Lurphy DePalma Larry Halstead is a tech nerd with an affinity for arts & sports. Reppin' the hard streets of South Asheville for almost 15 years. He's made this city home and has vowed to never stop fighting to keep it as weird & unique as possible.







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We’ve started a list. Where else in town can Asheville tune in?

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* Buncombe County Democratic Party at Pack’s Tavern: Downtown. The Buncombe County Democratic Party will host an election night party with Democratic candidates to watch the results of the 2012 general elections. The event will be held in the Century Room at Pack’s Tavern in downtown Asheville at 8:00 P.M. The event is free to the public.

For more information, visit www.buncombedems.org.

* The Magnetic Field: River Arts District. Story slam and election night watch party

* The Asheville Public (TAP): East West Asheville. Open until 10 p.m.

* Highland Brewing Tasting Room: East Asheville.

Come on out and watch the election on Highland’s big screen. After/ during this, we could all use a pint

* Tressa’s: Downtown. Karaoke and returns.

* Asheville Pizza and Brewing: Merrimon Ave. Viewing until midnight.

* Ashevile Brewing: Downtown, Coxe Ave. Viewing until midnight.

Come watch the election returns with us!! BOTH locations, ALL tv’s, ALL movie screens!! (Yes, this means no 7 & 10pm movie) $3 pint specials!

* O. Henry’s: Downtown gay bar. 237 Haywood Street.

O.Henry’s will be having a viewing party until it’s over….or 3AM per NC Law!

* Mojo Coworking: Downtown Asheville. “Bring snacks, beverages – we’ll have it on the big screen + other screens on other channels. It’ll be fun. We can even play a little ping pong. We’ll start after work and continue until 11pm or so. Bring a beverage and snacks if you like.”

60 N. Market Street. Between Walnut and Woodfin.

* Loyal reader Kate Santos says: I work at Aloft and Im sure they’ll be showing it on the big tv near the fireplace. $4.50 pints and maybe a drink special?

Aloft Hotel is downtown at 51 Biltmore Avenue.

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From the Associated Press, here’s an armchair guide to the returns, hour by hour:

7 p.m.: Polls close in six states but all eyes will be on Virginia, the first of the battleground states to begin reporting results. If either candidate is comfortably ahead in Virginia, with 13 electoral votes, that could be a leading indicator of which way the night is going.

Virginia typically has been fairly fast at counting ballots. But there’s a new voter ID law in the state that could complicate things this year. Voters who don’t bring identification to the polls still can have their ballots counted if they produce ID by Friday. If the race in Virginia is super tight, it could come down to those provisional ballots. On Election Night, no one will even know how many of them are out there.

Virginia is especially important for Romney. In 2008, Obama became the first Democratic presidential candidate to carry Virginia since 1964. Keep an eye on turnout in northern Virginia’s Democratic strongholds for an early idea of which way the state will go.

7:30 p.m.: Polls close in three states, including all-important Ohio (18 electoral votes) and competitive North Carolina (15).

If Ohio is particularly close, and polls suggest it might be, there’s a chance the outcome there won’t be known until after Election Day, and the presidency could hinge on it. In the last several elections, between 2 percent and 3 percent of the state’s votes came from provisional ballots, which aren’t counted until later. In 2004, after a long, tense night counting votes, the presidential race wasn’t decided until 11 a.m. the next day, when Democrat John Kerry called President George Bush to concede Ohio and the presidency.

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8 p.m.: More pieces of the puzzle will start falling into place as polls close in the District of Columbia and 16 states, including battlegrounds Florida (29) and New Hampshire (four).

8:30 p.m.: Polls close in Arkansas (six), where Romney is comfortably ahead in surveys.

9 p.m.: Polls close in 14 states, including battlegrounds Colorado (nine) and Wisconsin (10). Democrats have carried Wisconsin for six straight presidential elections and Obama had the edge in polling going in, so a flip here would be especially noteworthy.

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10 p.m.: Polls close in four states, including the last of the battlegrounds, Iowa (six) and Nevada (six).

Iowa’s been leaning toward Obama, but watch how the vote breaks down geographically. Can Romney’s advantage in GOP-heavy western Iowa overcome Obama’s edge in eastern swing territory?

If Obama wins Ohio and Wisconsin, Romney would have to have help from the West, in places like Nevada and Colorado. Nevada, where two-thirds of the electorate votes early, has been moving Obama’s direction in recent weeks, powered by strength in huge labor and Hispanic voting blocs. A Romney incursion there would really mean something

11 p.m.: Polls close in five western states, but most are foregone conclusions for Obama. He gets 78 electoral votes from California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington; Romney gets four from Idaho.

1 a.m. Wednesday: The last of the polls close, in Alaska. Romney gets three electoral votes. Will many people still be up?

Read the full article here.