Political careers will be won and lost in a general election with big implications across the north-east, Moray, Highlands and islands.
Big names including Douglas Ross and Stephen Flynn are in contests almost too close to call in advance, according to all the polls.
With constituencies on a knife-edge, regardless of who is destined for 10 Downing Street, here are the 5 results and dynamics we’ll be looking for as results come in.
1. Tory-SNP battle in Aberdeenshire
Conservatives hope they can buck UK-wide trends in three seats covering Aberdeenshire (and a bit of Moray).
But Douglas Ross’s late decision to stand, and the threat of Nigel Farage’s Reform party, made things harder.
So watch for how that Reform vote is stacking up elsewhere to get an idea about Conservative fortunes in places such as Aberdeenshire North and Moray East.
Elsewhere in the region, Tory candidate Andrew Bowie faces a similarly tough challenge against the SNP in West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine.
He defeated the nationalists by less than 1,000 votes in 2019.
In Gordon and Buchan, Conservative Harriet Cross hopes boundary changes will work in her favour as she takes on the SNP’s Richard Thomson.
Wipeout for either side in the north-east will have big repercussions nationally. Mr Ross will be out of a job, and facing the humiliating prospect of returning the Scottish Parliament he hoped to leave.
SNP failure means John Swinney will have a mountain to climb for the Holyrood elections in 2026.
Declarations are expected to all be after 4.45am.
2. Will Aberdeen keep the faith with Stephen Flynn’s SNP?
Stephen Flynn will have got a shock when he saw a Survation poll on the last day of campaigning project a Labour win in his Aberdeen South seat.
The SNP’s Westminster leader won the constituency from the Conservatives five years ago, but polling indicates Labour now poses the strongest challenge.
If Labour is having a belter of a night in early declarations, this will be a tense night for him.
Remember, Labour won just 8% of the vote there last time.
Both Aberdeen seats are to be declared at 3am.
3. Labour’s Western Isles ‘beacon’
Things are different in the Western Isles – described as a “beacon” for Labour by candidate Torcuil Crichton, a former Westminster journalist.
Labour held the Outer Hebrides until 2005, and have consistently picked up at least a quarter of the vote when trailing the SNP since then.
Nationalist divisions, among other dynamics, make victory a near certainty.
Voters in the constituency expect to find out who has won the contest around 3am.
4. Will Lib Dem bounce reach the Highlands?
Westminster Lib Dem leader Ed Davey has made headlines with his campaign stunts – and it looks like his party will profit from the downfall of the Tories.
But there’s a long wait to find out if that translates to Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, and in Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire.
Both seats might not become clear until 5am onwards.
A suppressed SNP vote in Scotland, and a big Lib Dem bounce in earlier seats will give you a flavour of what’s coming.
5. Are fringe parties like Reform and Alba here to stay?
A YouGov poll last week indicated Reform could win as much as 8% of the vote north of the border – a much more impressive showing than the Brexit Party in 2019.
Any final result which comes close to that tonight could spell disaster for the Tories in the three vital north-east contests.
Meanwhile, Alex Salmond’s Alba Party is more focused on the 2026 Scottish Parliament election – but is still running more than a dozen candidates.
How Aberdeen North hopeful Charlie Abel fares will be of interest to the ex-first minister, given his own plans to run in the Banff and Buchan Coast Holyrood constituency in two years.
Might the result put him off or give him a push?
You can follow all the results on our main election pages tonight, and keep up with all our dedicated coverage here.
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