Your Vote Counts: Election Day Special Preview With Scott Mitchell

Voters head to the polls Tuesday to select the next president, but there are also a few state seats up for grabs, as well as U.S. House seats. News 9 and News On 6 political analyst Scott Mitchell was in the studio Monday to preview what's on the ballot.

Here are his responses.

Q: What are your thoughts on the campaign to vote out the three Supreme Court justices?

A: "Well, no Supreme Court Justice has ever been recalled. Some of them have gone to jail. I mean, that's why that Judicial Nominating Commission, which is so controversial, was created in the first place, because of Supreme Court scandals. So anyway, it's never happened before, and they're battling it out on television." "...So it's very hot, and nobody knows how this is going to go because you haven't seen polling," said Mitchell.

Congressional Races And Incumbent Advantages

Q: Why are the congressional races not as competitive?

A: "It's so hard for challengers to beat entrenched incumbents. Okay, these seats are drawn where it's easier for the Republicans to win, and so none of the incumbents, in my opinion and I think most observers think they're in trouble. I think all of them are going to be returned easily," Mitchell explained.

Presidential Race Prediction and Voting Timeline

Q: Can you provide a prediction for the presidential race?

A: "No, no. Now that I can positively tell you [finding out results at midnight is] not going to happen because, in Pennsylvania, they can't even start counting absentees and mail-ins and all that until the polls close. So that's going to be 48 hours before we understand. So the way the system is right now, it takes a long time, and if you think you're going to know who the president is, Tuesday night about midnight, ain't going to happen," Mitchell cautioned.

Early Voter Turnout And Its Impact

Q: What are your thoughts on the overall voter turnout, particularly the high early voter turnout?

A: "Well, it's pretty impressive. Okay, so Joy and I went down to Purcell. We'll go at two o'clock in the afternoon, Wednesday, right? We go there, and it's a huge line in Purcell. Great job. But here's the thing, people are getting more comfortable with early voting, and they don't want to go stand in line on election day. And so this is a big success, and I suspect we'll see an expansion of this. You know, most states, they're voting for a month ahead, right? So this is, this is really encouraging," Mitchell observed.

Legislative Races And Balance Of Power

Q: What are you looking at in the legislative races, and what does that tell you about the balance of power at the state Capitol?

A: "In Oklahoma? Nothing is going to change, but I will tell you, I'll be watching to see if perhaps Democrats don't... claim a couple of seats at some particular point you just got to quit going up, right? I mean, 20 years since the Democrats, the majority, termed out. So I think that I'll be looking to see if the Democrats pick up a seat or two. At some point, the momentum has to reverse a little bit," Mitchell said.