As of 8:40 p.m. Nov. 5:
Elections have now been underway for the past 14 hours, with states Alabama, Arkansas Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington, D.C. closing all of their polls.
AP News has called the states Indiana, Kentucky, West Virginia Tennessee, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Arkansas for former President Donald J. Trump. Vice President Kamala Harris received electoral votes from Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maryland and New Jersey.
In New York State, all polls will be closing at 9 p.m. Commissioner of The Ulster County Board of Elections, Ashley Torres, told The Oracle that results of local elections are expected to be on time. “We do not expect any delays in how we report results. Just after 9 p.m., we will be uploading a large batch of data. Approx. 46,764 ballots have already been cast between early vote by mail, absentee and early voting in person,” Torres said.
Those ballots represent 35% of the total registered voters in Ulster County. This is only the second presidential election in New York State that has had early voting as an option, the first being the 2020 election. “The early voting turnout was robust, and it was 17% higher than 2020,” Torres said. “2020 was an extraordinary circumstance so we aren’t basing any trends off of that election,” continued Torres. “I consider this the first presidential election year that will set a standard going forward.”
The ballot includes contested positions across the legislature. For United States Senator, incumbent Democrat Kirsten E. Gillibrand is facing Republican Michael D. Sapraicone. For Representative in Congress of the 18th District, Incumbent Democrat Pat Ryan will be facing Republican Alison Esposito. For Senate Senator of the 41st District, Incumbent Democrat Michelle Hinchey will be up against Republican Patrick Sheehan. For Member of Assembly of the 103rd District, Incumbent Democrat Sarahana Shrestha will face Republican Jack Hayes. New Paltz voters will learn of these local elections results within the next few hours.
Dr. Daniel Lipson, associate professor of political science, commented on the possibility of a Republican dominion within New York’s legislative bodies. “If Republicans win a “royal flush” (winning the House, Senate, and presidency), then we must take seriously the possibility of some version of a radical right-wing agenda being enacted. House Speaker Mike Johnson and Trump have signaled their criticism of the CHIP Act, which is bringing tens of thousands of high-paying jobs (not requiring college diplomas) in the semiconductor chip manufacturing industry to central New York … as well as the Capital Region and Hudson Valley.”
Further updates in regards to the federal, state, and local elections are soon to come.
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