As ballots continue to be counted in battleground states like Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Michigan (opens in new tab), the American people are wondering how long it will take to receive final results (opens in new tab) for the 2020 election. It is unclear how long it will take to receive the results (opens in new tab) (Patience is a virtue!) What is clear is that if the election results in any state are contested and taken to the Supreme Court (opens in new tab), it will definitely affect the timeline of the final results.

In his election night speech (opens in new tab), President Trump falsely declared victory and said he intends to challenge the results pending before the Supreme Court, despite his last minute boast that he had a large lead in Pennsylvania. He also stated that he would like to stop the counting of ballots. Myrna Perez, director of the Brennan Center's Voting Rights and Elections Program (opens in new tab), explained that the path to the Supreme Court depends on who is contesting the election results and where the case is filed. The most likely scenario [for the president to file suit in the Supreme Court] is if he can identify something that he thinks will change the outcome of the election," Perez said.

"If the electoral votes or the electoral council close calls are to the contrary, there is less incentive to spend the time and resources to do so."

Following a similar opinion, the likelihood that the Supreme Court will hear a case, especially if it involves a recount, depends on how close the election results are. This will not be known until all mail-in ballots have been counted. Some states, such as Pennsylvania, allow an additional three days (open in new tab) to receive ballots postmarked on or before Election Day. North Carolina's mail-in ballots (open in new tab), on the other hand, must be postmarked by November 12. (The winner of the presidential election may not even need to focus on these states, depending on the outcome of other swing states (open new tab).) If the 2020 election results are brought before the Supreme Court, will newly appointed Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett hear the case? or recuse herself from the case (opens in new tab).

Meanwhile, the Trump campaign will file various lawsuits before the final results are known; on November 4, the campaign announced a lawsuit against the state of Michigan, ordering it to stop counting ballots. We filed suit today in the Michigan Court of Claims to halt the tabulation until meaningful access is granted," the campaign said in a press release (opens in new tab). 'We also demand a review of ballots that were opened and counted while we did not have meaningful access. President Trump is committed to ensuring that all legal ballots are counted in Michigan and everywhere else."

While there is still a big question mark over how quickly the case will move through the courts, Perez has faith in the efficiency of the courts. He says, "Our system has many checks and balances. The system we put in place to deal with legal issues in the run-up to elections is going to be adapted as needed to deal with impending situations."

If you believe you have been a victim of voter suppression and were unable to exercise your right to vote, the nonpartisan Election Protection hotline (opens in a new tab) at 866-OUR-VOTE.