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By Anna Skinner
Associate News Editor
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The midterm elections take place on Tuesday, and voters are finalizing their plans on when they will cast their vote before the polls close.
The election will determine which party controls Congress as Republicans seek to defend their House and Senate majorities and Democrats look to capitalize on competitive races that could flip control of both chambers to their favor. Early voting has already taken place, and many states have seen strong turnout, including Texas, where early voting began with a record 19 million registered voters eligible to cast ballots.
Millions of Americans nationwide have yet to cast their ballot, and voters hoping to vote in-person on Election Day should be aware that poll schedules vary depending on the state. Poll lines can be long, but as long as voters are in line before the polls close, they will be allowed to vote.
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What Time Do Polls Close in Each State?
Polling place schedules vary depending on the state, with most opening in the early morning and closing at either 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. The closing time for polls in each state is listed below in local time.
- Alabama: 7 p.m.
- Alaska: 8 p.m.
- Arizona: 7 p.m.
- Arkansas: 7:30 p.m.
- California: 8 p.m.
- Colorado: 7 p.m.
- Connecticut: 8 p.m.
- Delaware: 8 p.m.
- Washington, D.C.: 8 p.m.
- Florida: 7 p.m.
- Georgia: 7 p.m.
- Hawaii: 7 p.m.
- Idaho: 8 p.m.
- Illinois: 7 p.m.
- Indiana: 6 p.m.
- Iowa: 8 p.m.
- Kansas: 7 p.m.
- Kentucky: 6 p.m.
- Louisiana: 8 p.m.
- Maine: 8 p.m.
- Maryland: 8 p.m.
- Massachusetts: 8 p.m.
- Michigan: 8 p.m.
- Minnesota: 8 p.m.
- Mississippi: 7 p.m.
- Missouri: 7 p.m.
- Montana: 8 p.m.
- Nebraska: 8 p.m.
- Nevada: 7 p.m.
- New Hampshire: 8 p.m.
- New Jersey: 8 p.m.
- New Mexico: 7 p.m.
- New York: 9 p.m.
- North Carolina: 7:30 p.m.
- North Dakota: 7 p.m.
- Ohio: 7:30 p.m.
- Oklahoma: 7 p.m.
- Oregon: 8 p.m.
- Pennsylvania: 8 p.m.
- Rhode Island: 8 p.m.
- South Carolina: 7 p.m.
- South Dakota: 7 p.m.
- Tennessee: 7 p.m.
- Texas: 7 p.m.
- Utah: 8 p.m.
- Vermont: 7 p.m.
- Virginia: 7 p.m.
- Washington: 8 p.m.
- West Virginia: 7:30 p.m.
- Wisconsin: 8 p.m.
- Wyoming: 7 p.m.
A map created by Newsweek also shows the time polls close.
Voting results will begin to trickle in as early as 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. Eastern time. However, since polls don't close until as late as 11 p.m. Eastern time for Western states, nationwide results likely won't be available until very late.
By 11 p.m. Eastern time, many key Senate race results will have taken shape, though some contests might still be too close to call. Major news organizations often project winners before all ballots are counted when the remaining vote is unlikely to change the outcome, but some races may not be called on election night and control of Congress could still be unresolved.
Which Polls Are Open Latest in the US?
The state with polls open the latest local time is New York, where polls close at 9 p.m. Eastern time. Polls close the earliest in Indiana and Kentucky at 6 p.m.
Which Senate Races are Highly Contested?
There are several key Senate races unfolding this year that will determine control of Congress. Republicans are trying to fight off a blue wave to defend their narrow majority. Democrats need a net gain of four seats to win control of the Senate and a net gain of three seats to win control of the House.
Some of the most competitive Senate races include:
- Texas Senate: Republican Ken Paxton vs. Democrat James Talarico
- Michigan Senate: Republican Mike Rogers vs. Democrat Abdul El-Sayed
- Alaska Senate: Republican Dan Sullivan vs. Democrat Mary Peltola
- Maine Senate: Republican Susan Collins vs. Democrat Troy Jackson
- Iowa Senate: Republican Ashley Hinson vs. Democrat Josh Turek
Do You Need to Bring Anything With You to Vote?
Thirty-six states require voters to bring some form of identification with them to vote. Voter identification laws in effect are as follows, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL):
- Photo identification required: Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Kansas.
- Non-photo identification required: Arizona, Wyoming, North Dakota, and Iowa
- Non-strict photo identification required: Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Alabama, South Carolina, Kentucky, West Virginia, Rhode Island, Michigan, Missouri, South Dakota, Nebraska, Montana, and Idaho.
- Non-strict, non-photo identification required: Alaska, Washington, Utah, Colorado, Oklahoma, Virginia, Delaware, and Connecticut.
- No document required: Hawaii, California, Oregon, Nevada, New Mexico, Minnesota, Illinois, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, and Maine.
Where photo identification is required, a driver's license, state-issued identification card, military ID, tribal ID and many other forms of ID are acceptable. For non-strict requirements, there are avenues for voters to still cast a vote without their ID, such as signing an affidavit of identity or if a poll worker vouches for them, according to NCSL. Non-photo identification can be a bank statement or other document that has the voter's name and address on it.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Samantha Beech and Emma Lee-Sang
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