A look at the map shows that, 48 hours after Election Day, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada and Alaska hold the keys to the biggest question in the country. And video shows the not knowing is pushing tensions in some of those states, and across the country, to an all-time high.
Here in Texas, there's no question President Donald Trump won by a wide margin. And that was information the whole country had on election night.
“Texas has an advantage because the larger counties: Harris, Tarrant, Dallas -- even Nueces county – because of the size of their county, 100,oo0, they’re allowed to start counting their early and mail-in ballots before Election Day,” he said. “So for that reason, they’re able to process those ballots quicker and get those results out faster than other states across the country.”
Smith said that if other states were like Texas and had the ability to start counting the votes before Election Day, more information would likely be available than what the country has now. He also said it would take a change in federal law for other states to be able do the same.
"If you were to change it election-to-election, it would cause more uncertainy and more frustration amongst the voters,” he said.
In Nueces County, for example, county clerk Kara Sands said she had election results online 15 minutes after the polls closed. And all those votes were counted before Election Day.
Officials said Texas had roughly three to five days before the election to count the ballots.
State election officials in Pennsylvania, for instance, one of the hotly contested states, only were allowed to count the votes after the polls closed.
Some states even allow three to four days to process mail-in ballots - as long as it is postmarked by Election Day.
“Some people are saying Democrats are trying to steal the election with all this going on,” Smith said. “Untrue. In part, because every vote matters and whether it's Election Day, early voting, or mail-in ballot, those votes have a right to be counted, and those voters have a right to have their voices heard.”
