Arizona ballot leaders could change quickly on Election Night
Oct 14, 2020, 4:45 AM | Updated: 12:59 pm
(AP Photos)
(AP Photos)
PHOENIX — The leading presidential candidate could change quickly depending on where votes are coming from on Election Night in Arizona and other states.
“Beware, when you see the results on Election Night by state, the overall totals don’t matter unless you know where that vote came from,” KTAR News 92.3 FM Political Analyst Mike O’Neil said.
Maricopa County tabulates its early ballots on a computer that is not connected to the internet. Around 8 p.m. on Election Night, officials transfer the data to a computer with internet connectivity for upload to the Arizona Secretary of State’s office.
The results of those early ballots will be the first announced on Nov. 3.
“The early voting, the mail-in voting, almost everywhere is going to be heavily a Biden vote,” O’Neil said.
“On the flip side, I can tell you that the people who vote on the day of the election are heavily Trump voters.”
President Donald Trump has expressed distrust of mail-in voting. His opponent, former Vice President Joe Biden, has told voters to cast their ballots as soon as possible during early voting.
He also said swing states like Michigan won’t start counting absentee ballots until after the polls close, fearing leaks.
“There’s never been a leak of those in Arizona,” O’Neil said. “You’ve got a plate on the machines that has the tally. Nobody’s allowed to look at it and nobody ever has.”
