It is possible we might know the Georgia results on Tues nite - the tabulations start just after polls close 7p EST, and the election workers can prep the mail-in ballots to be able to insert them into the counting machines. They have approximately 1 million mail-ins and 2.1 million early voter ballots already.
For several reasons, it’s unlikely that it will take as long to count the votes in the two runoff elections that will determine control of the Senate, which are arriving at the finish line on Tuesday. It’s even possible — but certainly not guaranteed — that we’ll know who won on Tuesday night, or very early Wednesday.
Two factors work in favor of a faster count this time around. First, fewer races are on the ballot, which means less work for election officials. Second, after the general election, the Georgia State Election Board enacted a rule requiring counties to begin processing early and absentee ballots at least a week before future elections.
Officials can’t actually count the ballots until the polls close, but they can do all the time-consuming prep work. That means votes cast before election day — more than three million, according to Gabriel Sterling, a top state election official — should already be compiled, and pretty much all officials will need to do Tuesday night is hit “tabulate.