Super Tuesday 2020: What time are the results?

On Tuesday, 14 states will head to the polls across the US and dole out the largest number of delegates of the Democratic primary season — and in the process likely set in stone the hierarchy among the candidates for the next few months.

After just three contests in the season so far, with a fourth in South Carolina to come just days before Super Tuesday, the candidates have already fallen into a particular set of positions.

But, with a relatively small number of delegates having been allocated, the nomination is still theoretically anybody’s to win, even if Bernie Sanders is the front-runner and appears poised for some big wins on Super Tuesday.

Here’s what you need to know.

When is Super Tuesday?

Tuesday, 3 March.

What is it?

It’s the most important day of voting in the US, after election day in November.

Voting will occur in 14 primaries in the US, caucuses will be held in American Samoa, and voting for Democrats abroad will begin.

The map includes some mammoth states, with an enormous number of delegates to give out like California and Texas, with the total number of delegates that will be given out numbering more than 1,300 (for comparison, just 155 will have been allocated during the first four contests).

All told, roughly 40 per cent of the US population will vote and allocate 34 per cent of pledged Democratic delegates on Tuesday.

Which states are voting?

In addition to California and Texas, primaries will be held in North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Maine, Colorado, Arkansas, and Alabama.

When do polls close?

Since the contests are held across time zones, there are multiple answers to this question.

The first polls to close will be in Vermont, when voting will stop at 7pm Eastern time. California’s polls will close last, at 11pm Eastern.

When will we know the results?

Don’t expect a full accounting on Tuesday.

Tabulating the votes could last well into the evening, especially on the West Coast. Some expect results in California to take days to tabulate, with mail-in ballots being allowed so long as they are postmarked by election day.

Results from Democrats who vote abroad won’t be tabulated until after 10 March, when voting ends for those people.

What should we watch for?

Even though some states may take a while to certify results, the smaller states could give a good clue as to the state of the race early on. Even California, if the margins are high enough, could be called early.

In California, where 415 delegates are up for grabs, Bernie Sanders could see some good news given the state’s relatively liberal makeup and heavily Latino electorate. Polls — including a Friday poll from CNN — show him with strong chances there, with virtually all of his competition potentially falling short of the 15 per cent threshold needed to claims statewide delegates (should that happen, his competition could still claim congressional district delegates).

In Texas, the second largest state on the map with 228 delegates, we’re expecting a closer contest between Mr Sanders and Joe Biden, who is banking on a strong showing in South Carolina days before Super Tuesday to bolster his argument that he’s a guy who can win. As things stand, Mr Sanders leads the state with 29 per cent support, Mr Biden comes in second with 20 per cent, Mike Bloomberg is in third with 18 per cent and Elizabeth Warren has landed at 15 per cent.

Beyond those, North Carolina has 110 pledged delegates to give out, Virginia has 99 delegates and Massachusetts has another 91. They’ll all be worth watching, too.