How late will I have to stay up to know the next president?

[angus]

I voted after 10pm, thinking that this will be 10pm Eastern Standard Time.  At 10 pm here, it will be 9pm in the Central Time Zone, and polls will be closing by then.  Given that we can predict California, the result won't hinge on the states of the intermontaine west vote.  That said, news outlets may be reluctant to call the election until 9pm Pacific Standard Time, which will be midnight here, for fear of being seen as supporting one candidate over another.  But you will actually know the winner by a little after 10pm EST, maybe even by a little after 9pm EST if certain states such as North Carolina, Ohio, Florida, and Virginia all are won by Clinton.