How Long Will It Take To Count The Votes In Pennsylvania?

PENNSYLVANIA — Polls have closed in Pennsylvania in the Nov.3 general election, with Tuesday being the culmination of days of early and absentee voting — a shift seen across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic.

With voting now officially over, Pennsylvanians and voters across the country are waiting to see who wins the state's 20 electoral college votes: Republican President Donald J. Trump or Democratic challenger and former Vice President Joe Biden.

It's unclear exactly when the unofficial vote count will be complete, but Gov. Wolf said that results "probably" will not be available Tuesday.

"On Tuesday night and the day that follows, I encourage all of us to take a deep breath, and just stay calm," Gov. Wolf said. "We will have a fair election."

Wolf expects the final tally to be available within a few days. Unofficial results are due at the latest by Nov. 10, Pennsylvania Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar said. Thursday, Nov. 12 is the deadline to declare a recount, if a recount is needed. A recount will be automatically initiated if the race is within 0.5 percentage points, unless the losing candidate waives that right by Wednesday, Nov. 11.

The final deadline for official election results in Pennsylvania is Nov. 23.

Wolf noted that in the past, unofficial election results were known for many races by 8:01 or 8:02 p.m. "That ain't gonna happen this time," he said the week before Election Day.

In Pennsylvania, mail-in ballots are not allowed to be counted prior to Election Day, meaning clerks will be working late into the night. A record number of more than 9 million Pennsylvanians registered heading into the 2020 election, with a record 3.02 million voting by mail-in ballots.

A ruling from the Supreme Court in the week before Election Day upheld the three-day delay in counting ballots, meaning that ballots received as late as Nov. 6 can still be counted.

Voters in Pennsylvania were urged to hand deliver their ballots up to a week before Election Day to ensure they would be counted.

Of course it's not just the presidential election results that residents across the Keystone State are awaiting.

Dozens of state legislature and state senatorial races are up for grabs, as well as numerous seats in U.S. Congress.