San Francisco Sun

The San Francisco Department of Elections has outlined its plan for processing ballots and releasing preliminary results for the upcoming November 5, 2024, Consolidated General Election. According to John Arntz, Director of the Department, the release of election night results will occur in four stages.

The first report is scheduled for 8:45 p.m., comprising vote totals from most mail-in ballots received before Election Day. At 9:45 p.m., a second report will include votes cast at polling places. The third report at 10:45 p.m. will add more polling place votes received after the second report. The final report will follow once all polling place results are in.

Ranked-choice voting (RCV) will be applied to local contests for Mayor, Board of Supervisors, City Attorney, District Attorney, and Sheriff in the first and fourth reports. The Treasurer's contest will not use RCV due to having only one candidate.

On November 6, an estimate of unprocessed ballots from Election Day will be provided. This includes vote-by-mail ballots delivered on Election Day and provisional ballots. "The Department expects to receive over 100,000 ballots on Election Day," with potential numbers exceeding 150,000 based on turnout.

No preliminary results reports will be issued on November 6 as ballot processing pauses on November 4 and resumes on November 6. Daily preliminary reports start on November 7 at around 4 p.m., including summaries and detailed RCV reports.

Final results certification is expected by December 3, as state law mandates this timeline. Voters with issues regarding their mail-in or provisional ballots must resolve them two days before certification. The certified results are intended for submission to the Board of Supervisors by December 9.

For updates and press releases, visit sfelections.gov/trustedinfo.