We’ll start to see the first votes from the crucial Texas primaries at 8 p.m. ET, when polls close in most of the state.
However, the western edge of Texas, including El Paso, is in a different time zone, so polls there don’t close until 9 p.m. ET.
CNN doesn’t make projections in a race until the poll close time for the entire race, so you won’t see projections in statewide races, like senate or governor, until at least 9 p.m. ET. Polls in most of the state’s congressional districts close at 8 p.m. ET, so CNN may make projections in those races starting then.
While every election night is slightly different, vote reporting in Texas typically starts pretty quickly. In November 2024, more than half of the vote was reported in the first hour, largely as counties reported votes from early and mail ballots. Nearly 90% of the vote was in by midnight and very little vote was left to report after Wednesday morning.
The first results of the 2026 primary season will come from North Carolina, where all polls close at 7:30 p.m. ET. In November 2024, less than a fifth of the vote was in by 8:30, but more than half had been reported by 9:30, and more than 90% at midnight. By 2:30 in the morning, nearly all the vote had been reported.
All polls in Arkansas close an hour later at 8:30 p.m. ET. About a quarter of the vote was reported in the first hour in 2024 and more than 90% was in by midnight.