When do the most important results come in?

Undesired Walrus · 17th October 2008, 01:50 AM

I'm planning on having a small gathering on Nov.4/5, but have what may be a disadvantage by living in the UK. I was wondering when the most important results will be coming in (Florida, Ohio?), so I can convert it into GMT.

Thanks.

Brendy · 17th October 2008, 02:09 AM

Polls begin closing at 6 pm Eastern time and all polls are closed by 1 am Eastern time. So they begin closing at 10 pm GMT. Some states will be declared right after the polls close like last election. Ohio and Florida will be later though and you will probably be in the wee hours of the morning.

Undesired Walrus · 17th October 2008, 02:36 AM

Originally Posted by Brendy

Polls begin closing at 6 pm Eastern time and all polls are closed by 1 am Eastern time.

6pm? I thought the booths closed at 10pm or something. Which states are you talking about? How many hours is the West Coast behind the East Coast?

Cheers.

XBoxWarrior · 17th October 2008, 05:10 AM

Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus

6pm? I thought the booths closed at 10pm or something. Which states are you talking about? How many hours is the West Coast behind the East Coast?

Cheers.

Polls can stay open until the voters are finished, I believe a judge must make an order to keep the doors open after closing time.

I hope this year will be decisive enough in states like Ohio and Florida, so we can go to bed with an answer.

East~West 3hrs...

http://www.worldtimezone.com/

Oliver · 17th October 2008, 05:25 AM

And here's a clickable time-zone for UW to quickly check the current time all around the world:

http://www.clocklink.com/clocks/worl...?TimeZone=PST&

Pookster · 17th October 2008, 05:38 AM

7pm ET will be the first important hour. If Virginia or North Carolina are called for Obama, it is over. If they are not called for Obama during the hour, then if Florida or Ohio are called for Obama at 8pm ET, it is over. If not, it likely will be 9pm ET when Colorado and New Mexico results come in.

Obama has many paths to an electoral vote victory. McCain has very few options right now. He has to carry practically all of the Bush States.

Brendy · 17th October 2008, 05:46 AM

Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus

6pm? I thought the booths closed at 10pm or something. Which states are you talking about? How many hours is the West Coast behind the East Coast?

Cheers.

Well in my town the polls are open 7am to 7pm. It's just different state from state.

Undesired Walrus · 17th October 2008, 06:40 AM

Originally Posted by Pookster

7pm ET will be the first important hour. If Virginia or North Carolina are called for Obama, it is over. If they are not called for Obama during the hour, then if Florida or Ohio are called for Obama at 8pm ET, it is over. If not, it likely will be 9pm ET when Colorado and New Mexico results come in.

So, just to get this correct, that will be 12am London time on Nov.5th for VI and NC, 1am London time for FL and OH, and then 2am London time for CO and NM?

It's quite amazing how such a massive country can calculate victory faster than Britain, when the election results go long into the night.

Originally Posted by Pookster

Obama has many paths to an electoral vote victory. McCain has very few options right now. He has to carry practically all of the Bush States.

And for Obama, he only has to carry all Kerry states +1: Ohio.

Nyarlathotep · 17th October 2008, 06:45 AM

Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus

6pm? I thought the booths closed at 10pm or something. Which states are you talking about? How many hours is the West Coast behind the East Coast?

Cheers.

The west coast is three hours behind the west coast. The polls usually close about 7:00 here in Nevada (which is west coast) though I think some states are open until 8:00 so that means results from the results from the East coast will start in about 11:00 Eastern time.

SDC · 17th October 2008, 06:59 AM

Don't forget that the last Sunday of October, all or most of the states (I'm not sure which) dive into daylight savings time -- "spring forward, fall back," as the saying goes.

Undesired Walrus · 17th October 2008, 07:01 AM

Same here. The darker evenings will be made better by a certain victory however.

Pookster · 17th October 2008, 07:05 AM

Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus

So, just to get this correct, that will be 12am London time on Nov.5th for VI and NC, 1am London time for FL and OH, and then 2am London time for CO and NM?

I believe that is correct, but I'm not sure if the time change (daylight savings time change happens somewhere in early November) affects that.

Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus

It's quite amazing how such a massive country can calculate victory faster than Britain, when the election results go long into the night.

The predictions ("calls") will be based on exit polling. If it's not clear from the polling, it could be a very late night call. So stock up on the beverages and be prepared to entertain for awhile.

Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus

And for Obama, he only has to carry all Kerry states +1: Ohio.

That is one of the simplest paths.

Pookster · 17th October 2008, 07:17 AM

Daylight savings time from this link ...

http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/daylight_time.php

In 2008, daylight time begins on March 9 and ends on November 2.

So it will change before the election.

Nyarlathotep · 17th October 2008, 07:27 AM

Originally Posted by SDC

Don't forget that the last Sunday of October, all or most of the states (I'm not sure which) dive into daylight savings time -- "spring forward, fall back," as the saying goes.

It ought to come out the same though, as their time will change too.

Peephole · 17th October 2008, 09:36 AM

Poll closing times:
http://www.thegreenpapers.com/G08/closing.phtml?format=ec

Virginia should be called pretty quickly, at which point Obama has basically won.

And he should be pronounced the official winner at 11 p.m. ET (4 a.m. GMT), when California gets called.

dudalb · 17th October 2008, 09:59 AM

Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus

I'm planning on having a small gathering on Nov.4/5, but have what may be a disadvantage by living in the UK. I was wondering when the most important results will be coming in (Florida, Ohio?), so I can convert it into GMT.

Thanks.

Actually Obama might not need Ohio or Florida. The shift of Virginia to a blue start (something nobody was predicting, a few saw it shifting from Red to Purple, but not to Blue two weeks before the election) might give him enough to win without Ohio and FLorida.
I think, though, if you want to see the results, you are going to have stay up really late in the UK.

Kestrel · 17th October 2008, 10:22 AM

Originally Posted by Pookster

7pm ET will be the first important hour. If Virginia or North Carolina are called for Obama, it is over. If they are not called for Obama during the hour, then if Florida or Ohio are called for Obama at 8pm ET, it is over. If not, it likely will be 9pm ET when Colorado and New Mexico results come in.

Obama has many paths to an electoral vote victory. McCain has very few options right now. He has to carry practically all of the Bush States.

The networks will have exit poll data available shortly after the polls close, but the official results will take a bit longer. The exit polls are good enough to call a landslide, but not a close race.

Here in CO, the polls close at 7 PM local time, but anyone still in line can vote. After they vote, the election judges have to do some closing paperwork and then deliver the results to the county elections office. Judging from how long it took in the primary, the results may not be clear until 9 PM or later.

Loss Leader · 17th October 2008, 10:29 AM

Originally Posted by Peephole

And he should be pronounced the official winner at 11 p.m. ET (4 a.m. GMT), when California gets called.

I agree. The networks won't declare a state until its polls close, no matter what their data says. And they won't declare a national winner until California closes. 11:00 p.m. should be the most "newsworthy" hour.

SDC · 17th October 2008, 11:52 AM

And isn't it the case that more and more people are using absentee ballots? If so, that would negate the basic premise of exit polling.

Should we let the non-Americans in on the secret? That is, the whole point of the exact machinations of the election is to drive them crazy.

dudalb · 17th October 2008, 02:22 PM

Originally Posted by Loss Leader

I agree. The networks won't declare a state until its polls close, no matter what their data says. And they won't declare a national winner until California closes. 11:00 p.m. should be the most "newsworthy" hour.

Which, If memory serves, would make it around 3 in the morning in the UK.

Undesired Walrus · 17th October 2008, 04:01 PM

Originally Posted by Loss Leader

I agree. The networks won't declare a state until its polls close, no matter what their data says. And they won't declare a national winner until California closes. 11:00 p.m. should be the most "newsworthy" hour.

This will be stupid, but you do mean Nov.4th right?

Gnu World Order · 17th October 2008, 04:15 PM

Yes, November 4.

And it could be obvious who the winner will be long before either candidate actually reaches the magic 270 number. If a couple of these states--Florida, Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Missouri--are called early for the same candidate, it will be very obvious who will win, even if the networks may not explicitly say it.

If, on the other hand, the networks delay their calls on those states well into the evening, it could be a long night.

KoihimeNakamura · 17th October 2008, 04:19 PM

I know some people in WA have voted. I'm waiting on my absentee ballot myself.

Gord_in_Toronto · 17th October 2008, 09:12 PM

Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus

I'm planning on having a small gathering on Nov.4/5, but have what may be a disadvantage by living in the UK. I was wondering when the most important results will be coming in (Florida, Ohio?), so I can convert it into GMT.

Thanks.

When do the most important results come in?

The following Thursday when the Supreme Court meets in special session.

Nyarlathotep · 17th October 2008, 11:47 PM

Originally Posted by Gord_in_Toronto

When do the most important results come in?

The following Thursday when the Supreme Court meets in special session.

Actually it will be the day after the election when the losing party begins impeachement proceedings on the winner.

SDC · 18th October 2008, 03:31 AM

Are you sure that impeachment proceedings can begin before the winner is actually inaugurated? So let's say, the evening of January 20th.

Nyarlathotep · 18th October 2008, 08:52 AM

Originally Posted by SDC

Are you sure that impeachment proceedings can begin before the winner is actually inaugurated? So let's say, the evening of January 20th.

Well they have to get things rolling as soon as possible. The partisans on both sides are already working on it. There is already a nice Impeach McCain Web site though shamefully the Republicans are behind the ball with only Bumper stickers and T-Shirts available. So the party faithful are already on task even if the higher ups have to wait a bit.

17th October 2008, 01:50 AM	#1
Undesired Walrus Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: London Posts: 10,884	When do the most important results come in? I'm planning on having a small gathering on Nov.4/5, but have what may be a disadvantage by living in the UK. I was wondering when the most important results will be coming in (Florida, Ohio?), so I can convert it into GMT. Thanks.
	__________________ Man's material discoveries have outpaced his moral progress. - Clement Attlee, 1945

17th October 2008, 02:09 AM	#2
Brendy Thinker Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 150	Polls begin closing at 6 pm Eastern time and all polls are closed by 1 am Eastern time. So they begin closing at 10 pm GMT. Some states will be declared right after the polls close like last election. Ohio and Florida will be later though and you will probably be in the wee hours of the morning.
Brendy Thinker Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 150

17th October 2008, 02:36 AM	#3
Undesired Walrus Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: London Posts: 10,884	Originally Posted by Brendy Polls begin closing at 6 pm Eastern time and all polls are closed by 1 am Eastern time. 6pm? I thought the booths closed at 10pm or something. Which states are you talking about? How many hours is the West Coast behind the East Coast? Cheers.
	__________________ Man's material discoveries have outpaced his moral progress. - Clement Attlee, 1945

17th October 2008, 05:25 AM	#5
Oliver ~The Rascal~ Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Cologne Posts: 17,369	And here's a clickable time-zone for UW to quickly check the current time all around the world: http://www.clocklink.com/clocks/worl...?TimeZone=PST&
	__________________

17th October 2008, 05:38 AM	#6
Pookster Graduate Poster Join Date: May 2007 Location: Southeast USA Posts: 1,788	7pm ET will be the first important hour. If Virginia or North Carolina are called for Obama, it is over. If they are not called for Obama during the hour, then if Florida or Ohio are called for Obama at 8pm ET, it is over. If not, it likely will be 9pm ET when Colorado and New Mexico results come in. Obama has many paths to an electoral vote victory. McCain has very few options right now. He has to carry practically all of the Bush States.
	Last edited by Pookster; 17th October 2008 at 05:49 AM.

17th October 2008, 05:10 AM	#4
XBoxWarrior Banned Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Down in the Treme... Posts: 1,232	Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus 6pm? I thought the booths closed at 10pm or something. Which states are you talking about? How many hours is the West Coast behind the East Coast? Cheers. Polls can stay open until the voters are finished, I believe a judge must make an order to keep the doors open after closing time. I hope this year will be decisive enough in states like Ohio and Florida, so we can go to bed with an answer. East~West 3hrs... http://www.worldtimezone.com/

17th October 2008, 05:46 AM	#7
Brendy Thinker Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 150	Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus 6pm? I thought the booths closed at 10pm or something. Which states are you talking about? How many hours is the West Coast behind the East Coast? Cheers. Well in my town the polls are open 7am to 7pm. It's just different state from state.
Brendy Thinker Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 150

17th October 2008, 06:40 AM	#8
Undesired Walrus Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: London Posts: 10,884	Originally Posted by Pookster 7pm ET will be the first important hour. If Virginia or North Carolina are called for Obama, it is over. If they are not called for Obama during the hour, then if Florida or Ohio are called for Obama at 8pm ET, it is over. If not, it likely will be 9pm ET when Colorado and New Mexico results come in. So, just to get this correct, that will be 12am London time on Nov.5th for VI and NC, 1am London time for FL and OH, and then 2am London time for CO and NM? It's quite amazing how such a massive country can calculate victory faster than Britain, when the election results go long into the night. Originally Posted by Pookster Obama has many paths to an electoral vote victory. McCain has very few options right now. He has to carry practically all of the Bush States. And for Obama, he only has to carry all Kerry states +1: Ohio.
	__________________ Man's material discoveries have outpaced his moral progress. - Clement Attlee, 1945 Last edited by Undesired Walrus; 17th October 2008 at 06:47 AM.

17th October 2008, 06:45 AM	#9
Nyarlathotep Philosopher Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 7,514	Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus 6pm? I thought the booths closed at 10pm or something. Which states are you talking about? How many hours is the West Coast behind the East Coast? Cheers. The west coast is three hours behind the west coast. The polls usually close about 7:00 here in Nevada (which is west coast) though I think some states are open until 8:00 so that means results from the results from the East coast will start in about 11:00 Eastern time.
	__________________ Why stay sane in a sick world?

17th October 2008, 06:59 AM	#10
SDC Master Poster Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: New York area Posts: 2,250	Don't forget that the last Sunday of October, all or most of the states (I'm not sure which) dive into daylight savings time -- "spring forward, fall back," as the saying goes.

17th October 2008, 07:01 AM	#11
Undesired Walrus Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: London Posts: 10,884	Same here. The darker evenings will be made better by a certain victory however.
	__________________ Man's material discoveries have outpaced his moral progress. - Clement Attlee, 1945

17th October 2008, 07:05 AM	#12
Pookster Graduate Poster Join Date: May 2007 Location: Southeast USA Posts: 1,788	Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus So, just to get this correct, that will be 12am London time on Nov.5th for VI and NC, 1am London time for FL and OH, and then 2am London time for CO and NM? I believe that is correct, but I'm not sure if the time change (daylight savings time change happens somewhere in early November) affects that. Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus It's quite amazing how such a massive country can calculate victory faster than Britain, when the election results go long into the night. The predictions ("calls") will be based on exit polling. If it's not clear from the polling, it could be a very late night call. So stock up on the beverages and be prepared to entertain for awhile. Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus And for Obama, he only has to carry all Kerry states +1: Ohio. That is one of the simplest paths.

17th October 2008, 07:17 AM	#13
Pookster Graduate Poster Join Date: May 2007 Location: Southeast USA Posts: 1,788	Daylight savings time from this link ... http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/daylight_time.php In 2008, daylight time begins on March 9 and ends on November 2. So it will change before the election.

17th October 2008, 07:27 AM	#14
Nyarlathotep Philosopher Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 7,514	Originally Posted by SDC Don't forget that the last Sunday of October, all or most of the states (I'm not sure which) dive into daylight savings time -- "spring forward, fall back," as the saying goes. It ought to come out the same though, as their time will change too.
	__________________ Why stay sane in a sick world?

17th October 2008, 09:36 AM	#15
Peephole Master Poster Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 2,245	Poll closing times: http://www.thegreenpapers.com/G08/closing.phtml?format=ec Virginia should be called pretty quickly, at which point Obama has basically won. And he should be pronounced the official winner at 11 p.m. ET (4 a.m. GMT), when California gets called.
Peephole Master Poster Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 2,245	__________________ 911science

17th October 2008, 09:59 AM	#16
dudalb Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 22,814	Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus I'm planning on having a small gathering on Nov.4/5, but have what may be a disadvantage by living in the UK. I was wondering when the most important results will be coming in (Florida, Ohio?), so I can convert it into GMT. Thanks. Actually Obama might not need Ohio or Florida. The shift of Virginia to a blue start (something nobody was predicting, a few saw it shifting from Red to Purple, but not to Blue two weeks before the election) might give him enough to win without Ohio and FLorida. I think, though, if you want to see the results, you are going to have stay up really late in the UK.

17th October 2008, 10:22 AM	#17
Kestrel Illuminator Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: DM79 Posts: 4,203	Originally Posted by Pookster 7pm ET will be the first important hour. If Virginia or North Carolina are called for Obama, it is over. If they are not called for Obama during the hour, then if Florida or Ohio are called for Obama at 8pm ET, it is over. If not, it likely will be 9pm ET when Colorado and New Mexico results come in. Obama has many paths to an electoral vote victory. McCain has very few options right now. He has to carry practically all of the Bush States. The networks will have exit poll data available shortly after the polls close, but the official results will take a bit longer. The exit polls are good enough to call a landslide, but not a close race. Here in CO, the polls close at 7 PM local time, but anyone still in line can vote. After they vote, the election judges have to do some closing paperwork and then deliver the results to the county elections office. Judging from how long it took in the primary, the results may not be clear until 9 PM or later.

17th October 2008, 10:29 AM	#18
Loss Leader Opinionated Jerk Moderator Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: New York Posts: 11,885	Originally Posted by Peephole And he should be pronounced the official winner at 11 p.m. ET (4 a.m. GMT), when California gets called. I agree. The networks won't declare a state until its polls close, no matter what their data says. And they won't declare a national winner until California closes. 11:00 p.m. should be the most "newsworthy" hour.
	__________________ Follow me on Twitter! @LossLeader This force is receiving all the right to vote through the use of magic. - Miernik Wieslaw <NEW> VOTE FOR ME JUST BECAUSE <NEW>

17th October 2008, 11:52 AM	#19
SDC Master Poster Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: New York area Posts: 2,250	And isn't it the case that more and more people are using absentee ballots? If so, that would negate the basic premise of exit polling. Should we let the non-Americans in on the secret? That is, the whole point of the exact machinations of the election is to drive them crazy.

17th October 2008, 02:22 PM	#20
dudalb Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 22,814	Originally Posted by Loss Leader I agree. The networks won't declare a state until its polls close, no matter what their data says. And they won't declare a national winner until California closes. 11:00 p.m. should be the most "newsworthy" hour. Which, If memory serves, would make it around 3 in the morning in the UK.

17th October 2008, 04:01 PM	#21
Undesired Walrus Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: London Posts: 10,884	Originally Posted by Loss Leader I agree. The networks won't declare a state until its polls close, no matter what their data says. And they won't declare a national winner until California closes. 11:00 p.m. should be the most "newsworthy" hour. This will be stupid, but you do mean Nov.4th right?
	__________________ Man's material discoveries have outpaced his moral progress. - Clement Attlee, 1945

17th October 2008, 04:15 PM	#22
Gnu World Order Thinker Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Here. Now. Posts: 156	Yes, November 4. And it could be obvious who the winner will be long before either candidate actually reaches the magic 270 number. If a couple of these states--Florida, Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Missouri--are called early for the same candidate, it will be very obvious who will win, even if the networks may not explicitly say it. If, on the other hand, the networks delay their calls on those states well into the evening, it could be a long night.

17th October 2008, 04:19 PM	#23
KoihimeNakamura Creativity Murderer Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Graham, WA Posts: 6,853	I know some people in WA have voted. I'm waiting on my absentee ballot myself.
	__________________ Don't mind me.

17th October 2008, 09:12 PM	#24
Gord_in_Toronto Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 13,415	Originally Posted by Undesired Walrus I'm planning on having a small gathering on Nov.4/5, but have what may be a disadvantage by living in the UK. I was wondering when the most important results will be coming in (Florida, Ohio?), so I can convert it into GMT. Thanks. When do the most important results come in? The following Thursday when the Supreme Court meets in special session.
	__________________ "Reality is what's left when you cease to believe." Philip K. Dick

17th October 2008, 11:47 PM	#25
Nyarlathotep Philosopher Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 7,514	Originally Posted by Gord_in_Toronto When do the most important results come in? The following Thursday when the Supreme Court meets in special session. Actually it will be the day after the election when the losing party begins impeachement proceedings on the winner.
	__________________ Why stay sane in a sick world?

18th October 2008, 03:31 AM	#26
SDC Master Poster Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: New York area Posts: 2,250	Are you sure that impeachment proceedings can begin before the winner is actually inaugurated? So let's say, the evening of January 20th.

18th October 2008, 08:52 AM	#27
Nyarlathotep Philosopher Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 7,514	Originally Posted by SDC Are you sure that impeachment proceedings can begin before the winner is actually inaugurated? So let's say, the evening of January 20th. Well they have to get things rolling as soon as possible. The partisans on both sides are already working on it. There is already a nice Impeach McCain Web site though shamefully the Republicans are behind the ball with only Bumper stickers and T-Shirts available. So the party faithful are already on task even if the higher ups have to wait a bit.
	__________________ Why stay sane in a sick world? Last edited by Nyarlathotep; 18th October 2008 at 08:55 AM.