Expect a relatively early night Saturday in South Carolina, where President Biden faces scant opposition in the first official Democratic primary of the cycle. Polls will close at 7 p.m. Eastern time, and results should be available not long after. News media outlets will most likely call the race before all the votes are counted on Saturday night.
The Associated Press will call a winner in the race after the first results are reported by the state. In 2020, The A.P. called the Democratic primary right at 7 p.m. for Mr. Biden, who won the state with 54 percent of the vote. This year, Mr. Biden is leading polls with an even larger margin and he faces far fewer opponents.
Elections officials will most likely count nearly all the ballots before the end of the night. In 2020, South Carolina elections officials counted 98 percent of the vote before they paused for the night at 12:17 a.m., according to The A.P.
These results will be unofficial until after the election is certified, which will take place on the Thursday after Primary Day.
