Yuma election workers continue to count record number of early ballots
News 11's Adonis Albright explains when you'll begin to see early election results
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - Yuma County election officials have been working around the clock to make sure voters' voices are heard on Election Day.
Workers began counting early ballots last week, but because of the record-breaking turnout, it could take some time for them to finish the process.
“The final count I would not expect the night of the election or even the following morning, there’ll be a lot of things left over to be counted, provisional and things like that”, said Kevin Tunell, Public Information Officer for Yuma County.
Statewide, election officials have received 2.3 million early ballots. It’s the first time this many people have voted early in Arizona history.
It’s unclear if the volume of early ballots will reduce typically long lines seen during a Presidential Election, but the county urges patience.
“Anybody that’s in line by 7 PM will still get to vote, let’s be clear about that. And particularly with an election like this, lines can be long at that time of the evening so we’re asking people to please be patient.” said Tunell.
Tunell says Arizonans can expect to see the first results coming in around 8 Tuesday night. That's about an hour after the polls close. He estimates most of the tally will come from the early ballots already counted.
As for when Arizona can start to see the first round of results begin to come in, the earliest they can be released is after 8 PM. The majority of those results will more than likely be early voting results officials have been tabulating for the past couple of weeks.
For those planning to vote in person, be aware mask and social distancing requirements will be enforced at the polls.
For a full list of polling places, both in Yuma County and in the Imperial Valley, just log onto our Decision 2020 page.
Also visit our 2020 Voter's Guide for profiles of your local, state, and federal candidates, and a break down of all the ballot propositions.
And be sure to join the News 11 and 13 On Your Side teams for complete Election Night coverage on air, online, or on our free mobile app.
