls close in larger waves at 8 and 9 p.m. EST across states including Pennsylvania, Michigan, Arizona, and Wisconsin. The record notes a Sunday announcement by Haley Stevens on the Michigan race with details cut off. Daily Signal framed the night as an hour-by-hour watch list; no left-rated coverage appeared in the record.
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Left· 0 sources
No left coverage yet — a bubble gap.
Center· 1 source
“What Americans are voting for in this election”I'll be watching those Midwest states when their polls close around 8 or 9.
With every House seat contested, even a few surprises could flip the majority quickly.
The battleground polls look tight enough that we might not know the Senate until late.
