15 States Close Polls at 9 P.M. in 2026 Midterm Election
Election night will be a slow burn, with California and Washington relying on mail ballots that take days to count, while Florida and Georgia move quickly.
By Layla Petrov ·
Voters across the United States will cast ballots on Tuesday, November 3, in the 2026 midterm elections.
The first polls will shut at 6 p.m. Eastern Time in parts of Indiana and Kentucky. Statewide winners in those two states will not be declared until 7 p.m. when the last polls close. Competitive U.S. House races in Indiana's 5th district and Kentucky's 6th district are early targets for results.
By 7 p.m., polls in Georgia, South Carolina, Virginia, and Florida will close. These states typically count votes rapidly. In 2024, Georgia reached 90% completion at 10:21 p.m. and South Carolina at 11:14 p.m. Virginia hit that mark at 12:07 a.m. The Associated Press called Georgia's presidential race at 12:58 a.m. in that cycle. Florida's count was 90% complete by 8:07 p.m. in 2024. Key Senate and gubernatorial races in these states will be in play during this hour.
The 9 p.m. hour marks the biggest logjam of the night. All polls will close in 15 states, including Arizona, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New York, Texas, and Wisconsin. Vote counting in these areas tends to slow down. In 2024, Iowa and New York reached 50% completion around 10 p.m. Minnesota hit that halfway point at 11:29 p.m. Michigan did not reach 90% completion until 4:50 a.m. the next day. Arizona will hold its results until 10 p.m. despite polls closing at 9 p.m. Senate races in Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska, and Texas will be closely watched.
Coastal states will close their polls later. California and Washington will finish voting at 11 p.m. Both states conduct elections primarily by mail. Mail ballots postmarked by Election Day must be received by November 10 in California and November 23 in Washington. In 2024, roughly 38% of California's vote and 33% of Washington's vote were not counted on election night. Washington reached 90% completion by November 9. California reached that milestone by November 14. The California governor's race and Proposition 40 will be major focal points.
The final polls will close at 1 a.m. Eastern Time in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. Hawaii and most of Alaska will finish at midnight. Alaska's count is often the longest. In 2024, about 25% of the total vote was not counted on election night. Most mail voting results were not expected before November 18, the deadline for overseas and military ballots. Mail and early in-person voting made up about 45% of the total vote in 2024. The Senate and House races in Alaska will likely be the last to call.
