too close to call

Idioms  

1. Resulting in too narrow a margin to make a decision, as in That ball didn't miss by much but it was too close to call, or The election was too close to call, so they decided to have a runoff. This expression comes from sports, where call has signified “a judgment” since the mid-1600s. In the 1960s it began to be applied to pre-election polls and then to the outcome of elections.

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Example Sentences

Meantime, the results of Sunday’s presidential election in Honduras remain too close to call.

From The Wall Street Journal

Although the final result is too close to call, Wilders conceded victory and Jetten told supporters "millions of Dutch people have turned a page", choosing positive politics.

From BBC

According to a poll on Portuguese TV on Wednesday, the current president sits second out of six candidates before October's elections - though some suggest it is too close to call between the top three names.

From BBC

The polls have been too close to call.

From BBC

Some seats are still too close to call.

From BBC