Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Wow!

Obama has just been credited as having won Virginia, and is now over the top of 270 electoral college votes. Amazing stuff, historical stuff. I just heard Obama will end up winning 53% of the popular vote, so he'll be the first Democratic President since before Jimmy Carter to have done so.

Obama Takes Ohio, and Quite Possibly the Presidency

If some Florida-2000-style weirdness does not ensue, this election could well be over with this news -- Obama has just been called as the winner of Ohio.

This has been an incredible, quintessentially American election, and whatever happens next, an enormous historical page has been turned. An American of African heritage, who unlike most of those Americans who share his African heritage is notdescended from slaves, has been elected to the Presidency.

I still have many problems with what I regard as his too far-to-the-left political ideas, but focus on this -- our new President-elect is the son of a Kenyan immigrant who came to this country for educational reasons, fell in love with an American woman from Kansas, and became the father to a child who, only 47 years later, would be elected President of this country.

What an incredible country! Whatever happens next, I am a very proud American today.

Bush States (Mostly) Holding for McCain

Georgia, South Carolina, North Dakota, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, West Virginia all have gone for McCain thus far. The only exception is New Mexico and, if all the other Bush states hold for McCain, its loss is not fatal.

We're still waiting on Florida, Virginia, Indiana, Ohio and Missouri. If McCain loses any one of those big states, though, it's all over for him. The longer and further west this race heads, the better it looks for McCain, in my book.

In the meantime, Obama has continued the 2004-repeat theme by winning Kerry's states of New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Oh, and Michigan too.

New Mexico Flips to Obama

This is not necessarily a surprise, but it is a flip from Bush winning it in 2000 and 2004: New Mexico has gone to Obama. Bad news for McCain, but again not necessarily unexpected.

Pennsylvania Goes for Obama

Bad news for the McCain campaign, the heat is really on them now. If they still hold Virginia, Ohio, Florida and Missouri, this thing will go on through the night into the Midwest and Southwestern states, but if not, it's going to be an early night in the Presidential race.

First States Called

No surprises just yet: McCain wins West Virginia and Kentucky, and Obama wins Vermont.

This is good news in particular for the McCain campaign, because it means he's holding Bush states so far. If that continues through Ohio, Virginia and Missouri in particular, there will be much joy in the McCain headquarters.

UPDATE: (8:00 PM Eastern) McCain won South Carolina, Oklahoma and Tennessee, and Obama is projected to win New Jersey, Connecticut, and his home state of Illinois.

As always, we'll see what happens next.

Early Indications

So far, nothing decisive, but good news for both candidates. Newly-registered voters are overwhelmingly going for Obama, but late deciders seem to be breaking for McCain in a big way.

Some interesting news comes from Minnesota, where the Obama campaign is apparently finding it much closer than it expected. Given that nobody was thinking Minnesota was going for McCain, this can be only be regarded as good news for his side.

More to come, for sure!

Election Day!

Tigerhawk has an excellent post on his hopes and fears for today. So I thought I would add my own here.

First, the self-evident truth is that, no matter whether McCain or Obama wins, they will be my President for the next four years. I will be more pleased today in the event of a McCain victory, but I will be no less proud of my country or supportive of its President in the event of a President Obama being sworn in.

My greatest fear is that, in the event of a McCain victory, Democrats in general and Americans of African ancestry in particular will feel that racism was the decisive cause of Senator Obama's defeat. I feel that will not be the case, that in fact the reason Senator Obama came so close is because of his incredible American journey as the first generation son of a Kenyan immigrant and his considerable personal political talents, despite a dearth of experience and a host of questionable political allies.

My second-greatest fear is that the world will recoil even further from us in the event of an Obama defeat. We cannot control that reaction, but I hope it does not occur in the event of my candidate winning the Presidency.

My great hope is that, no matter who wins, this election represents a tremendous chance for renewal of these United States. President Bush will be gone as of January 20 next year (while his foreign critics the Castro brothers, Hugo Chavez, and the Iranian ayatollahs continue in their ever-longer despotism), and I suspect all political sides in this country will be relieved to see him go.

I am a tremendous optimist, and I believe still that this country's best days are ahead of her. I can't wait for the next chapter in our country's history to begin, starting with this momentous day.