As with previous elections, many citizens and news outlets will turn to the Associated Press for the results of tonight’s races. The AP began calling elections in 1848, though their process has changed over time. The Guardian’s Joan E. Greve reported, “…the AP will rely on 4,000 reporters to report vote totals.” Those reporters are on the ground at election offices, calling into the AP’s vote entry team to report results.

In explaining the process, David Scott, the AP’s vice president and head of news operations and strategy, told The Guardian: “We’re able to just do that verification in real time, and it helps avoid fat-finger mistakes. So it is a little analog, but we feel it’s the process that still works the best for us.”

When it comes to calling races early, Scott added, “The question we ask ourselves before we declare a winner is: is there any chance the trailing candidate can catch the leader? If there’s a chance of that, then we don’t call it. We wait.”

Other major networks utilize two different polling systems that survey the American electorate to provide race projections. According to Vox, AP and Fox News use AP VoteCast, which uses large-scale online surveys of registered voters “in an attempt to get the most accurate information from the most representative sample.” ABC News, CBS News, CNN and NBC News are part of the National Election Pool, which takes results from national exit polls and uses them to project a race’s winner. The results of exit polls are not reported by NEP members until after 5 p.m. ET. Results indicative of an outcome cannot be released until after all polling places in that state are scheduled to close.

WEBN-TV and the Emerson Channel will host a live election show at 8 p.m. from the Journalism Production Center and the DuBona Family Studios. Crews of student reporters will update viewers on the presidential and congressional elections, offer analysis through panel discussions, and provide student reactions from several locations, from Washington, D.C. to Emerson’s Bill Bordy Theatre, where an election watch party is slated to take place beginning at 7 p.m.

In a promotional article posted to WEBN’s website, web producer Madison Lucchesi said, “Students have been preparing for this election special all semester with teams creating social media content, writing show scripts and conducting recorded interviews.”

Multiple organizations are offering free or discounted transportation options to make getting to the polls easier for voters. 

Bluebikes, a Boston bike rental company, will offer free, two-hour ride sessions for local voters. To access these, voters need to download the app, select “rewards,” and enter the code “BCBSMAVOTE.” Voters can obtain a bike from one of the over 480 stations around the city. 

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) will provide voters with two free Lyft rides up to $20 each with the code “NAACPVOTE24.” The offer only applies while supplies last. 

Both Lyft and Uber are offering a 50% discount on rides to polling places, providing up to $10 in savings. To access these, enter the code “VOTE24” in the Lyft app or select the “Go Vote” button in the Uber app.

Vice presidential candidate and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz landed at Logan International Airport at 4:05 p.m. on Oct. 20 for a fundraiser appearance on behalf of the Harris Victory Fund at the Boch Center in Boston’s theater district.

Read more about this here. 

Republican Sen. JD Vance and Democratic Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota took to the debate stage for the first and only time on Oct. 1 in New York City.

The debate came 33 days before Election Day and in the wake of President Joe Biden leaving the presidential race and two attempted assassinations of former President Donald Trump.

Recent polls indicate that Vice President Kamala Harris and Trump are locked in a tight race. While the debate between Walz and Vance could give voters a lasting impression on the vice presidential nominees, vice presidential debates historically don’t have a meaningful impact on elections and usually garner lower ratings.

The 90-minute match-up steered clear of personal attacks and focused on policies and digs at the running mates’ opposing presidential nominees.

Read more about this here. 

“If I saw JD Vance on the street, I wouldn’t cower. I wouldn’t avert my eyes, and I certainly wouldn’t step out of his way. But rest assured, I am afraid of Vance,” said Opinion Co-Editor Ella Duggan.

Read this opinion piece here. 

This year’s presidential race will likely come down to voters in just seven states. Wisconsin, labeled a “toss-up” state, is highly unpredictable, but has the potential to put one candidate over the top with its 10 votes in the Electoral College, as it did for President Joe Biden in 2020. The winner of the state has gone on to win the White House in the past four elections.

Read more about this here. 

Minutes after the first presidential debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump in Philadelphia concluded, campaign surrogates flooded into the spin room at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, where 1,000 journalists convened.

The spin room was filled with surrogates, other lawmakers, public figures campaigning for Trump and Harris, well-known political advisors, and special interest group representatives.

Read more about this here. 

Donald Trump and Kamala Harris faced each other on the debate stage on Sept. 10 for the first and only time, and the mics are finally off—for now.

The highly anticipated 90-minute matchup allowed Harris to spotlight her policy goals—which she made public right before the debate—and public speaking skills on a national stage for the first time. The former president faced a new competitor at his seventh general election debate with less than two months until Election Day.

Read more about this here. 

“I am tired of listening to our political candidates talk about healing our nation, bringing the country back together again, and being a president for all Americans “regardless of political party.” Fixing our political process is not about emotional healing, or subscribing to murky, watered-down, ethically noncommittal policies. It is about the time-honored slugfest of concrete political compromise. And this task requires political bravery,” writes guest author J. L. McCormick.

Read this opinion piece here. 

Kayla Armbruster was surprised when President Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, but threw her support behind Harris after she named Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate.

“I truly do think that his ideas align with me and my personal ethics as a human being, far more than I’ve seen pretty much any other major politician that has been on a presidential ticket,” Armbruster, a senior political communications major, said.

Read more reactions here. 

Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz held their first rally in August at The Liacouras Center at Temple University in Philadelphia.

Harris announced Walz as her running mate the morning of the rally and later released the phone call where she asked Walz to round out the Democratic ticket.

Read more about this here.

“Social media is an increasingly relied upon tool of political communication for young people. Think of social media as the language we speak. Call it brain rot, call it jargon, but it’s still a medium of social interaction and grounds upon which to host discourse in the form of comment sections, Instagram polls, and TikTok trends. And sometimes, those conversations may be fruitful,” writes Beacon Correspondent Meg Richards.

Read this opinion piece here.

President Joe Biden spoke from the Oval Office in July to address why he decided to drop out of the presidential race and endorse Vice President Kamala Harris.

In his first public address since his announcement Sunday, Biden, 81, said while his record as president could afford him a second term, nothing could come in the way of “protecting American democracy,” including personal ambition.

“This sacred task of perfecting our Union is not about me, but about you, your families, your futures. It’s about ‘We the People,’” Biden said in the 10-minute address.

Biden became the first U.S. president to announce he would not be seeking a second term in office since 1968 when Lyndon B. Johnson announced he would not seek reelection during the growing political unrest over the Vietnam War.

“I revere this office,” Biden said. “But I love my country more.”

Read more about this here.

Vice President Kamala Harris announced her run for Democratic nomination for president in July, after President Joe Biden announced he would stand down as the Democratic party’s nominee in a letter posted on social media.

Read more about this here.