Terms of use

Agreement

These terms govern your use of CloseCall (closecallelections.com), an independent, personal project. By using the site you agree to them; if you do not agree, please do not use it.

Who can use it

Anyone can read the site. To create an account you must be at least 13, and if you are under 18 you need a parent’s or guardian’s permission.

The forecast and the data

The forecast is a statistical estimate from published evidence. It can be wrong, and it is not advice of any kind: not political, financial or betting advice. Polls, market prices and ratings shown for comparison belong to their publishers. CloseCall is not affiliated with any candidate, campaign, party, pollster or market.

Brackets is free, with no prizes

Brackets is free to play. There is no entry fee, no prize and no wagering of any kind, and you may not use CloseCall, its groups or its standings to run a contest for money or prizes.

Picks lock at the time the site shows, when the first polls close on Election Day. The server’s clock decides.

Results and scoring

Results come from official counts and from public calls that agree with them, as the site describes; races still being counted or headed to a runoff stay open. We may correct a result when a count or a call changes, and scores follow the correction. Our determination of results, scores, ties and standings is final.

Groups

A group’s organizer can name it, set its options, invite players and manage its entries. Groups are for playing with people you know; we may remove a group, an entry or a name that breaks these terms.

Your account

Keep access to your email secure: whoever can read it can sign in as you. One person per account. You can delete your account at any time; we may suspend or close an account that breaks these terms.

Names and conduct

Display names, group names and bracket names must not be abusive, hateful, sexually explicit, impersonating someone or infringing anyone’s rights. We may change or remove any of them. You let us show the names you choose on the site as needed to run it.

Do not try to get into anyone else’s account or data, interfere with the site or its security, create accounts automatically, or collect data from it in ways that burden it.

Our content

The site’s design, text, code and forecast are ours or used with permission. You are welcome to share links and screenshots with credit to CloseCall; do not copy the site or its data wholesale.

No warranty

The site is provided as it is and as available, without warranties of any kind. We do not promise it will be uninterrupted, timely or error-free, including on election night.

Limit of liability

To the extent the law allows, CloseCall is not liable for any indirect, incidental or consequential loss arising from your use of the site, and our total liability for any claim is limited to fifty U.S. dollars. Some places do not allow these limits, so they may not all apply to you.

You agree to cover any claim that arises from your breaking these terms.

Changes and ending

We may change these terms; if a change matters, we will say so on the site before it takes effect, and using the site afterwards means you accept it. We may change, pause or end the site or the game at any time.

Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict-of-law rules. Any dispute belongs in the state or federal courts located in California, except that either of us may bring a claim in small-claims court where it qualifies.