HENRICO COUNTY, Va. — With less than 24 hours until the polls open, the final pieces of the puzzle headed out the door of the Henrico County registrar's office Monday, as voting precinct captains pick up what they need to run their polling places around the county.
"'I voted' stickers, pens to mark the ballots, all types of forms and envelopes that they will need to fill out all the paperwork to get complete results on election night," said Henrico County Director of Elections Mark Coakley.
Early voting wrapped on Saturday, and director Mark Coakley says over 86,000 Henrico residents cast a ballot in person or by mail.
Statewide, the total number of early votes was 2,290,000, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.
On Election Day, polls will open at 6 a.m. and close at 7 p.m., at which point precincts around the state will begin counting ballots.
"We do not hit print totals on that scanner until 7 p.m. election night," Coakley said.
Coakley says over the coming days they'll also check and count provisional ballots and mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day that arrive by noon on Friday.
But he stresses that all their totals are considered unofficial until they're certified next week.
"We've never quite seen a campaign for president like we're watching now," CBS 6 Political Analyst Dr. Bob Holsworth said.
As for how to interpret those results CBS 6 Political Analyst Dr. Bob Holsworth says for the presidential race he's looking at swing counties like Chesterfield, which went for Democratic President Joe Biden in 2020 and Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin in 2021.
"Can he do as well as Glenn Youngkin, who carried Virginia by a small margin? And if he doesn't, I think it's going to be a very long night for Trump supporters in Virginia now," Youngkin said.
Statewide, Holsworth reminds people of what he calls the "red mirage" -- where smaller, Republican-leaning counties may report their totals faster giving Republicans an early lead until more populated Democratic-leaning counties and cities start reporting.
Coakley says delays can be impacted by the number of votes the machines need to count.
"Some other localities may have quicker machines or smaller turnout," Coakley said. "Your Fairfaxes and your Prince Williams and your Virginia Beaches may take longer. It just depends on the number of voting machines they have and how many ballots are on each machine."
As for the Congressional races that will determine who controls the House and Senate, Holsworth says he's watching the 7th and 2nd House districts.
"The 7th district, which is Abigail Spanberger's seat, if that actually switches parties, if Derek Anderson is able to beat Eugene Vindman, that would be a very good sign for Republicans," Holsworth said. "At the same time if the Democrats are actually able to unseat Jen Kiggans in Virginia Beach with Missy Smasal. What that's going to show you is that this is a very, very good night for the Democrats."
Coakley reminds those planning to vote tomorrow, that if you are doing so near the end of the day, as long as you are in line by 7 p.m. when the polls close, you will be allowed to cast your ballot.
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