As Election Day approaches, voters in Oregon are being advised to expect delays in receiving outcomes for some of the most closely-watched races due to factors such as the new ranked-choice voting system and a trend of voters waiting until the last minute to turn in their ballots. While preliminary results will be available at 8 p.m. on Election Day, it may take days for final results to be determined.
Election officials have assured voters that the delay in results is normal and does not indicate any issues with the counting process. The ballots submitted on Election Day will be counted and included in the official results, but may not be processed in time for the initial results report. As a result, updates on close races, such as the fight for Oregon’s 5th Congressional District and the Portland mayor’s race, may take some time to be determined.
In addition, the adoption of ranked-choice voting in Portland’s council and mayoral races adds to the complexity of the process, potentially prolonging the time it takes to call races. The new system allows voters to rank up to six candidates, with votes being reallocated until a candidate receives more than 50% of the vote.
While Multnomah County plans to release just one results report for the ranked-choice races on election night, the rest of the results will be updated throughout the night. Ultimately, election officials will continue to process ballots until the certification deadline on Dec. 2 to ensure as many votes as possible are counted.
Overall, the electoral process in Oregon is designed to make voting as accessible as possible for eligible voters, even if it means taking more time for election administrators to process and count the ballots.
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Photo credit www.oregonlive.com