US election: Everything UK viewers need to know on the night – and when will we know who’s won?
The 2024 US election has arrived, with viewers from across the globe set to tune in as the next president of the United States is decided over the course of several hours.
Polls will close state by state at roughly 30-minute intervals from midnight, UK time. Each one will be a step closer to the presidency for either Kamala Harris or Donald Trump, the latter running for the third consecutive time since 2016.
Amongst the 50 states, six swing states will prove crucial for both candidates. These are: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
As with previous years, counting could take well into the day or even the day after to conclude in several states.
Viewers should be aware of how the US voting system works as polls close. To recap: the presidency is decided by the electoral college, rather than a simple count of which candidate gets the most votes.
The winner will be whichever receives a simple majority of 270 out of 538 electors from the 50 states. Each state counts for a different number of electoral college votes, with the winner of each state taking all the electoral votes.
In the UK, viewers can watch the results unfold on most news channels. To those following online, The Independent will be covering all the action live.
Here’s a timeline of events for UK viewers:
By this time (5pm EST), polls will still be open in most states. It’s far too early at this point to know which way the election is going, but the first exit polls will be released, giving some early hints.
This poll is not like the exit polls UK onlookers may be used to seeing at general elections. They are not based on voting outcomes, but rather what issues respondents have said mattered to them most at this election.
Tens of thousands of people will respond to this poll, giving a fairly accurate result. But knowing what issues motivated US citizens at the ballot box can only give a hint as to which way the final result will go.
After a couple of hours, polls will begin to close in more states. Between 7 and 8pm EST, nine states will see voting end.
Results at this stage may give a skewed view of how it’s going for each candidate. Mr Trump is expected to receive the largest share of electoral college votes from this first round of states, so an apparent early lead can be expected.
What will be more important at this point are two key battleground states: Georgia and North Carolina.
