An AP call isn't certification. What still stands between the midterms and official results in Alaska, Mississippi and Kansas

Short answer: As of about 10:45 a.m. CT Nov. 9, 2026, we found no AP call in the Alaska or Mississippi Senate races or the Alaska or Kansas governor races. An AP call is a news projection, not certification. Mississippi's mail window closes tomorrow, Nov. 10; Alaska posts ranked-choice results Nov. 18 and targets certification Nov. 25; Kansas certifies by Dec. 1.

By Monsaur Othman · Published Nov. 7, 2026 · Updated Nov. 9, 2026, 10:45 a.m. CT

Key facts - KCRA, updated 4:25 a.m. PST Nov. 7, says the Mississippi and Alaska Senate races remain too close to call. - An AP race call is a news projection. State certification is the official result (certification guide). - Alaska: ranked-choice results "will not be available until November 18, 2026" (Alaska Division of Elections); certification target Nov. 25 (calendar). - Mississippi: mail absentee ballots postmarked by Nov. 3 count if received by Nov. 10; affidavit voters without photo ID have until Nov. 10 to show ID (Mississippi SOS). - Kansas: close-race audit of the governor race started Nov. 4 (Kansas SOS); statewide certification deadline Dec. 1 (important dates). - We aren't printing vote counts.

What does an AP call mean?

When The Associated Press "calls" a race, it is projecting a winner based on its vote count and statistical model. That projection lets newsrooms report a winner before every ballot is counted and before a state certifies. It is not a legal finding, and it can come days or weeks before certification. Our live uncalled-races tracker follows which statewide races still lack an AP call.

What does state certification mean?

Certification is the step when state or local election officials declare the official canvass. Until then, posted tallies are unofficial. Timelines differ by state. Our certification guide covers the general rule; the dates below are from each state's own election office.

Which races are still uncalled?

Update, Nov. 9 late morning (about 10:45 a.m. CT): Still no AP call we could confirm. We reopened the NBC News results pages that use Associated Press data at about 10:42 a.m. CT (marked updated 11:42 a.m. ET); they still labeled the Mississippi Senate and Kansas governor races "Too close to call" and the Alaska Senate and Alaska governor races "Too early to call." AP's own pages returned HTTP 403 to our tools. Non-AP Kansas listings are not AP calls. Mississippi's Nov. 10, 5 p.m. deadlines, confirmed on the Secretary of State's calendar, are tomorrow. We still aren't printing vote counts.

Earlier update, Nov. 9 morning (about 7:25 a.m. CT): Still no AP call we could confirm. NBC News results pages that use Associated Press data, opened about 7:25 a.m. CT, still labeled the Mississippi Senate and Kansas governor races "Too close to call" and the Alaska Senate and Alaska governor races "Too early to call." Mississippi's Nov. 10, 5 p.m. affidavit and mailed-absentee deadline is tomorrow (explainer); the race-by-race log is in our uncalled-races tracker. We still aren't printing vote counts.

Update, Nov. 8 morning (about 7:15 a.m. CT): Still no AP call we could confirm. NBC News results pages that use AP data, opened this morning, still labeled the Mississippi Senate and Kansas governor races "Too close to call" and the Alaska Senate and Alaska governor races "Too early to call." VoteClock listed those four as still counting / not called yet. AP's own uncalled-races article returned HTTP 403. Mississippi's next official windows are detailed in our Nov. 10 affidavit and mail-ballot explainer. We still aren't printing vote counts.

As of about 7:05 a.m. CT Saturday, Nov. 7: KCRA (updated 4:25 a.m. PST) reported that the Mississippi and Alaska Senate races remain too close to call, with thousands of ballots still outstanding. Fox News (Nov. 5) and the Washington Examiner (Nov. 4) likewise treated both Senate races as unresolved. We are not reprinting the vote margins those stories carried, because tallies have been moving and conflict across outlets.

For the Alaska and Kansas governor races, our Nov. 6 afternoon check of NBC News results pages that use AP data still showed Kansas as too close to call and Alaska governor as too early to call. We found no Saturday morning AP call reversing that.

What is Alaska's next clock?

Alaska uses ranked-choice voting in general elections. The Division of Elections says ranked-choice results "will not be available until November 18, 2026 once all eligible ballots are reviewed and counted" (results page). The state's election calendar lists:

• Nov. 13: deadline to receive mail ballots sent from U.S. addresses (postmarked by Nov. 3).
• Nov. 18: overseas mail deadline and final regional count of absentee and questioned ballots.
• Nov. 25: target date to certify the general election.

What is Mississippi's next clock?

Mail absentee ballots must be postmarked by Nov. 3 and received by the circuit clerk by Nov. 10. Voters who cast an affidavit ballot without photo ID also have until Nov. 10 to show ID (Mississippi SOS). Mississippi has no formal recount process, the Secretary of State's office told ABC News on Nov. 4 (see our uncalled-races tracker).

What is Kansas's next clock?

The Secretary of State started a close-race audit of the governor race and five others on Nov. 4 under K.S.A. 25-3009 (press release). County canvasses begin the Monday after the election (Nov. 9), with limited flexibility under state standards. The State Board of Canvassers must certify statewide results by Dec. 1 (important dates).

Why does this matter for the lame duck?

Even after AP calls the remaining races, the legal results that seat senators and governors follow each state's certification calendar. Separately, federal funding under P.L. 119-103 still ends Dec. 11 — 32 days from Monday, Nov. 9 — in the lame-duck session before the new Congress convenes Jan. 3, 2027. See our Dec. 11 funding explainer.

Sources

• KCRA, Mississippi and Alaska Senate races still too close to call, updated Nov. 7
• Fox News, Alaska and Mississippi Senate margins, Nov. 5
• Washington Examiner, Senate races left to be decided, Nov. 4
• Alaska Division of Elections, unofficial results
• Alaska Division of Elections, election calendar
• Mississippi Secretary of State, Election Day reminders
• Kansas Secretary of State, important election dates
• Kansas Secretary of State, close-race audit, Nov. 4

Photo: Kurt Kaiser, via Wikimedia Commons, CC0 (cropped to 16:9). The National Archives Building in Washington, D.C. File photo; illustration only — not a photo of Nov. 7 counting.

Drafted with AI assistance from primary sources. Written and edited by The Whole Read newsroom under Monsaur Othman's editorial standards. Read how we use AI, our editorial policy and our corrections policy.