Kamala Harris now ‘refusing to answer questions from media’ as she loses 1st swing state & her staff are issued warning

James Johnson explained that the information we can get from the exit polls in the U.S. is "quite limited."

The exit polls tell us what voters' biggest issues were on the day.

"For example, one of the exit polls this evening showed that democracy was the biggest issue with the economy close behind," he said.

"It also tells us what kinds of voters voted. Another exit poll said that more white voters were voting than last time, black turnout being a bit lower, and as the night goes on we get more detail."

But James urged caution on reading too much into the exit polls.

"We have to be really cautious about them because they are done using the same methods as the polls throughout the campaign," he explained.

"So if there is a big polling error, then actually, these exit polls could be making the same mistakes, and often months later we will see revised studies of how people really voted, and they differ quite a lot."

As results come in thick and fast, James said that the key state to watch will be Pennsylvania.

"Our J.L. Partners election model has shown that Pennsylvania is going to be the key state which the election hangs on, because even if Trump wins Georgia, Florida, Nevada, and Arizona, he still has to win one Midwest or mid-Atlantic state, and all of the eyes are on Pennsylvania because it has the most electoral votes," he said.

But Pennsylvania's vote counting is "going to be a longer process," he added.

"There will be some results tonight, but it is going to take a bit long into Wednesday. If it's super close, it could even drag further into the week."

Much has been made of the voting disruption triggered by a series of bomb threats made to polling places across the country.

Johnson said authorities have been at pains to ensure the process is all above board and fair, even if it slows down the voting process.

"We've seen these bomb threats in Georgia. We've also seen tabulation errors in other counting areas."

"The courts have been very responsive today in saying those places can extend.

"So in some of those areas which have been affected by issues, whether bomb threats or clerical problems, they've extended those timings that doesn't slow down the results from the rest of the state, but it does slow down results for the counties that are affected."