When should we expect election results in Massachusetts?

Editor's Note: This is an excerpt from WBUR's politics newsletter, Mass. Politics. If you like what you read and want it in your inbox, sign up here. 

It’s almost here. After months of campaigning, and weeks of early and mail-in voting, Americans will head to the polls tomorrow to choose the next president of the United States.

Many national outlets — including NPR — are cautioning that it could take days to make a call in what polls predict is a historically tight race. But we may have most of our Massachusetts results much sooner. Local election clerks actually began tabulating early voting and mail-in ballots a week ago, so they have a head start.

“We’ve already had well over a million ballots cast in this election, so to some extent a lot of Election Day has already happened,” Debra O’Malley, a spokesperson for Secretary of State Bill Galvin, told me last week. (That number has risen to over 1.7 million out of 5.1 million registered voters, according to Galvin; he told reporters this morning he ultimately expects a record turnout of over 3.7 million.)

Under state law, the clerks are not allowed to look at or publish any vote totals until after polls close on election night. That means the earliest we’ll start seeing any kind of results is just after 8 p.m.

So where can I see those numbers? City and town clerk associations have a longstanding arrangement with the Associated Press. The AP receives counts of all ballots cast in-person on Election Day, all votes cast during in-person early voting, and all mail-in ballots received on or before Election Day. Most of the time, those unofficial results are enough to call a race. We at WBUR carry the AP’s published results and race calls — so check wbur.org throughout the night for updates.

Some races, like the lopsided matchup between Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Republican challenger John Deaton, may be called within minutes of 8 p.m. Races that polls indicate are tighter, like the ballot questions to legalize certain psychedelic drugs and to drop the high school “exit exam” requirement, could take longer because just a few hundred votes could swing the outcomes.

In a potential recount situation, late-arriving mail-in and overseas ballots could be key. Mail-in ballots have until this Friday to arrive, as long as they were postmarked by Election Day. Ballots sent from outside the country have until next Friday, Nov. 15.

WBUR reporters will be out across Massachusetts through Election Day and into the night to bring you the most up-to-date information. I’ll be covering the Trump campaign watch party, while my colleague Anthony Brooks will cover Warren’s HQ. Simón Rios will be in our Boston studio, keeping tabs on the results of all the ballot questions.

You can listen to WBUR’s live special election coverage starting at 7 p.m. tomorrow night. Keep an eye on the website for race calls. The Mass. Politics newsletter will be back in your inbox Wednesday morning to recap the results.

We’re excited to cover another Election Night alongside you. And lastly, get out and vote!