Few U.S. Elections Kept Voters Waiting for Results

According to information gathered from media report, the current wait for the U.S. presidential election result has been the second longest since the 1960s. Only on one other occasion did the day after the election pass without a concession speech from the unsuccessful candidate, as our graphic shows.

The day after the infamous presidential election of 2000 actually featured a concession, to be precise, but one that was later taken back by Democratic candidate Al Gore. It wasn’t until 36 days and a recount in Florida later that Gore conceded for a final time, on December 13.

Many presidential races of the last 60 years actually were a lot less close than this year’s election, allowing for them to be called before midnight East Coast time on Election Day. This was the case on the night of Richard Nixon’s re-election in 1972, for example. Democratic challenger George McGovern only won one state, Massachusetts, and Washington D.C., allowing for the race to be called early and McGovern to concede before midnight on the East Coast. Ronald Reagan’s re-election in 1984 was a landslide of similar proportions, with Democratic contender Walter Mondale taking only his home state Minnesota and Washington D.C.