By james art 
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – The polls are just two hours away from closing on one of the biggest election days in American history.
Both presidential candidates would lead first to the role.
Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris will be the first woman elected president of the United States and only the second black person to lead the nation.
And if GOP nominee Donald Trump returns, he would be the first convicted felon to win the nation’s highest elected office.
Many voters may have a long night – or even several days – ahead of them as they await the results. Americans are unlikely to learn the outcome of this year’s presidential race on November 5, Election Day.
Regardless of the timeline, WCTV will be with you every step of the way. Our team will cover races from the local level to the US presidential race.
- Cody Butler Florida’s Amendment 3 and Amendment 4 results will follow.
- Brianna Shaw will oversee the race for Leon County Superintendent of Schools. Incumbent Rocky Hanna (D) faces challenger Joe Burgess (NPA), the principal of Chiles High School.
- Savannah Kelly reports on one of the most contested and highly publicized races: the race for Florida Senate District 3 between Republican incumbent Corey Simon and Democratic challenger Darryl Parks.
- Zach Dahlheimer will provide continuous coverage of voter turnout and election results throughout the country. He will also be in conversation with WCTV political analyst Dr. Lona Atkeson, professor of political science at Florida State University.
- Matthew Hoffman reports on the race between Tallahassee Mayor Pro Tem Curtis Richardson and former Mayor Dot Inman-Johnson for City Commission Seat 2.
- An.d Stacey Innes reports on the race for the Leon County Board of County Commissioners District 4 seat between incumbent Brian Welch and Isaac Montilla.
This live blog will be constantly updated throughout the evening with local and national election reports.
Why the wait?
US elections are highly decentralized and complex. While uncontested or close contests can be declared immediately after the polls close, contested races can take days or even weeks to be declared. And while some states like Florida count most of the ballots on Election Day, other states like California can take weeks.
The reasons are mostly procedural. Accurately counting votes takes time, especially when it involves millions of mail-in ballots. Legal challenges, audits and recounts can also lengthen the time it takes to determine the result.
Election officials are warning Americans to be patient. What may appear to be a delay is part of the normal process and not a sign of anything criminal. They warn that just because a candidate has declared victory does not make it true.
In fact, the United States does not have a nationwide body that collects and publishes election results. Instead, journalists collect data from local and state agencies that report election results publicly. The Associated Press collects this data and makes it available to the public and other newsrooms to count the votes and then announce the winners. And the news agency has been doing this in presidential elections since 1848. Learn more about this process here.
Live Updates:
Tuesday, 5 p.m. by reporter Brianna Shaw:
Brianna Shaw will oversee the race for Leon County Superintendent of Schools. Incumbent Rocky Hannah (D) faces challenger Joe Burgess (NPA).
Both candidates have focused on school safety, teacher retention and recruitment, and student success during their campaigns.
Both bring decades of experience in the public school system to the table. Hanna is running for her third term as superintendent and Burgess is principal at Chiles High School.
Hanna says if re-elected, he will use his last four years to craft a strategy to move the needle on teacher pay to keep teachers in the district and attract more. It also seeks to continue capital projects that aim to improve share one schools.
On the other side of the ticket, Burgess says if elected, he would advocate for higher pay for teachers and general pay for support staff.
Tuesday 5pm by reporter Stacey Innes:
Stacey Innes reports on the Leon County District Council race, District 4 seat between Brian Welch and Isaac Montilla.
Montilla is running against Welch for the position, while Welch currently serves as the 2023-2024 Board of County Commissioners Vice Chair. Welch was elected to the board in 2020.
Tuesday 5pm by reporter Savannah Kelly:
Savannah Kelly reports on one of the most contested and highly publicized races between Republican incumbent Corey Simon and Democratic challenger Darryl Parks for Florida’s 3rd Senate District.
Simon is running for re-election after two years in office. Parks is a civil rights attorney based in Tallahassee.
Republicans have a supermajority in the Florida Senate, meaning at least two-thirds of senators are Republicans. If Parks wins that seat, it could open the way for Democrats to shift that supermajority. They need to win at least two seats in the Senate to break that supermajority.
Tuesday 17:00 by reporter Matt Hoffman:
Matthew Hoffman reports on the race between Tallahassee Mayor Pro Tem Curtis Richardson and former Mayor Dot Inman-Johnson for City Commission Seat 2.
For local elections, a huge amount of money has gone into this race as the more progressive Inman-Johnson tries to unseat longtime incumbent Curtis Richardson.
“This is about the people of Tallahassee,” Inman-Johnson said. “It’s about realigning what the city does so that they really address the issues of the people of Tallahassee.”
Richardson currently serves as an alternate behind Mayor John Daley, but if Inman-Johnson wins more votes by the end of Tuesday night, the faction led by Commissioner Jeremy Matlow will be in charge.
To keep up with all the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on Facebook and X (Twitter).
Got a news tip or see a bug that needs fixing? Write us here. Please include the title of the article in your message.
Keep up with all the biggest headlines in the WCTV News app. Click here to download it now.
Copyright 2024 WCTV. All rights reserved.