Midterm elections typically aren’t must see TV. And turnout is rarely on par with general elections. But the interest in the 2018 midterm races is staggering, as witnessed by the lines at most polling places on Election Day Tuesday morning.
Both parties are keenly interested in whether Democrats will take the House or whether the GOP’s base will remain in control. And news networks, along with plenty of other sources, are eager to keep voters up to date.
Here’s a list of when the networks will begin their wall-to-wall Election Day coverage, as well as other ways to get updates and stay abreast of the news if you don’t have a cable subscription or aren’t glued to your TV tonight.
Network coverage
CBS – Originally planned as a two-hour Election Day broadcast, CBS has called an audible and will follow the results from 8-11 p.m. ET. Norah O’Donnell, Jeff Glor, Gayle King, John Dickerson, and Bianna Golodryga will anchor the broadcast.
CBSN, the network’s 24/7 streaming video news channel, will begin coverage at 5 p.m. ET and will include a simulcast of some of the Network’s live coverage.
NBC – Lester Holt and Savannah Guthrie will lead the charge covering the midterm elections starting at 8 p.m. ET, along with Chuck Todd. The skating rink at Rockefeller Center will be transformed into an augmented reality map as NBC News calls the races.
ABC – Like its competitors, ABC will host a three-hour block starting at 8 p.m. ET, anchored by George Stephanopoulos. The network will also launch commercial-free continuous coverage of the midterms at 4:30 p.m. ET on its ABC News Live streaming service. That’s viewable on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, YouTube, Apple News, Facebook, Twitter, and the ABC News app and Website.
Additionally, ABC News Radio will provide live coverage of the midterms from 7 p.m. ET through at least 1 a.m. ET.
PBS – Judy Woodruff will guide PBS’s three-hour block of election coverage starting at 8 p.m. ET. NewsHour will also stream election coverage on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Ustream. And the site will provide coverage via its website and social channels throughout the day.
Cable Coverage
Fox News – 6 p.m. ET is the start time for live coverage of the midterm elections on Fox. Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum will lead the programming. The network also plans to hold an interactive election viewing party on Fox Square, the plaza directly outside of the network headquarters on New York City’s Avenue of the Americas, where it will offer a sneak peak of its upcoming subscription-based streaming service, called Fox Nation. Fox News Radio will also offer election night coverage for affiliates beginning at 6 p.m.
CNN – Wolf Blitzer, Jake Tapper, and Anderson Cooper kick things off on Election Day at 5 p.m. ET and will run late into the night.
The site will also unlock its CNNGo streaming service, not requiring a cable log-in, starting at 5 p.m. ET and running through 9 a.m. ET on Wednesday. Video coverage of the midterms will also stream on the CNN.com homepage.
MSNBC – Rachel Maddow and Brian Williams will lead midterm elections coverage starting at 6 p.m. ET, though the network (like CNN and Fox) will follow the races all day.
BBC – Want a look at the midterm elections through a different lens? BBC World News will launch its coverage at 7 p.m. ET. The service will also stream election coverage on its website.
Bloomberg – Coverage of the midterm elections begins at 7 p.m. ET on both the cable network and on the network’s streaming online service.
Fox Business Network – Coverage starts at 8pm, led by Neil Cavuto for a five hour block.
Digital Coverage
Snapchat – Beyond encouraging users to vote throughout the day, Snapchat will offer live Election Day coverage of the results starting at 6 p.m. ET, anchored by Good Luck America host Peter Hamby.
The Washington Post will also be live on Snapchat, offering election results coverage in partnership with local TEGNA-owned stations.
Apple News – Starting at 8 p.m. ET, Apple will make changes to the Apple News app that let people keep track of live results and key races on Election Day. The company is partnering with the Associated Press for real-time election results. Those will automatically update every minute or users can manually refresh the page.
Politico – Aside from the site’s running updates on the midterms, the Politico app will send alerts on election results and upsets. The team also plans to actively answer questions on social media, including a Reddit AMA at noon ET.
Yahoo News – Starting at 8 p.m. ET, the Web hub will stream live midterm election coverage from its Oath Studios. That will be carried not only on Yahoo, but on AOL.com, HuffPost, and Tumblr.
