OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — We’ve shown you the process of securing the tens of thousands of early votes cast and how your ballot is delivered securely on election day, but what about after the election? Reporter Molly Hudson went back to the Douglas County Election Commission to learn how and when we will really know who won.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
While a candidate may call themselves the winner, usually two things happen first: a race is called and then the vote is canvassed.
At KMTV we use Decision Desk HQfor election results which analyzes data from around the country.
On election night they evaluate these factors:
- How much of the vote is in/how much is still outstanding?
- Where is the incoming vote coming from, and where are the outstanding votes?
- What are the nature of the voters in both of those areas, and how do they correspond to the current state of returns?
- What types of votes are in (early, day-of, absentee), and what types are yet to be reported?
Once the team has concluded that there are not enough outstanding votes for the trailing candidate to overcome, the race projection is made.
And while a race is called in the media, it’s not legally official until the election is certified.
"So when could we know officially who the winning candidate is for all the races that we are seeing," reporter Molly Hudson asked.
"We will certify Thursday, November 21, and so once we certify, then that's it, there is no more work that goes into this election," said Brian Kruse, Douglas County Election Commissioner.
The only exception is for a recount. Those happen on December 4th.
Kruse says in his time as election commissioner all recounts have come back as the same result as the initial count.
Reporter Molly Hudson has covered the additional security measures in place like the tamper-proof seals on Election Day boxes and how the commission stores the early ballots from when they are returned to when they are put through the counting machines that are never connected to the internet. See the links below to read those stories.
TAMPER PROOF: How Douglas County ballots are transported from the polls to counting centers
INSIDE LOOK: How Douglas County ensures a safe and secure election process
'Going to shatter records': About 80,000 people have already voted in Douglas County
