Though it looks like Democratic nominee Joe Biden has won, the outcome of the presidential election is so close in several states that recounts are likely to happen. 

Per the U.S. Constitution, it’s up to states how they do congressional and presidential elections, and so the procedures for a recount are a matter of state law. In some states, a close result can automatically trigger a recount; in others, a campaign can request one. 

Recounts are unlikely to dramatically shift the results. FairVote, a nonpartisan group that pushes for electoral reform, analyzed nearly 2,000 recounts in statewide elections over the past two decades and found that only three reversed the result. The average shift in the margin in those statewide recounts was 430 votes ― a far smaller swing than President Donald Trump would need to overtake Biden in key states. 

Here’s what the recount procedures look like in the six states everyone is watching.