Monday, November 01, 2004
Early indications on election night
Other than exit polls, what are some indications of how the election is going? Since I have some money on the line tomorrow night, this is a question I have given a fair amount of thought. Since the networks are likely to be significantly more cautious about calling states this time around (nobody wants to issue another Florida retraction!), if the vote is close, it may be late in the night before key states like Ohio and Florida are called. But clues can be gleaned from which other states are called and the timing of the calls. Based on this timeline of election night 2000, I've drawn up a set of guidelines.
Ohio: If PA and MI are called at 5pm (all times are PST), it means Kerry is ahead by more than 5 points in these states, and he will likely win Ohio. If neither PA or MI is called by 6pm, Kerry probably loses Ohio. If WV is called before PA or MI, Kerry probably loses Ohio.
Florida: The networks will be especially cautious about calling the Sunshine State this time around. If FL is called for either candidate by 6pm, when the polls close in the panhandle, it means that candidate has a significant enough lead in FL that he will almost certainly win the election.
New Hampshire: If ME (3 of 4 EV's) is called at 5pm, Kerry probably wins NH. If either NH or ME (CD 2) is called for Kerry by 6pm, Kerry likely wins the other one too.
Iowa and Wisconsin: If MN is called before both MO and AR, Kerry probably wins IA and WI. If one of MN is called after one of MO, AR but before the other, Bush has the edge in IA and WI. If both MO and AR are both called before MN, Kerry probably loses IA and WI.
Southwest: This is the trickiest region, because there are four closely related states (NM, NV, CO, AZ). If it comes to this point, we will likely find ourselves wanting to know whether Bush has a chance in NM, or whether Kerry has a chance in NV. If either AZ or CO is called by 8pm, then Bush has a good shot in NM. If NM is called for Kerry by 8pm, or AZ is not called by 9pm, then Kerry has a good shot in NV.
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Ohio: If PA and MI are called at 5pm (all times are PST), it means Kerry is ahead by more than 5 points in these states, and he will likely win Ohio. If neither PA or MI is called by 6pm, Kerry probably loses Ohio. If WV is called before PA or MI, Kerry probably loses Ohio.
Florida: The networks will be especially cautious about calling the Sunshine State this time around. If FL is called for either candidate by 6pm, when the polls close in the panhandle, it means that candidate has a significant enough lead in FL that he will almost certainly win the election.
New Hampshire: If ME (3 of 4 EV's) is called at 5pm, Kerry probably wins NH. If either NH or ME (CD 2) is called for Kerry by 6pm, Kerry likely wins the other one too.
Iowa and Wisconsin: If MN is called before both MO and AR, Kerry probably wins IA and WI. If one of MN is called after one of MO, AR but before the other, Bush has the edge in IA and WI. If both MO and AR are both called before MN, Kerry probably loses IA and WI.
Southwest: This is the trickiest region, because there are four closely related states (NM, NV, CO, AZ). If it comes to this point, we will likely find ourselves wanting to know whether Bush has a chance in NM, or whether Kerry has a chance in NV. If either AZ or CO is called by 8pm, then Bush has a good shot in NM. If NM is called for Kerry by 8pm, or AZ is not called by 9pm, then Kerry has a good shot in NV.
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