Vote counting continues for days (and in some cases weeks) after Election Day to ensure every valid ballot is counted. All results reported until the ballots have been fully and accurately counted are unofficial. This includes continuing to process military and absentee ballots, adding verified provisional ballots, and conducting a process known as a canvass where election officials examine vote totals to make sure they are correct and free of clerical errors. Once the votes have been certified, the winner is declared for all Federal offices, including President.
News outlets publish real-time vote counts from local reporting locations and other sources like government websites as they become available. During this stage, small differences in vote counts between different media outlets may occur, as each outlet allocates its resources differently and some places report their results faster than others. These differences reflect the individual choices made by each media outlet and do not reflect any inconsistencies in the actual vote count.
Research suggests that uncertainty about election outcomes can lead to anxiety, and people are more likely to experience these emotions when they have high expectations of the outcome of a given race (Kuru, Pasek and Manski 2012; Delavande, Gentzkow and Shapiro 2021). The best way to reduce this kind of tension is by staying informed with reputable sources such as AP and Reuters, and avoiding sensational headlines on social media or platforms like TikTok, which can increase stress and feelings of instability.