American elections are nothing if not grand.
With the fate of the free world resting on the outcome — and Australian timezones allowing for a convenient substitute for daytime television — local networks are planning special coverage as the results roll in on Wednesday.
Here’s what you can expect from Australian broadcasters on what will be one of the biggest days in modern political history.
ABC
The ABC will run continuous coverage over the course of the day and into the night. Michael Rowland will be on the ground in Washington DC, with an extended edition of ABC News Breakfast to run from 5am to 10am on Wednesday morning.
From 10am to 7pm there will be special “USA Votes” programming, hosted by Jeremy Fernandez, Bridget Brennan, Casey Briggs and Julia Baird. As guests in studio, the network will have former BBC foreign correspondent Nick Bryant, former NBC reporter Sara James, and University of Sydney political scientist Simon Jackman.
Insiders host David Speers will also be in Washington DC and will be joined by former Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull, former ambassador to the US Arthur Sinodinos and former Trump deputy chief of staff Emma Doyle. Global affairs editor John Lyons will also be in the US capital.
Speers and 7:30 host Sarah Ferguson will also host a 7pm “USA Votes” bulletin, before a special edition of Planet America at 8pm. From 9pm, special news coverage of the election will continue through to midnight.
SBS
SBS will have a 10:30am news special hosted by Janice Petersen, and will feature crosses and coverage from partner American network PBS.
PBS coverage will be anchored by Amna Nawaz and Geoff Bennett.
Network 10
Network 10 will begin coverage at 10am, with national affairs editor Hugh Riminton and The Project host Waleed Aly reporting from Washington DC.
US correspondent Katherine Firkin will be stationed in Florida, following the Trump campaign.
The network will air an election special edition of The Project at 6pm, titled “America Decides”.
Nine
Nine’s coverage will begin at 10am, with coverage led by Today host Karl Stefanovic, 60 Minutes host Liz Hayes, chief political editor Charles Croucher, and former Clinton staffer and CNN special correspondent Laura Schwartz.
Nine will have Jonathan Kearsley, Alison Piotrowski, Lauren Tomasi and Amelia Adams in swing states, and will also carry CNN coverage from Democrat and Republican headquarters.
Seven
Seven’s election coverage began early, with a special edition of Spotlight on Sunday featuring an interview with former Trump communications director Anthony Scaramucci. It also featured interviews with Piers Morgan, former treasurer and ambassador to the US Joe Hockey, and former Clinton consultant Barbara Heineback.
Decision day will begin with a special edition of Sunrise from 5:30am. Rolling news coverage will start at 11.30am led by Michael Usher and Angela Cox, alongside Natalie Barr in Washington DC. US bureau chief David Woiwod, in addition to US correspondents Tim Lester and Mylee Hogan, will be on the ground in swing states.
The network will also feature US election coverage on its 4pm and 6pm news bulletins.
Sky News
Sky News’ coverage in the lead-up will be led by Kieran Gilbert, with Paul Murray broadcasting from Dallas and Washington DC. Daily Telegraph national affairs editor James Morrow will co-host Outsiders from the Mexico-US border throughout election week.
On Wednesday, Danica De Giorgio will begin coverage, while Washington correspondent Annelise Nielsen will be on the ground in DC alongside Murray. First Edition anchor Peter Stefanovic will be reporting from Trump’s election night party in West Palm Beach, Florida, and Laura Jayes will be at Harris headquarters. Morrow will report from battleground state North Carolina.
Guests scheduled for Sky’s coverage include Joe Hockey, former Clinton deputy press secretary Jim Kennedy, former Trump chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, former Trump press secretary Sean Spicer, and The Australian’s Greg Sheridan.
When will we know the result?
The first polls to close in the United States will be at 10am AEDT on Wednesday November 6, with the majority of voters in Indiana and half of Kentucky having concluded voting.
By 1pm AEDT, five out of six battleground states will have closed voting. While polling will remain open until 5pm AEDT in parts of Alaska, the last polls on the American mainland will be at 3pm AEDT, with the last swing state to close voting being Nevada at 2pm AEDT.
Election winners in the United States aren’t always known on voting day. The Associated Press did not declare the winner of the 2020 presidential election until four days after the first polls closed. There have been a number of changes to voting regulations in a number of key states that may expedite the count this year, however, including early vote processing in states like Nevada and Michigan.
