Why it’s taking so long to count midterm Election Day results  — and when we should know 16 uncalled races

A week after the US midterm polls closed, 16 congressional races remained undecided because of recounts, late mail ballots, ranked-choice counting and provisional ballots. Control of Congress was already settled, with Democrats securing 254 House seats to Republicans’ 163 and at least 54 Senate seats; the outstanding races will determine the size of those majorities and the futures of several prominent Republicans.

Fourteen House contests and two Senate races were still open on Tuesday afternoon. In Alaska, mail ballots from remote communities and a required ranked-choice round delay the Senate count until after 18 November, while the state’s House race may also need a second round; results are expected to be certified by 25 November. In Mississippi, Democrat Scott Colom led Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith by just over 2,500 votes with about 97% counted, while absentee and affidavit ballots remained to be processed; the article says counties had accepted 76% of 15,547 affidavit ballots.