NORFOLK, Va. - With more than 92 million people voting, political analysts expect the reporting of results to be different this year on Election Night.
"I think the word of the day is patience," said Dr. Eric Claville, the Director of the Center for African American Public Policy at Norfolk State University.
Some states aren't counting mail-in ballots until Election Day, like Pennsylvania. Other states, like Virginia and North Carolina, have been counting for weeks.
In Virginia, election officials will count as many mail-in ballots as they can up until 11 pm on Election Night. They will then post the results of mail-in ballots and early in-person votes under the Central Absentee Precinct for each locality. Many localities have been counting the mail-in ballots as they were received. Virginia Beach has already counted more than 40,000 mail-in ballots.
"On Election Night here in Virginia Beach, we'll have a good feel for where our candidates are," said Tim Barrow of the Virginia Beach Electoral Board.
The results of in-person votes on Election Day will also be posted on Tuesday evening. Election officials will continue counting mail-in ballots through Friday. A mail-in ballot postmarked on Tuesday will be counted if it reaches the registrar's office by noon on Friday.
Election officials will provide an update on the results some time after Friday at noon. "The goal is to make sure everyone votes and every vote is counted," said Jeffrey Marks, chairman of the Virginia Beach Electoral Board. "I promise you everything they've done is in pursuit of that goal."
From there, local election officials will certify the results of the election.