When Will the New President Be Announced in 2024? Memories of 2020's Long Wait Is Making People Nervous

The 2024 election cycle has been an arduously long one. Usually, people can expect to be bombarded by campaign ads and non-stop political content for eight to 10 months prior to Election Day, but this year's cycle was extraordinarily long because one candidate, former President Donald Trump, announced his candidacy very early. By contrast, Vice President Kamala Harris has only been the Democrats' chosen candidate for a few months now.

That means people are well into a state of election fog and fatigue, and ready to just get it over with. With a high-stakes election just days away, people are starting to anxiously wonder: When will the new president be announced? And the answer may not make everyone happy.

Election Day 2024 is creeping closer. With a little over a week to go, it's a nail-biting time period for those who are anxious about election results. When the 2020 election occurred, there was a grueling four-day wait that held people in limbo.

As 2024 approaches, people are wondering if it will be another marathon rather than a sprint. And the answer seems to be yes; it may take a while before the winner is announced, especially if the results are tight and there are a lot of outstanding mail-in votes or issues with vote counting in some states. Everyone in the U.S. is eager to see Election Day come and go so the country can move forward, but the way the system works does not lend itself to ultra-rapid results anymore.

With an uptick in early voting after the pandemic, an increase in mail-in voting, and nerves around vote-counting machines, any number of variables could drive the wait into the hours-long or days-long range. There is some good news, however. Experts believe that the long wait of 2020 spurred necessary changes, which means that the wait this time should not be quite as long. Instead of nearly five days, voters could be looking at one or two days. In a best-case scenario, maybe just a few hours.

As voters prepare themselves for a wait of any kind and the results that have become so consequential for so many, the candidates are making a final push for votes.

Trump is appearing in his favorite rally locations and trying to drum up support among his die-hard voters. His approach seems to be simply using rallies for enthusiasm. Harris has brought together her crack team of endorsing politicos and celebrities and hopes that their presence will push on-the-fence voters in her direction.

Regardless of who wins after Election Day, this year's election promises to have ripple effects and impacts felt through the generations. As Trump's loading of the Supreme Court has proven through efforts such as the overturning of Roe V Wade, presidents may not be all-powerful on their own, but they can create great change for good or ill. With Gaza, abortion, education, and other issues on the minds of so many Americans, the Election Day wait will be a grueling one no matter how long or short.