A reader asks: I am following the State election site that is updated every 5 minutes. Why are the numbers on that “official” site so different than numbers being shown on media sites?

Our election results page is powered by the Associated Press, which combines official Texas Secretary of State results with numbers pulled directly from certain counties. Counties are the ones that actually do the vote tallying, and the state compiles the totals from around the state. So in some cases our numbers — and other outlets’ — will be a little ahead of the state’s.

How AP counts the vote

Matthew Watkins began serving as editor in chief of the Tribune in September 2024. He is a Texas native, born in Houston and raised in Austin. He attended Texas A&M University and has spent his entire...