The Surprising First Election Day Victories For Biden And Trump
There seem to be two camps of people this election: Those actively avoiding the news; and the ones glued to their screens, unable to look away and almost compulsively checking for any new developments. Well, for that second camp, there's finally something to see. The very first town, Dixville Notch, New Hampshire, has counted the election's earliest votes; five of them to be specific (via New York Post). The winner of all five was candidate Joe Biden, giving him the first official win of election day.
Before you get too excited, keep in mind that this township hasn't been historically indicative of the election overall, or even of the state's results. In 2016, Hillary Clinton won the Dixville Notch vote, and then Donald Trump went on to win the Electoral College (via CNN). However, despite all the headlines focusing on this first Biden win, Dixville Notch isn't the only New Hampshire township to have announced early election results thanks to midnight voting.
More early election day results
Dixville Notch is one of three areas in the state of New Hampshire that historically count its votes at midnight on election day. The two other towns that also hold midnight voting are Millsfield, 12 miles south of Dixville Notch, and Hart's Location which is 71 miles south of that (via Time). In fact, Millsfield has been doing so for 60 years this election. Unfortunately, what would have been a celebration of that anniversary had to be scaled down this year due to Covid-19. However, the midnight voting did take place, and Trump chalked up his own early win, with 16 Millsfield votes to Biden's 5.
The other township, Hart's Location, will not be holding midnight voting this year due to the Coronavirus (via Forbes). Instead, Hart's Location residents will be able to vote between the hours of 11 am and 7 pm. This is slightly less surprising when you learn that the town has an inconsistent history with the practice, first offering it in 1948 to accommodate railroad workers, but then suspending the tradition in 1964, only to bring it back by 1996 (via Chicago Tribune). So for now, we're just going to have to wait.