Officials in Arizona’s most populous county cautioned on Tuesday that it could take between 10 and 13 days to finalize the results of the Nov. 5 election.
“This year, we anticipate that it will require between 10 and 13 days to finish tabulating all of the ballots received,” she explained.
“We want to ensure that this process is secure, as well as accurate.”
“If I have one message for voters today, it is this: the increased number of ballots and heightened interest in the 2024 general election will result in longer lines on Election Day, and that’s okay,” mentioned Assistant Maricopa County Manager Zach Schira during the press conference, recommending that individuals vote early by mail or in person to avoid lengthy queues.
Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates disclosed that the extended tabulation period is due to the ballot consisting of two pages, numerous contests per ballot, and a heightened focus on the presidential election. He highlighted that more than 2.1 million Maricopa voters are anticipated to participate in the Nov. 5 contest, with 400,000 individuals having already voted.
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Arizona, recognized as a battleground state, is anticipated to once again have a closely contested race in the 2024 election. State election officials certified candidate Joe Biden as the winner over President Donald Trump by an approximately 11,000-vote margin in Arizona in 2020.
Following the 2020 election, Republicans and Trump alleged voter fraud in Arizona, leading to several lawsuits against Arizona and Maricopa County officials, all of which were eventually dismissed.
Maricopa County, home to Phoenix, is the most populous area in Arizona by a significant margin. As of March, it boasted a population of over 4.5 million residents, comprising more than half of the state’s total population.
Trump is slated to campaign in Arizona on Thursday, hosting a rally at Arizona State University’s arena in Tempe. Harris visited Arizona near the U.S.–Mexico border in late September, with her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, scheduled to revisit Arizona on Saturday with a visit to Navajo Nation.
Prior to his Arizona visit, Trump is set to headline a rally in Duluth, Georgia, on Wednesday alongside guests Tucker Carlson and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Vice President Kamala Harris is also concentrating on battleground states and will be journeying to the outskirts of Philadelphia to participate in a live CNN town hall event with undecided voters from Pennsylvania. An interview recorded with Telemundo, a Spanish-language network, on Tuesday is also set to air.
Reuters contributed to this report.
