Yahoo News What time is the exit poll today and when will we know who won the election?
When polls close today after a six-week general election campaign, Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer will face a tense wait for results from the UK’s 650 constituencies to find out who will become the next prime minister.
The exit poll, at 10pm tonight, will give the Prime Minister and the Labour leader a snapshot of what to expect nationally, before the first results start to trickle in across the following hours.
Until then, the final opinion polls are in and all of them predict disaster for the Tories. In each case Labour is projected to win by a landslide, with some suggesting Sir Keir could achieve a greater victory margin than Sir Tony Blair in 1997.
But there remain uncertainties. The polls are still reporting that on average those who voted Conservative in 2019 are twice as likely as those who voted Labour to say that they do not know how they will vote today.
Many undecideds are as unhappy with the Conservatives as those who say they are going to vote differently this time around – they just are not sure what to do as a result.
But when can we expect to know the result of today’s election for certain?
What time is the UK exit poll?
The exit poll will be announced at 10pm today, just as voting ends and polling stations across the country close.
It offers a unique window on the outcome, and has an impressive track record of accurately forecasting the results.
With little campaigning taking place today, talk will turn to lighter subjects such as the dogs spotted outside polling stations, to help pass the time ahead of the all-important exit poll.
What is the exit poll?
The exit poll is a survey of voters taken from about 150 constituencies in England, Scotland and Wales which gives a strong indication of the likely result.
People at each station are approached at random and handed a replica ballot. The voter then privately fills in the ballot to indicate how they voted and puts it into a box.
The forecasts made for each constituency are also influenced by what is known about people who live there, for example how they voted in the 2016 EU referendum.
When will today’s election results be announced?
Most of the constituency results are expected in the early hours of Friday morning, as hundreds are announced across the country, with the final seats projected to announce their winning candidates by 7am.
In 2019, the first declaration came at 11.27pm when Newcastle City Council beat local rival Sunderland to announce Chi Onwurah, Labour’s candidate, as the first MP of the new parliament.
The record for the earliest declaration remains 10.43pm by the former seat of Sunderland South in 2001.
Use our tool below to find out when your constituency is expected to declare:
When will we know who won?
Around an hour or so after the exit poll at 10pm, results from the election will begin to trickle in, with the first declaration expected to be the new constituency of Blyth and Ashington at 11:30pm.
By 3am on Friday, the slow trickle will become a rush. Arguably, this begins the most consequential part of the night, as results are expected from more than two thirds of constituencies by 5am.
It should be clear who has won not long after this point, but leaders will have to wait until one party receives enough votes for a majority under the first-past-the-post electoral system before it can be called officially.
By 7am almost all the remaining seats will have declared and the country could be waking up to news of a new government in Westminster, or perhaps even a stunning Tory escape from the electoral wipeout pollsters have consistently predicted for them.
Regardless of the results, at this point the party leaders will be preparing to address the nation and political commentators will begin an election debrief that is sure to continue for days.
When was the 2019 election result called?
Boris Johnson won a landslide victory for the Tories in 2019 after selling the public on his mandate to “get Brexit done”.
The first exit poll came back as Big Ben struck 10pm and polling stations closed nationwide, while Mr Johnson’s overall majority was confirmed at 5am.
By 7am, it became clear the Tories were on course for their biggest majority at Westminster since that of Margaret Thatcher.
