Many voters interviewed on Election Eve night by The Epoch Times about their Election Day plans and levels of anxiety said they plan to stay up late to watch the results and will return to their normal work schedules the following day.
Voters from Washington, Virginia, New Jersey, and Tennessee weighed in on how late they plan to stay up, with some planning to watch Election Night coverage until 3 a.m.
Several voters said they would only stay tuned to coverage if it warrants their attention.
“I will stay up as late as late as I can until there is no news to report,” said Claire Marckesano from Knoxville, Tennessee. “I don’t expect the results to come out Tuesday night, I think most people won’t expect we will have a result on that night.”
Rose Rizzo, a resident of Holmdel, N.J., said, “I’ll stay up until I know the results or until I can’t stay up any longer.”
One voter in Fairfax, Va., expects to be up late, into the early hours of the morning, to watch the poll results pour in.
“I will probably be up until 2 to 3 a.m. on Election Night,” Sam Simpson said. She added that she still plans to work tomorrow.
When asked about election anxiety, Simpson said it can be exacerbated by “obsessive poll research and constant social media coverage.”
Washington resident Michael Ward said he plans to stay up until midnight, and said he is not dealing with election anxiety during this divisive election year.
“It will not impact how I perform at work,” Ward said. “I don’t feel overwhelmed by ads—actually wish I’d have seen more.”
He added that he is indifferent about election season. “Someone will always be running for something,” he said.
Marckesano shared Ward’s outlook: “When I go to bed tomorrow night, I’m giving it to God; it’s not for me to worry anymore,” she said.
“After you vote, what more can you do? I truly believe, faith-based, the outcome of this will be God’s plan, and his plan will survive [no matter] what we believe or what we want.”
Rizzo also said she will still go to work tomorrow, and said she was not nervous heading into Election Day.
“It’s out of my control and no matter what happens, life will go on anyway,” Rizzo said.
Anthony Falconeri, a resident of Sea Bright, N.J., said he plans to be in bed by 1 a.m. and he does not have election jitters. He said the day after the election he plans to take “deep breaths and [a] diversion to something other than the news.”
When asked if he believes the outcome is out of his hands after his vote, he responded, “Not at all. You can encourage and assist neighbors with voting and getting them to the polls. You can also volunteer to send texts and make phone calls on behalf of Get Out the Vote organizations.”
Falconeri said he is “a political news junky so I’m interested in this stuff. Hopefully, the election doesn’t drag on for days or longer because I think most people, including myself, need a break.”
Kate Vitelli, also from Sea Bright, said she will probably not watch the election. Her “anxiety is higher than normal,” she said.
Another Virginia voter said he plans to stay up late to watch poll results, but he'll still go to work tomorrow.
Fairfax resident Talon Ribsam said he plans to stay up until midnight.
When asked how he deals with anxiety surrounding the election, Ribsam said, “As long as I vote my conscience, I’m not bothered by election anxiety.”
