Obama, McCain ready to make history
11/05/2008 | 02:44 AM
WASHINGTON - Democrat Barack Obama appeared close to victory in his historic bid to become the first black US president Tuesday, while Republican John McCain battled for an upset as Americans cast their votes in the final day of the struggle for the White House.
Heading into Election Day, Obama continued to lead in the polls and both campaigns launched get-out-the-vote efforts expected to result in a record turnout.
Obama voted early Tuesday at Beulah Shoesmith Elementary School in Chicago shortly after 7:30 a.m. CST (13:30 GMT), with voters cheering him when he held up a validation slip.
"The journey ends," he told reporters later, "but voting with my daughters, that was a big deal."
In Phoenix, Arizona, McCain voted at a church before preparing to fly to Colorado and New Mexico, two battleground states he would likely need to score an upset victory. He gave supporters a thumbs-up sign and was in and out of the polling place within minutes.
"I'm very happy with where we are," McCain told ABC television's "Good Morning America" in an interview hours before polls opened. "We always do best when I'm a bit of an underdog."
An early indication of where the election is headed could come shortly after 6 p.m. EST (0000 GMT), when polls start to close in the traditional Republican stronghold of Indiana, where the two candidates are tied.
"It's going to be tight as a tick here in Indiana," Obama told volunteers in Indianapolis. "So the question is who wants it more."
Obama won the day's first contest, in two small New Hampshire towns where voters traditionally cast ballots shortly after midnight. President George W. Bush carried both towns in the last two elections.
Voters in Virginia, New York and other East Coast states lined up outside polling places hours before they opened at 6 a.m. (1100 GMT).
As Ahmed Bowling of Alexandria, Virginia, waited to vote in a crucial battleground state, he said the election "will mark a significant change in the lives of all Americans, and so we do have to come out as early as possible to cast our votes."
Polls showed Obama with an advantage in many of the battleground states that both campaigns have targeted in the race's final weeks.
Virginia, where no Democratic presidential candidate has won since Lyndon Johnson in 1964, is one of eight key battleground states that could determine the winner. The others include Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Missouri and Nevada.
About 29 million people have already cast ballots over the past few weeks in 30 states that allow early voting.
Obama seemed to hold the edge in pre-election balloting, as officials reported that more Democrats than Republicans had voted in North Carolina, Colorado, Florida and Iowa. All four states voted for Bush in 2004.
Some experts said the Democrat's grass-roots organization could drive a massive turnout and transform victory into a rout.
"We think we have enough votes around the country," Obama campaign manager David Plouffe told "Today" on NBC Tuesday.
Obama, however, on Monday warned his supporters to take nothing for granted, as the race depended on a relative handful of states that could go for either candidate.
Both the 47-year-old Obama, and McCain, a 72-year-old veteran senator from Arizona, pledged to bring sweeping change to Washington and close the door on the two-term presidency of Bush — whose approval ratings are near historic lows.
But the two were divided by age, race and core political convictions. They were deeply at odds over how to fix the US's crumbling economy and end the 5 1/2-year war in Iraq.
Obama has argued that McCain would continue Bush's policies while the Republican counters that Obama is too inexperienced to lead.
Democrats seemed poised to expand their majorities in both chambers of Congress, while Republicans battled to limit their losses.
The American presidential election amounts to separate contests in 50 states and Washington, D.C.
At stake are 538 electors, with the winner needing to capture at least 270, half plus one. Electors are apportioned to the states roughly according to population.
As Election Day dawned, Obama was favored to win all the states that Democrats captured in 2004, representing 251 electoral votes.
Victories in just a few additional states could push Obama past the 269 threshold.
McCain, meanwhile, must hold as many Bush states as possible while trying to capture a Democratic stronghold, such as Pennsylvania in order to keep his hopes alive.
In the closing hours of Obama's campaign, the candidate mourned the loss of his grandmother, Madelyn Payne Dunham, 86, who died of cancer in Hawaii late Sunday.
"She's gone home," Obama said, tears running down both cheeks as tens of thousands of supporters in North Carolina grew silent. The family said a private ceremony would be held later.
As Tuesday dawned, McCain continued a frantic dash through several traditionally Republican states where his chances were uncertain.
Meanwhile, a Republican group repeatedly aired television ads attacking Obama for his association with a black preacher who has harshly criticized the US in fiery sermons.
Despite the Republican offensive, Obama appeared to have the edge with voters seeking political change.
He took the lead after the political conventions this summer, as the US sub-prime mortgage crisis hit Wall Street hard.
He also has benefited from a record fundraising effort and capitalized on a US demographic shift as more young and non-white voters enter the electorate.
A USA Today/Gallup poll published Monday found likely voters nationwide favoring Obama by 11 points over McCain, 53-42 percent, with a margin of error of 2 percentage points. Other polls showed Obama with a 7 or 8 percentage-point lead.
Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin cast her ballot in her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska, Tuesday.
"Tomorrow I hope, I pray, I believe I will be able to wake up as vice president elect and get to work in a transition mode with president elect John McCain," she said.
She planned to return to Phoenix Tuesday night for a Republican rally.
In Delaware, Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden cast his vote and, later, joking warned his elderly mother, who had accompanied him: "Don't tell them who you voted for."
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who was defeated by Obama in the Democratic presidential primaries, cast her ballot for her former rival, saying that voters understood the nation needs "a serious president for serious times."
Clinton voted with her husband, former President Bill Clinton, in their hometown of Chappaqua, New York. - AP
Heading into Election Day, Obama continued to lead in the polls and both campaigns launched get-out-the-vote efforts expected to result in a record turnout.
Obama voted early Tuesday at Beulah Shoesmith Elementary School in Chicago shortly after 7:30 a.m. CST (13:30 GMT), with voters cheering him when he held up a validation slip.
"The journey ends," he told reporters later, "but voting with my daughters, that was a big deal."
In Phoenix, Arizona, McCain voted at a church before preparing to fly to Colorado and New Mexico, two battleground states he would likely need to score an upset victory. He gave supporters a thumbs-up sign and was in and out of the polling place within minutes.
"I'm very happy with where we are," McCain told ABC television's "Good Morning America" in an interview hours before polls opened. "We always do best when I'm a bit of an underdog."
An early indication of where the election is headed could come shortly after 6 p.m. EST (0000 GMT), when polls start to close in the traditional Republican stronghold of Indiana, where the two candidates are tied.
"It's going to be tight as a tick here in Indiana," Obama told volunteers in Indianapolis. "So the question is who wants it more."
Obama won the day's first contest, in two small New Hampshire towns where voters traditionally cast ballots shortly after midnight. President George W. Bush carried both towns in the last two elections.
Voters in Virginia, New York and other East Coast states lined up outside polling places hours before they opened at 6 a.m. (1100 GMT).
As Ahmed Bowling of Alexandria, Virginia, waited to vote in a crucial battleground state, he said the election "will mark a significant change in the lives of all Americans, and so we do have to come out as early as possible to cast our votes."
Polls showed Obama with an advantage in many of the battleground states that both campaigns have targeted in the race's final weeks.
Virginia, where no Democratic presidential candidate has won since Lyndon Johnson in 1964, is one of eight key battleground states that could determine the winner. The others include Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Missouri and Nevada.
About 29 million people have already cast ballots over the past few weeks in 30 states that allow early voting.
Obama seemed to hold the edge in pre-election balloting, as officials reported that more Democrats than Republicans had voted in North Carolina, Colorado, Florida and Iowa. All four states voted for Bush in 2004.
Some experts said the Democrat's grass-roots organization could drive a massive turnout and transform victory into a rout.
"We think we have enough votes around the country," Obama campaign manager David Plouffe told "Today" on NBC Tuesday.
Obama, however, on Monday warned his supporters to take nothing for granted, as the race depended on a relative handful of states that could go for either candidate.
Both the 47-year-old Obama, and McCain, a 72-year-old veteran senator from Arizona, pledged to bring sweeping change to Washington and close the door on the two-term presidency of Bush — whose approval ratings are near historic lows.
But the two were divided by age, race and core political convictions. They were deeply at odds over how to fix the US's crumbling economy and end the 5 1/2-year war in Iraq.
Obama has argued that McCain would continue Bush's policies while the Republican counters that Obama is too inexperienced to lead.
Democrats seemed poised to expand their majorities in both chambers of Congress, while Republicans battled to limit their losses.
The American presidential election amounts to separate contests in 50 states and Washington, D.C.
At stake are 538 electors, with the winner needing to capture at least 270, half plus one. Electors are apportioned to the states roughly according to population.
As Election Day dawned, Obama was favored to win all the states that Democrats captured in 2004, representing 251 electoral votes.
Victories in just a few additional states could push Obama past the 269 threshold.
McCain, meanwhile, must hold as many Bush states as possible while trying to capture a Democratic stronghold, such as Pennsylvania in order to keep his hopes alive.
In the closing hours of Obama's campaign, the candidate mourned the loss of his grandmother, Madelyn Payne Dunham, 86, who died of cancer in Hawaii late Sunday.
"She's gone home," Obama said, tears running down both cheeks as tens of thousands of supporters in North Carolina grew silent. The family said a private ceremony would be held later.
As Tuesday dawned, McCain continued a frantic dash through several traditionally Republican states where his chances were uncertain.
Meanwhile, a Republican group repeatedly aired television ads attacking Obama for his association with a black preacher who has harshly criticized the US in fiery sermons.
Despite the Republican offensive, Obama appeared to have the edge with voters seeking political change.
He took the lead after the political conventions this summer, as the US sub-prime mortgage crisis hit Wall Street hard.
He also has benefited from a record fundraising effort and capitalized on a US demographic shift as more young and non-white voters enter the electorate.
A USA Today/Gallup poll published Monday found likely voters nationwide favoring Obama by 11 points over McCain, 53-42 percent, with a margin of error of 2 percentage points. Other polls showed Obama with a 7 or 8 percentage-point lead.
Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin cast her ballot in her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska, Tuesday.
"Tomorrow I hope, I pray, I believe I will be able to wake up as vice president elect and get to work in a transition mode with president elect John McCain," she said.
She planned to return to Phoenix Tuesday night for a Republican rally.
In Delaware, Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden cast his vote and, later, joking warned his elderly mother, who had accompanied him: "Don't tell them who you voted for."
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who was defeated by Obama in the Democratic presidential primaries, cast her ballot for her former rival, saying that voters understood the nation needs "a serious president for serious times."
Clinton voted with her husband, former President Bill Clinton, in their hometown of Chappaqua, New York. - AP
