Vice President Kamala Harris warned on Sunday that Americans may experience a repeat of the 2020 election wherein the winner was not decided the same night the polls closed.
In a post on X, Kamala Harris said that while she expects to win on Tuesday, she warned that it “will take time to count every vote.”
“The margins are going to be close, but our campaign is on track to win this election. Americans all across the country are casting their votes in record numbers, ready to turn the page,” the vice president said. “It will take time to count every vote, and there may be swings in the count along the way.”
Whether or not Americans experience a repeat of 2020 will entirely depend on the margin of victory from either candidate. Should either one overtake the other in a landslide victory, Americans could expect to have the winner decided within just a few hours of the polls closing. However, if the election comes down to one or two swing states with tight margins of victories, the election may very well roll into the following days as precincts collect mail-in and absentee ballots. According to CNN, experts say it is “unlikely Americans will go to bed on Election Day knowing who their next president will be.”
“As polls show a dead heat between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris in the final days of the race, news outlets are preparing an anxious nation for the likelihood that election night will stretch into an election week,” CNN noted.
Whether or not the election goes into the week, both the Trump and Harris campaigns have encouraged supporters to stay in line and cast their vote no matter what. As VerifyThis noted, voters have a legal right to cast their ballot if the polls happened to close while they are still in line.
“All of our sources say all eligible voters have a legal right to vote on Election Day once they’re in line. As long as you get in line before your polling location’s scheduled closing time, you are guaranteed the right to cast your ballot. Even if you’re still waiting in line come closing time, no one can legally turn you away,” it noted.
