TOLEDO, Ohio — Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose addressed the issue of when Ohioans can expect to see election results in a year when a large portion of the electorate is expected to vote absentee.
In a video posted Monday on Twitter, the secretary starts by rebutting a New York Times reporter.
"I couldn't help but notice this tweet from a New York Times reporter, here's what he says, and I want to make sure Ohioans are on the same sheet of music and have accurate information here. He says, 'Fasten your seatbelts, Ohio results. Won't be known for at least 10 days after Nov. 3,'" he said.
LaRose went on to say when his office reports election night votes, those are always unofficial results. Regardless of the manner in which the ballot was cast (absentee voting, early voting, or in-person voting on Nov. 3), every vote that comes in by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day is reported, he said.
Usually, those unofficial results come out Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.
"We're never going to sacrifice accuracy for speed. Getting accurate information is always the top priority. Here's something else that we're doing this year. This is the first time that we've done this. We are also going to be reporting the number of outstanding absentee ballots," LaRose continued.
This means that as long as a ballot is legally cast and postmarked by Nov. 2, it has up to 10 days to arrive at the board of elections. This way, the secretary of state's office is able to track how many outstanding absentee ballots are expected to be counted.
"On election night, you'll be able to look at how many votes candidate A got, how many votes candidate B got, and you'll be able to know if those are unofficial results are conclusive or not," LaRose said.
After the 10-day period for ballots to arrive at the boards of elections, the next time the secretary of state's office is able to report a result, under Ohio law, is when the final certification happens, LaRose said.
The secretary added the official result could take three weeks or more to be out after the election.
LaRose also said this has been the case for Ohio for a long time and it's nothing new.
