Welcome to Breitbart News’s live coverage of Election Day, 2016. Check this page for updates on candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, how the rest of the media is covering the vote, and stories from polling stations across the country.

All times Eastern:

4:54 AM — Trump’s face lights up the side of the Empire State Building.

https://www.facebook.com/cnn/videos/10155578987086509/

4:17 AM —

Trump triumphs: Here is the front page of Wednesday's Washington Post pic.twitter.com/xKbpEzPNXK — The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) November 9, 2016

3:57 AM —

Kellyanne Conway said they were at Hilton when she looked down at her phone and caller ID said: "Huma Abedin." Clinton calling for Trump. — Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) November 9, 2016

3:43 AM — She’s going to show her face in public.

.@HillaryClinton will speak tomorrow morning, per aide…details still tbd https://t.co/R6xNBHVfeg — Tamara Gitt (@tamaragitt) November 9, 2016

3:41 AM — Trump’s full victory speech: Watch the video via Breitbart TV.

3:23 AM —

3:17 AM — Front pages from the New York papers:

Our front page for Wednesday:

HOUSE OF HORRORS: Trump seizes Divided States of America https://t.co/KKePm7uBhV #ElectionNight pic.twitter.com/HcuYeizg3j — New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) November 9, 2016

Tomorrow's cover: @realdonaldtrump has been elected the 45th President of the United States https://t.co/wiLL74mh8B pic.twitter.com/IJOWFp9FEr — New York Post (@nypost) November 9, 2016

3:16 AM —

Cruz: This affirms what we have long known, that Americans have resoundingly rejected the Obama-Clinton agenda — Anita Kumar (@anitakumar01) November 9, 2016

3:14 AM —

Mitch McConnell congratulates Trump in statement: "President-elect Trump has a significant opportunity to bring our nation together." — Sabrina Siddiqui (@SabrinaSiddiqui) November 9, 2016

3:09 AM —

Cannot overstate the feeling among top Democrats right now. It's desolation. — Gabriel Debenedetti (@gdebenedetti) November 9, 2016

3:07 AM — John Hayward: “Reporting out of Michigan seemed to freeze up after midnight Eastern time, but the last update had 94.4% reporting, and Donald Trump leading Hillary Clinton by a little over a percentage point. Trump had 2,142,763 votes to Clinton’s 2,083,428, giving him a lead of 59, 335 votes. Michigan is worth 16 electoral votes.”

3:04 AM — Trump concludes victory speech, begins hugging family and inner circle as Rolling Stones’ “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” plays.

2:59 AM — Trump thanks family, supporters, staff. Crowd erupts with applause at mention of Sen. Sessions.

2:55 AM — “America will no longer settle for anything less than the best.”

2:52 AM — Trump reaffirms that his campaign was just part of a “movement” of ordinary Americans who want better lives.

2:51 AM — Trump says it is time to “bind the wounds of division.” Goes all in on unity, says he is “reaching out” to people who have not supported him.

2:51 AM — Trump says he has spoken to Clinton on the phone. “She congratulated us,” he says. Also says he congratulated her. “We owe her a major debt of gratitude for her service to our country.”

2:50 AM — Trump: “Sorry to keep you waiting. Complicated business.”

2:45 AM — ABC News: Hillary Clinton has reportedly called Donald Trump to concede.

2:40 AM —

AP: Donald Trumps Wins White House in Astonishing Victory WASHINGTON (AP) -- Donald Trump was elected America's 45th president Tuesday, an astonishing victory for a celebrity businessman and political novice who capitalized on voters' economic anxieties, took advantage of racial tensions and overcame a string of sexual assault allegations on his way to the White House. His triumph over Hillary Clinton will end eight years of Democratic dominance of the White House and threatens to undo major achievements of President Barack Obama. He's pledged to act quickly to repeal Obama's landmark health care law, revoke the nuclear agreement with Iran and rewrite important trade deals with other countries, particularly Mexico and Canada. The Republican blasted through Democrats' longstanding firewall, carrying Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, states that hadn't voted for a GOP presidential candidate since the 1980s. He needed to win nearly all of the competitive battleground states, and he did just that, claiming Florida, Ohio, North Carolina and others. Global stock markets and U.S. stock futures plunged deeply, reflecting investor alarm over what a Trump presidency might mean for the economy and trade. A New York real estate developer who lives in a sparking Manhattan high-rise, Trump forged a striking connection with white, working class Americans who feel left behind in a changing economy and diversifying country. He cast immigration, both from Latin America and the Middle East, as the root of the problems plaguing many Americans and taped into fears of terrorism emanating at home and abroad. Trump will take office with Congress expected to be fully under Republican control. GOP Senate candidates fended off Democratic challengers in key states and appeared poised to maintain the majority. Republicans also maintained their grip on the House. Senate control means Trump will have great leeway in appointing Supreme Court justices, which could mean a major change to the right that would last for decades. Trump upended years of political convention on his way to the White House, leveling harshly personal insults on his rivals, deeming Mexican immigrants rapists and murderers, and vowing to temporarily suspend Muslim immigration to the U.S. He never released his tax returns, breaking with decades of campaign tradition, and eschewed the kind of robust data and field efforts that helped Obama win two terms in the White House, relying instead on his large, free-wheeling rallies to energize supporters. His campaign was frequently in chaos, and he cycled through three campaign managers this year. His final campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, touted the team's accomplishments as the final results rolled in, writing on Twitter that "rally crowds matter" and "we expanded the map." The mood at Clinton's party grew bleak as the night wore out, with some supporters leaving, others crying and hugging each other. Top campaign aides stopped returning calls and texts, as Clinton and her family hunkered down in a luxury hotel watching the returns. At 2 a.m., Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta told the crowd to head home for the night. "We're still counting votes and every vote should count," he said.

2:33 AM — Associated Press calls Wisconsin, putting Donald Trump over the threshold of 270 electoral votes.

BREAKING: Donald Trump is elected president of the United States. pic.twitter.com/yJpgfsAbc6 — The Associated Press (@AP) November 9, 2016

2:32 AM — !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2:23 AM — If God wanted to do anything more to vindicate Donald Trump, what would He do differently tonight?

Charlie Rose: "It is a grand irony that we talked a lot about whether Trump would accept the results and the question is not that" pic.twitter.com/04dFW9N0El — CBS News (@CBSNews) November 9, 2016

2:20 AM — Joel Pollak on Podesta’s “too close to call” announcement:

During the third presidential debate, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump was challenged as to whether he would accept the results of the election if he lost. (He had already answered that question in the affirmative in the first debate.) When he left the question open, Democrats and media critics suggested that his position was a threat to American democracy. Now, however, the tables have been turned. With virtually no path to victory, Clinton not only refused to concede, but refused to appear.

2:17 AM — NBC journalist admits Trump would be trashed for the non-concession that Podesta just delivered.

a million times this https://t.co/6J9GlvRa0Z — Kasie Hunt (@kasie) November 9, 2016

2:03 AM — John Podesta takes the stage at Clinton’s event. Says the vote is too close to call in several states; the campaign will not concede tonight.

2:01 AM — Clinton projected to win Maine. Trump wins one electoral vote from the state’s second district.

1:59 AM —

They've turned off the newsfeed on Jumbotron inside @HillaryClinton HQ. Supporters r singing to music…they believe it is over. @WRAL #wral pic.twitter.com/wUSu66u7Dm — Kathryn Brown (@WRALKathryn) November 9, 2016

1:57 AM — Journalism.

People are feeling physically sick. https://t.co/2JaN2rACTY — USA TODAY (@USATODAY) November 9, 2016

1:51 AM — Trump campaign manager takes a well-deserved victory lap:

Things that were true: undercover Trump vote; @mike_pence for VP; Hillary's floor & ceiling r same; rally crowds matter; we expanded the map — Kellyanne Conway (@KellyannePolls) November 9, 2016

1:46 AM — No-show?

Clinton press pool just grabbed @johnpodesta in Peninsula lobby. Asked if HRC is headed to Javits, he responded: "No. I'm headed over." — Jennifer Epstein (@jeneps) November 9, 2016

Wow. Pooler @danmericaCNN reports that Clinton campaign chair John Podesta just left HRC hotel to come to Javits solo. She is not coming. — Monica Alba (@albamonica) November 9, 2016

1:44 AM —

Clinton HQ has turned off the news feed… all we got is Hillary logo & playlist. — Donald Gilliland (@drgilliland) November 9, 2016

1:42 AM — NY-DC-LA bubble dwellers starting to realize: maybe I dwell in a bubble!

The country you thought you lived in is not the one that exists. — Stefan Becket (@becket) November 9, 2016

1:39 AM — Multiple news organizations call Pennsylvania for Trump.

1:38 AM — Marine Le Pen of France’s Front National congratulates Trump.

Félicitations au nouveau président des Etats-Unis Donald Trump et au peuple américain, libre ! MLP — Marine Le Pen (@MLP_officiel) November 9, 2016

1:37 AM —

Yes, this is real life…. https://t.co/NEU67a7U1o — Maddow Blog (@MaddowBlog) October 8, 2016

1:31 AM — Clinton camp dead silent with the party as well as press.

It's not just that they're keeping reporters in the dark. 3 top Dems just told me they haven't heard a peep from the Clinton camp in hours. — Gabriel Debenedetti (@gdebenedetti) November 9, 2016

1:23 AM — HuffPo cries “uncle.” From Breitbart Tech’s Charlie Nash:

The Huffington Post have discontinued their serial editor’s note that branded Donald Trump a “racist”, “misogynist”, and a “xenophobe” at the end of every article about him, citing the need for a “clean slate.”

1:18 AM —

Pennsylvania’s Pat Toomey Wins Re-Election, Ensuring Republican Senate Majority (AP) Republican Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania has narrowly defeated Democrat Katie McGinty in the most expensive political race in Senate history. Republicans will retain control of the Senate after Toomey's win in Pennsylvania if they hold Louisiana, Alaska as expected. Toomey's victory will keep Republicans in control of the Senate if GOP candidates in Alaska and Louisiana hold onto those seats, as expected. Toomey, a former three-term congressman, was considered one of the most vulnerable Senate incumbents. A fiscal hawk, he was seeking a second term after compiling one of the most conservative voting records in Congress. Toomey tried to distance himself from Donald Trump as he appealed to moderate Democrats and independent voters willing to split their tickets, particularly in Philadelphia's heavily populated suburbs. McGinty, who has never held public office, was trying to become Pennsylvania's first female senator. The 53-year-old worked in Bill Clinton's White House and was recruited by top Washington Democrats to challenge Toomey.

1:09 AM —

Clinton is going to address an empty room. https://t.co/vpuPi87Fdi — Annie Karni (@anniekarni) November 9, 2016

1:09 AM — Steve Schmidt on MSNBC just said “Steve Bannon was right” about Brexit foreshadowing this outcome.

1:08 AM —

Scene near the stage at Clinton event. People seem too tired to keep crying. pic.twitter.com/mAZV5CV1tj — Stefan Becket (@becket) November 9, 2016

1:04 AM — Polls have now closed in Alaska. No more votes will be cast in the United States for this election.

12:56 AM — Brutal.

.@jesshop23 & @MattJClaiborne just saw Clinton's childhood best friend, Betsy Ebeling, walking out of Javits from a door marked "no reentry" — Liz Kreutz (@ABCLiz) November 9, 2016

12:55 AM —

Ok all.

Its the big one. We project Trump wins Arizona… and the state of Pennsylvania.

He's President-elect. — Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) November 9, 2016

12:55 AM — Megyn…

Crowd at #Trump victory party booing @MegynKelly as she suggests Hispanics, Muslims, women fearful of @realDonaldTrump victory. — Joel B. Pollak (@joelpollak) November 9, 2016

12:52 AM —

Panoramic shot of #Trump victory party as they wait for 16 more Electoral College votes to hit 270 #ElectionNight pic.twitter.com/8eWOT1MmPc — Joel B. Pollak (@joelpollak) November 9, 2016

12:51 AM —

Scoop: HuffPost has removed its “Trump is a racist” tag on stories —> https://t.co/sO4QJFgILY — Hadas Gold (@Hadas_Gold) November 9, 2016

12:49 AM — Weak showing near Philly.

Bucks County PA: Clinton up just 0.7 point

2012: Obama by 1.2 pts

08: Obama 8.6

04: Kerry 2.8

00: Gore 4.2

96: Clinton 3.7

92: Clinton 1.3 pic.twitter.com/kBnXk71XRp — Greg Giroux (@greggiroux) November 9, 2016

12:47 AM —

Hillary Clinton remains at her hotel in New York, no change since her pool was last updated at 8:30p ET – 4 hours ago. — Dan Merica (@merica) November 9, 2016

12:46 AM —

Make no mistake, this is a white nationalist take over. — rose mcgowan (@rosemcgowan) November 9, 2016

12:45 AM — !!!

All of tonight's exit polls were wrong, and I was wrong for citing them. #ElectionNight — Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) November 9, 2016

12:40 AM —

Little girl sobbing comforted by mother. Scene from @HillaryClinton event. 2 hours ago she said she cd b POTUS too pic.twitter.com/emHazkv1a0 — Heidi Przybyla (@HeidiPrzybyla) November 9, 2016

12:38 AM —

https://twitter.com/woodruffbets/status/796225084402925568

12:34 AM —

Deflation at the Javits Center pic.twitter.com/2GRM0efBjl — Chris Megerian (@ChrisMegerian) November 9, 2016

12: 30 AM — Former Obama operative:

https://twitter.com/davidplouffe/status/796216380127264768

Almost 12 hours ago:

https://twitter.com/davidplouffe/status/796099209304752128

12:22 AM — AP calls Nevada for Clinton.

12:21 AM —

Right now it looks like the only poll that got it right is @danschnur's USC/LA Times poll, which was routinely dismissed as an outlier. — Elyse PG (@elysepg) November 9, 2016

12:20 AM —

People are crying. People are sitting on the floor. Some are holding out hope. But the floor is mostly silent. — Gabriel Debenedetti (@gdebenedetti) November 9, 2016

12:19 AM — Clinton surrogate:

This election wasn't about 4 years it was about a generation. We lost. But the sun will come up and we must be resilient. — Bakari Sellers (@Bakari_Sellers) November 9, 2016

12:17 AM — RIP polls.

as we all shouldn't https://t.co/QHIqNpsfSc — Kasie Hunt (@kasie) November 9, 2016

12:16 AM —

There is a really foul odor outside the Javits Center right now. "It's the smell of the country," said one depressed HRC supporter leaving. — Annie Linskey (@AnnieLinskey) November 9, 2016

12:13 AM —

Text from a top Clinton donor: "Done over. He is the President." — Liz Kreutz (@ABCLiz) November 9, 2016

12:11 AM —

in the WI exits, Trump was viewed unfavorably by 63% of voters, but he won 21% of those voters who don't like him. — Craig Gilbert (@WisVoter) November 9, 2016

12:10 AM — CBS.

Happening in the newsroom: colleague looking up the lyrics to the Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun" to cheer themselves up. — Emily Schultheis (@emilyrs) November 9, 2016

12:08 AM —

https://twitter.com/JGreenDC/status/796212244505837569

11:58 PM — Javits = convention center and venue of Hillary party.

People at Javits are crying and leaving. — Annie Karni (@anniekarni) November 9, 2016

11:58 PM —

Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani tells press likely @realDonaldTrump victory like Andrew Jackson win in 1828. pic.twitter.com/QTXW57lqSV — Joel B. Pollak (@joelpollak) November 9, 2016

11:54 PM —

.@chucktodd: "President Trump may be something that everybody needs to get used to, including the Republican Party" https://t.co/dPk8PGCEB8 — NBC News (@NBCNews) November 9, 2016

11:48 PM —

Republican Hindu Coalition: We Swung 25,000 Indian-American Votes Shalibh Kumar of the Republican Hindu Coalition told Breitbart News at the victory party for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump that his organization swung 25,000 votes for Trump in Florida, Ohio, and other swing states. “The Republican Hindu Coalition was given charge of delivering the maximum number of votes in Florida, North Carolina, and Ohio … Out of the three, Florida had the maximum number of votes.” https://twitter.com/joelpollak/status/796209487938015232 Kumar attended the party with his daughter, former Miss India Manasvi Mamgai, who is also a Bollywood actress.

11:46 PM — John Hayward: “With many votes left to be counted, and the presidency still to be decided, Donald Trump reached a milestone in the 11:00 PM Eastern hour. With the call of Wisconsin for Trump, he reached a total of 216 electoral votes, surpassing Mitt Romney’s total of 206 EVs in the 2012 election.

“The New York Times‘ election tracker is currently predicting Trump will end up with 305 EVs by the night’s end.”

11:43 PM —

Donald Trump Projected to Win Iowa Republican nominee Donald Trump is projected to win Iowa’s 6 electoral votes, beating his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton by a large enough margin that several networks have called the race with less than two thirds of ballots counted. Iowa was considered a key battleground state headed into Tuesday’s election. Located in the influential Midwestern region and known for holding the first primary in the nation, Iowa was long considered a Republican stronghold until the state went blue in both 2008 and 2012 for President Barack Obama. Chuck Grassley has also won reelection for a seventh term, saving his Senate seat from Democratic challenger and former lieutenant governor Patty Judge. Grassley was predicted to win despite heavy criticism from Democrats for his blockage of Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland. Grassley was an early Trump supporter.

11:38 PM — Was it Brian or Rachel?

Grunt on MSNBC as states get called for Trump… pic.twitter.com/wqdrNDTVEf — Jeff Poor (@jeff_poor) November 9, 2016

11:36 PM — Fox News has called Wisconsin for Donald Trump, with about a quarter of the vote still not counted.

11:34 PM — Associated Press calls Georgia for Trump.

11:31 PM — Trump is projected to win Iowa.

11:30 PM — NBC News cautiously declares Trump the “apparent winner” of Florida. Brian Williams making a big deal about that slightly noncommittal language.

11:25 PM — Trump projected to win Utah.

11:20 PM —

someone give me hope — Sarah Silverman (@SarahKSilverman) November 9, 2016

11:15 PM — Keep hope alive.

Norah O'Donnell: "For those that are calling their therapists right now: the night is still young" #ElectionNight https://t.co/H9n7JKbYS7 pic.twitter.com/PLEIDKI1Nb — CBS News (@CBSNews) November 9, 2016

11:00 PM — As polls close, Clinton projected to win California, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii. Trump projected to win Idaho.

10:54 PM —

The New York Times Election Tracker Takes a Roller-Coaster Ride The New York Times runs an election tracker web page that calculates the odds of presidential victory, popular vote margins, and projected Electoral College totals, in addition to monitoring the final state-by-state results. At the beginning of Election Eve, the tracker gave Hillary Clinton an 85% to win the election. Within two hours, the odds had shifted to a 50-50 race. At 10:30 PM Eastern time, with the last few decisive swing states waiting to be called, the odds stood at 90% for Trump. At the beginning of Election Eve, the tracker gave Hillary Clinton an 85% to win the election. Within two hours, the odds had shifted to a 50-50 race. At 10:30 PM Eastern time, with the last few decisive swing states waiting to be called, the odds stood at 90% for Trump. It was an amazing ride for the election tracker, raising some interesting questions about how the odds were calculated, and what data the Times was feeding into its system in advance of the formal state calls.

10:53 PM — Multiple outlets finally call Florida for Trump.

10:49 PM — Trump projected to win North Carolina.

10:45 PM — They’re already at this stage.

10:42 PM — Obama’s former chef:

This is some stressful shit!!! — Sam Kass (@chefsamkass) November 9, 2016

10:42 PM — Jeff Sessions tells Joel Pollak at Trump Tower:

“[Trump has] been outspent by a tremendous amount, but because he had the courage to stand up for fundamental principles … like the trade laws, like immigration … people stuck with him.

“They didn’t cut and run, and he didn’t cut and run.”

10:40 PM —

NBC: Hillary Clinton Wins Colorado Hillary Clinton is projected to win the state of Colorado and its nine electoral votes, according to NBC News. https://twitter.com/NBCNews/status/796194542286475264 Clinton leads Republican rival Donald Trump 49% to 43% with 58% of precincts reporting. In the weeks leading up to the vote, Clinton herself did not campaign in the state but deployed several top surrogates: Bill and Chelsea Clinton, Al Gore, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren. Clinton last appeared in Pueblo, CO, on October 12th. Trump swung into Denver, CO, this past Saturday to make a final push in the state. Dr. Ben Carson campaigned in the Denver metro area one day earlier. Going into Election Day, RealClearPolitics' polling average showed Clinton with a https://twitter.com/NBCNews/status/796194542286475264 Clinton leads Republican rival Donald Trump 49% to 43% with 58% of precincts reporting. In the weeks leading up to the vote, Clinton herself did not campaign in the state but deployed several top surrogates: Bill and Chelsea Clinton, Al Gore, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren. Clinton last appeared in Pueblo, CO, on October 12th. Trump swung into Denver, CO, this past Saturday to make a final push in the state. Dr. Ben Carson campaigned in the Denver metro area one day earlier. Going into Election Day, RealClearPolitics' polling average showed Clinton with a 2.9 percent lead over Trump.

10:27 PM — Clinton projected to win Virginia.

10:26 PM —

This team has so much to be proud of. Whatever happens tonight, thank you for everything. pic.twitter.com/x13iWOzILL — Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) November 9, 2016

10:23 PM —

#BREAKING Dollar tumbles against yen, euro on strong Trump showing #ElectionNight — AFP news agency (@AFP) November 9, 2016

10:19 PM — Trump projected to win Ohio.

10:18 PM — Michael Patrick Leahy: “With 92 percent of precincts in Virginia reporting as of 10:15 pm eastern, 2,362 out of 2,559, Hillary Clinton now leads Donald Trump, but by only 20,000 votes. Clinton has 1,564,493 votes, or 47.4 percent, and Trump has 1,544,293 votes, or 46.8 percent.”

10:15 PM — We may see some calls soon.

With 98.9% reporting in Florida, Trump is up by around 136,000 votes https://t.co/G5w7biLN9y pic.twitter.com/hN4rnWRa8c — Los Angeles Times (@latimes) November 9, 2016

10:14 PM —

We have Trump as a slight favorite in both Michigan and Pennsylvania, Clinton as a slight fav in WI. She needs all three. — Nate Cohn (@Nate_Cohn) November 9, 2016

10:13 PM — John Hayward: “Richard Burr has won his race to keep his Senate seat in North Carolina, defeating Democrat Deborah Ross.”

10:07 PM —

A Florida insider tells me that 99% of Dade and Broward are in. 95% of Palm Beach in. He says Florida is Trump's. — Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) November 9, 2016

10:06 PM — Trump projected to win Missouri.

10:05 PM — Michael Patrick Leahy: “With 89 percent of precincts in Virginia reporting as of 9:45 pm eastern, 2,284 out of 2,559, Hillary Clinton now leads Donald Trump, but by only 5,000 votes. Clinton has 1,497,135 votes, or 47.2 percent, and Trump has 1,492,304 votes, or 47.0 percent.”

10:05 PM — Clinton projected to win New Mexico.

10:02 PM —

Clinton election party now virtually devoid of campaign staff. Locked down. — Abby D. Phillip (@abbydphillip) November 9, 2016

10:00 PM — Trump projected to win Montana as polls close.

9:54 PM — John Hayward: “Fox News reports that Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) said he is not committed to remain a Democrat, if the Senate becomes a 50-50 tie.”

9:53 PM — Via Breitbart TV Editor Jeff Poor:

9:52 PM —

9:51 PM —

Republicans to Retain Control of House of Representatives WASHINGTON, Nov. 8 (UPI) — Republicans will maintain at least a foothold in the federal government by retaining their majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, though control of the Senate is still too early to call. It remains unclear what the GOP majority will be in the House, but NBC News was first to report they will at least remain in the majority and it is likely Speaker Paul Ryan will remain in that leadership roll to begin 2017. In the battle for the Senate, two of the nine races most likely to decide control have been called, one for Republicans and one a pickup for the Democrats — the first of five they will need to win an outright majority. GOP Sen. Marco Rubio won re-election to his seat in Florida, a race he entered late, only after his presidential campaign faltered. And Tammy Duckworth, the Democratic Illinois congresswoman, defeated incumbent GOP Sen. Mark Kirk in a race that was widely predicted would hand Democrats one of the seats they were looking for. The map for the Senate favored Democrats this year, with all but one of nine seats most likely to decide the balance being held by Republicans. The nine races where a seat is open or most likely to change hands were in New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Nevada, Florida and Indiana. Of that group, seven seats belong to Republican incumbents trying to hang on. Only two are open seats, Indiana and Nevada. The only one in Democratic hands presently is Nevada, where Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid is retiring. Coming into Tuesday, the House seemed a much safer bet for Republicans — and the election night tallies proved true. The GOP held an enormous 59-seat advantage coming into Tuesday. The non-partisan Cook political report listed 18 seats as pure tossups, not enough to flip control of the chamber to Democrats, even if they ran the table in all of them.

9:45 PM — Trump projected to win Louisiana.

9:43 PM — Trumpmentum.

NYTs "Our best guess is that Donald J. Trump is on track to win in Michigan." https://t.co/YGDVwblvhw — DanRiehl (@DanRiehl) November 9, 2016

https://twitter.com/AmandaLeeHouse/status/796181121943961601

9:39 PM — Almost-ran Never Trumper.

9:39 PM — Michael Patrick Leahy: “With 85 percent of precincts in Virginia reporting as of 9:30 pm eastern, 2,179 out of 2,559, Donald Trump continues to lead over Hillary Clinton, but by only 9,000 votes. Trump has 1,410,271 votes , or 47.3 percent, and Clinton has 1,400,580 votes, or 47.0 percent.”

9:38 PM —

9:37 PM — Amanda House: “Gloomy, anxious reporters all around us” at Hillary party.

9:34 PM — NBC’s Chuck Todd corrects himself from using the phrase “hidden Trump vote.”

9:33 PM — Report from Joel Pollak at Trump’s election-night party:

NEW YORK, New York — It has been a night of wild mood swings for supporters of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, who are gathered at the New York Midtown Hilton to celebrate the 2016 campaign and to watch results. Earlier in the evening, when Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton led in Florida, the Grand Ballroom was subdued. Yet as Trump took a late lead in the Sunshine State, cheers erupted around television monitors, and the mood in the hall brightened.

9:32 PM — John Hayward: “Whatever else may come tonight, let it be noted that Hillary Clinton began the night with an 85% chance to win, according to the New York Times’ election tracker… and at 9:30 PM, those odds fell to 50%.”

NYT now forecasting Trump win pic.twitter.com/5CzXwxIfWz — Jon Passantino (@passantino) November 9, 2016

9:31 PM — Michael Patrick Leahy: “With 81 percent of precincts in Virginia reporting as of 9:20 pm eastern, 2,094 out of 2,559, Donald Trump continues to lead over Hillary Clinton has dropped to 29,000 votes. Trump has 1,342,718 votes, or 47.6 percent, and Clinton has 1,313,956 votes, or 46.6 percent.”

9:29 PM — Former Obama speechwriter:

So this isn't fun — Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) November 9, 2016

9:27 PM — NY Times knocks Detroit Free Press for calling Michigan with about 11% of the vote counted.

I'm told that someone has called Michigan for Clinton. That's preposterous. She's in serious trouble there as well. — Nate Cohn (@Nate_Cohn) November 9, 2016

9:26 PM — Pong.

Dow futures now down 450 points. — SUBPOENA POWER🗽 (@Anthony) November 9, 2016

9:25 PM — John Hayward: “MIRSNews reports exit polling shows Michigan is a dead heat between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, with 48% of the vote each.”

MIRS/Target Insyght exit polling shows 48%-48 tie between Trump and Clinton in Michigan — MIRSnews.com (@MIRSnews) November 9, 2016

9:23 PM —

Rep. Tammy Duckworth Unseats Illinois Senator Mark Kirk (AP) Illinois Democrat Tammy Duckworth has unseated first-term Republican Sen. Mark Kirk in one of the most closely watched Senate races in the country. Duckworth, a double amputee who lost both legs in the Iraq war, has served two terms in the House. Kirk, who suffered a stroke in 2012, was considered one of the Senate's most vulnerable Republicans and was targeted early by Democrats seeking to retake control of the chamber. Kirk worked for months to convince voters that he's independent of his party by criticizing GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump. But Kirk hurt his own campaign with a series of controversial statements. He had to apologize to Duckworth last month after mocking her immigrant background and her family's military history. Duckworth, 48, will be the second Illinois woman to serve in the Senate.

9:15 PM —

Media mood at Hillary HQ just got a whole lot more serious pic.twitter.com/0YCFyheYyv — Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) November 9, 2016

9:12 PM — Trump projected to win Texas and Bill Clinton’s home state of Arkansas. Breitbart Texas has more info.

9:10 PM —

IT SHOULDN'T BE THIS CLOSE!!!!!!!!!!!!! — Sally Kohn (@sallykohn) November 9, 2016

9:06 PM — CNN predicts: No electoral vote split in Nebraska.

CNN giving all of Nebraska to Trump — no NE2 vote for Clinton. — Philip Klein (@philipaklein) November 9, 2016

9:01 PM — Our first dose of liberal panic.

A terrifying night, and not just because Trump might win. It turns out that there is a deeper rage in white, rural America than I knew 1/ — Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) November 9, 2016

9:00 PM — As polls close, Clinton projected to win New York and Illinois. Trump projected to win Kansas, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Wyoming.

8:57 PM — Frank Luntz continues to vacillate.

To his credit, Trump is overperforming exit polls from conservative parts of Florida and Virginia.#ElectionNight — Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) November 9, 2016

8:56 PM — Amanda House: “Whoever is operating the switch for the Clinton party video feed has quite a short attention span. In less than 45 seconds, they’ve flipped from the rally to ABC to CNN.”

8:50 PM — John Hayward: “Florida has turned into a real nail-biter on Election Day, as both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton racked up a huge number of votes. In fact, according to political veteran Steve Schale, Trump’s vote share is ‘better than the best share that any Republican has gotten since 2000’ in 41 out of Florida’s 67 counties.”

More from Decision Desk: Trump outperforming Romney 2012 in Jacksonville, Tampa and Central Florida, which is why FL race is neck and neck. — CBS News (@CBSNews) November 9, 2016

Fox just called Florida congressional race for Republican Carlos Curbelo. Beating Dem. Joe Garcia. Could it argue a win for Trump? — Warner Todd Huston (@warnerthuston) November 9, 2016

8:49 PM — John Hayward: “At 8:30 PM, NBC News projected that the Republican Party will retain control of the House of Representatives.”

8:48 PM — Michael Patrick Leahy: “With 62 percent of precincts in Virginia reporting as of 8:45 pm eastern, 1,589 out of 2,559, Donald Trump continues to lead Hillary Clinton by 107,000 votes. Trump has 1,001,885 votes, or 49.6 percent, and Clinton has 894,533 votes, or 44.6 percent.”

8:46 PM —

Republican Todd Young Defeats Evan Bayh in Indiana Senate Race (AP) Indiana Republican Rep. Todd Young has defeated former Sen. Evan Bayh in a Senate race that could be crucial to determining party control. The seat is now held by Republican Sen. Dan Coats, who is retiring. An onslaught of stories about whether Bayh really lived in Indiana and his extended job search in his final year in office undercut his candidacy. National groups have poured tens of millions of dollars into the Senate race, one of a half dozen nationally that could determine whether Democrats take over the Senate majority. Young, a three-term congressman from southern Indiana, doesn't have the name recognition of Bayh, whose father, Birch Bayh, was a senator for 18 years. But Young ran a strong race and was supported by outside groups.

8:39 PM — Trump up by about 100,000 votes currently. Ninety-one percent reporting.

"The jury's still out" says DWS when asked about Florida pic.twitter.com/Bmy29NeaVW — Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) November 9, 2016

8:29 PM —

In Polk County, Florida Romney got 137,566 votes in 2012; Trump already has about 140,000 with 41 precincts still to count — Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) November 9, 2016

8:28 PM — Alabama called for Trump.

8:22 PM — Michael Patrick Leahy: “With 44 percent of precincts in Virginia reporting as of 8:15 pm eastern, 1,148 out of 2,559, Donald Trump continues to lead Hillary Clinton by 132,000 votes. Trump has 703,339 votes, or 52.2 percent, and Clinton has 570,650 votes, or 42.4 percent.”

8:20 PM — The markets are watching.

BREAKING: Mexican peso turns negative as Trump takes tiny lead in Florida. Live #ElectionDay updates here: https://t.co/4ymcB5COo3 pic.twitter.com/e5YyLipv1t — Reuters Politics (@ReutersPolitics) November 9, 2016

8:19 PM — Still waiting on any meaningful results from PA.

PA R Sen Pat Toomey, who refused to endorse @realDonaldTrump during campaign, reveals he voted for Trump tonight: "tough call for me" — RickLeventhalFoxNews (@RickLeventhal) November 9, 2016

8:18 PM —

Marco Rubio Wins Re-Election to Florida Senate Seat (AP) Marco Rubio failed in his bid to end up in the White House, but he's still going back to Washington. Florida voters elected him to a second term in the Senate on Tuesday. He had wavered for months before deciding to run for re-election. He beat back a challenge from Democratic Rep. Patrick Murphy, who has repeatedly tried to link Rubio to Donald Trump. The two Senate candidates differed starkly on a number of issues - including guns, health care, foreign policy, economic issues and abortion. Each sought to leverage voter discontent with both the GOP and Democratic nominees. Rubio held onto had a narrow lead in polling going into Election Day over Murphy, who was abandoned by his own party after Democratic bosses decided to pull ad money from expensive Florida and invest it in Missouri, North Carolina and Indiana, instead.

8:14 PM — Amanda House: The Clinton event just finished showing a four-minute long “History of Hillary Clinton” promotional video instead of news on election results.

8:10 PM — Tammy Duckworth projected to defeat Republican Mark Kirk in Illinois’ Senate race.

8:09 PM — Associated Press calls Florida Senate race for Marco Rubio.

8:06 PM — Amanda House, Deputy Political Editor, is at Clinton’s election results party: “Hillary’s event keeps changing the channel (every 2-3 mins) between CNN, MSNBC, CBS & ABC… then keeps cutting (at the worst moments) to one-minute promos of Hillary tracked to Katy Perry’s ‘Roar’ and Sarah Bareilles’ ‘Brave.'”

8:00 PM — As the hour ends, Clinton is projected to win a string of states, in addition to the District of Columbia: New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and Massachusetts. Trump is projected to win Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Mississippi.

7:53 PM — Michael Patrick Leahy: “With 17 percent of precincts in Virginia reporting as of 7:50 pm eastern, 451 out of 2,559, Donald Trump continues to lead Hillary Clinton by 70,000 votes. Trump has 293,848 votes, or 53.7 percent, and Clinton has 223,949 votes, or 41 percent.”

7:51 PM — Trump projected to win South Carolina, per several networks.

7:50 PM —

Donald Trump is the projected winner in Vigo County, Indiana, with 44% reporting. Does it break Vigo's streak of picking POTUS since '56? — Tom McCarthy (@TeeMcSee) November 9, 2016

7:44 PM — Florida neck-and-neck with over 50% of the vote counted. Both candidates near 2.5 million votes and Trump slightly ahead with 49.8% to Clinton’s 47.3%.

7:40 PM —

Ohio Republican Rob Portman Wins Re-Election to Senate Seat (AP) Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman has defeated former Gov. Ted Strickland in a race that once looked like one of the Democrats' best bets to flip a Senate seat. Portman, a former U.S. trade representative and budget director, was first elected to the Senate in 2010. He ran a strong campaign, branding Strickland early on as "Retread Ted" and tying him to Ohio's sinking economy during Strickland's governorship, which coincided with the national recession. Portman kept Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at a distance leading up to Tuesday's election. Portman didn't campaign with Trump and withdrew his endorsement when a 2005 tape of Trump making lewd comments about kissing and groping women surfaced last month. Portman's TV ads touted his work to combat the heroin epidemic, including a new law Portman co-sponsored.

7:36 PM — Michael Patrick Leahy: “With six percent of precincts in Virginia reporting as of 7:30 pm eastern, 154 out of 2,559, Donald Trump has extended his lead over Hillary Clinton to more than 22,000 votes. Trump has 74,981 votes, or 55 percent, and Clinton has 52,886 votes, or 39 percent.”

7:31 PM — West Virginia called for Trump.

7:25 PM — CNN’s Wolf Blitzer gets audibly excited to announce that Clinton leads Florida with 30% of counties reporting.

7:22 PM — From Michael Patrick Leahy:

With 88 of 2,559 precincts, or 3.4 percent, reporting as of 7:10 p.m. eastern time, the first returns posted at the Virginia Department of Election’s website show Republican nominee Donald Trump in the lead with 51 percent of the vote to Hillary Clinton’s 42 percent.

Trump has 10,354 votes, and Clinton has 8,526 votes.

Polls in Virginia closed at 7:00 pm eastern time.

On Election Day morning, Real Clear Politics (RCP) listed Virginia as a tossup, though Hillary Clinton led the RCP average of polls by 5 percent, with 47.2 percent compared to Trump’s 42.2 percent.

In its “no tossup” electoral college map as of Election Day morning, RCP gave Virginia’s 13 electoral college votes to Hillary Clinton.

270 electoral college votes are required to win the presidency.

President Barack Obama, the Democrat nominee, defeated Republican nominee Mitt Romney by a 51.1 percent to 47.2 percent margin in 2012. Obama had 1,971,820 votes, while Romney had 1,822,522 votes. Obama’s margin over Romney was 149,298 votes, or 3.9 percent of the 3,858,043 votes cast for president in Virginia.

Seventy one percent of Virginia’s 5.4 million registered voters turned out to vote in 2012.

As of October 31, 2016, there were 5.6 million registered voters in Virginia.

If either candidate loses the state by less than one percent, a recount is likely.

“In Virginia, there are no automatic recounts. Only an apparent losing candidate can ask for a recount, and only if the difference between the apparent winning candidate and that apparent losing candidates is not more than one percent (1%) of the total votes cast for those two candidates,” according to the Virginia Department of Elections website.

7:20 PM —

Tim Scott Elected to First Full Senate Term (AP) South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott, the South's first black senator since Reconstruction, has won his first full term. Scott defeated Democrat Thomas Dixon, a community activist and pastor. The Senate's only black Republican, Scott said he would vote for Donald Trump, even as he has characterized some of Trump's statements and actions as "disgusting," ''indefensible" and "racially toxic." Scott, one of only two black senators, said on the Senate floor this summer that he has repeatedly been pulled over by law enforcement and was once even stopped by a Capitol Police officer who apparently did not believe he was a senator. Scott, 51, was appointed to the seat in 2013 following the resignation of Sen. Jim DeMint, then won election to the final two years of that term.

7:11 PM — CNN calls several Senate races: Rand Paul, Tim Scott re-elected. Patrick Leahy re-elected.

7:09 PM — State of North Carolina announces that several counties will keep polling stations open later than originally scheduled, citing technical problems earlier in the day which delayed voting.

7:07 PM — First Florida county reports results: Citrus County, which makes up 0.8% of the state’s population. Donald Trump has won that county by over 60%.

7:00 PM — As polls close in several states, Trump is immediately projected to win Kentucky and Indiana; Clinton is projected to win Vermont.

6:53 PM — UPDATE: George W. Bush spox says the former president did not vote for Trump or Clinton. Story from Breitbart Texas.

6:46 PM — Frank Luntz says new data makes him believe Clinton is heading to victory.

The numbers I'm getting now suggest a nationwide turnout that strongly favors Hillary. And if Hillary does well, so will down-ballot Dems. — Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) November 8, 2016

The turnout in Democratic Philadelphia is so high that it's hard to see Trump overcoming it in the rest of the state. #ElectionNight — Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) November 8, 2016

The turnout in Madison and Ann Arbor suggest that Trump is going to have a bad time in Wisconsin and Michigan. #ElectionNight — Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) November 8, 2016

I'm starting to think Democrats will take the Senate majority tonight.#ElectionNight — Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) November 8, 2016

Memo to Republicans and Republican pollsters: Tonight will look more like 2012 than 2004.#ElectionNight — Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) November 8, 2016

All eyes will be in Virginia for 2017. Tim Kaine's Senate seat will open up, and they will have a special election. #ElectionNight — Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) November 8, 2016

In case I wasn't clear enough from my previous tweets: Hillary Clinton will be the next President of the United States. #ElectionNight — Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) November 8, 2016

6:41 PM —

Exclusive — Pennsylvania Rep. Mike Kelly: Call PA GOP Hotline for Any Concerns About Ballots As stories of malfunctioning machines in Pennsylvania spread, Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Mike Kelly said voters must call the state Republican Party’s hotline if they have a concern. “Our votes are sacred,” Kelly told Breitbart News. Kelly said he met a woman in Clinton Township who tried to vote three different times for Donald Trump, but her vote mysteriously switched to Hillary Clinton each time before the voting machine’s screen went blank. She has no idea if her vote was counted and was very upset by the process. There are 18 different polling sites that have had similar problems taking place, Kelly said. The state party is looking into the discrepancies. If votes are only being flipped one way, “it’s a computer fix, not a computer glitch,” Kelly said. Concerned voters can call the GOP hotline: 1-877-91-PAGOP, Kelly said. Calling the hotline if anything worrying occurs is key, Kelly said, and so is reviewing the vote you cast: Voters "have to look at the [ballot] summary to make sure it’s exactly the way you voted.” “We’re hearing these things are changing, and it’s all one way,” Kelly said. “You can say, well, maybe it was a computer glitch, but it’s all people voting for Trump. And it’s defaulting to Clinton.”

6:38 PM — O’Keefe says another video imminent.

WOW! Caught more #VoterFraud in N Philly. Election workers caught BREAKING THE LAW. #VeritasIsEverywhere Stay tuned, coming soon… pic.twitter.com/32I95Mubzj — James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) November 8, 2016

6:36 PM — [Jaws Theme]

Breitbart News is now live at the Hillary Clinton Election night HQ pic.twitter.com/WchV3AyVua — Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) November 8, 2016

6:35 PM —

CNN Fact Checkers Rush to Correct Trump Typo CNN's Jake Tapper and Brian Stelter made sure to fact check a Twitter typo from Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump before the polls closed on Tuesday. Trump quoted CNN in a tweet about "voting machine problems" in Utah. The tweet used the word "country" instead of "county," and the gumshoes at CNN were all over it! https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/796102093727793152 Tapper devoted airtime to set the record straight; the chyron during the segment read, "TRUMP TWEET MISTAKENLY ALLEGES NATIONWIDE VOTING ISSUES." "The problem is 'problems across the county.' A county, not the country, as Mr Trump tweeted," Tapper said. "It's the difference of an 'r', but kind of an important one." Stelter, to do his part, rushed to Twitter to admonish Trump. https://twitter.com/brianstelter/status/796102676119519237

6:33 PM —

Star-Spangled Banner being sung by diverse group of Americans in front of #HiltonMidtown, where Trump-Pence ElectionNight party's being held pic.twitter.com/kJdAcUAm0v — Adelle Malka Nazarian (@AdelleNaz) November 8, 2016

6:21 PM —

Exit Polls: Americans Deeply Divided After Eight Years of Obama The latest data from Election Day exit polls reveals a nation divided sharply along demographic lines — not exactly the kind of change that was promised, and that voters expected, from the presidency of Barack Obama. The Edison Research exit polls, conducted on behalf of a consortium of mainstream media outlets, show that Donald Trump is winning among non-college educated white voters, 65% to 29%. In 2012, Mitt Romney won the same group — but by a lower margin, Politico The Edison Research exit polls, conducted on behalf of a consortium of mainstream media outlets, show that Donald Trump is winning among non-college educated white voters, 65% to 29%. In 2012, Mitt Romney won the same group — but by a lower margin, Politico reports . Other interesting tidbits mentioned by Politico include that “more voters say Clinton is honest and trustworthy (38 percent) than describe Trump as honest and trustworthy (32 percent).” It is not clear whether exit polls are accurate — and, given Trump voters’ hostility to media and pollsters, they may be even less accurate than usual. Clinton and Trump are splitting college-educated whites, and Clinton is winning younger voters — but by lower margins than Obama won them four years ago, according to Politico.

6:20 PM — Active shooter situation in California — some reports claim it is happening near a polling place. Developing…

Multiple police, emergency vehicles in residential area of Azusa after shooting https://t.co/qMbRwcoD2L pic.twitter.com/elQrrBanzJ — KTLA (@KTLA) November 8, 2016

Monitoring #ActiveShooter situation in Azusa. Two polling locations currently impacted – Memorial Park & Dalton Elementary in Azusa (cont). — Dean Logan, RR/CC (@LACountyRRCC) November 8, 2016

6:05 PM —

Colorado Voting Computers Crash, Frustrating Voters The Colorado Secretary of State confirmed Tuesday afternoon that the state’s voter registration system had crashed in the middle of Election Day. The crash was reported at 3:00 p.m. Mountain Standard Time, and was reported fixed about 3:30 p.m., according to local Denver station Fox 31 and the Secretary of State’s office. Fox 31 reports: “Unfortunately, our system goes down now and then. It [happened] today and we regret that,” Lynn Bartels, spokeswoman for the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office said on Twitter. The database is used to confirm voter registration. While the system was down, clerks couldn’t process mail-in ballots that needed to have the signature verified and people voting in person voters had to use provisional ballots, according to Bartels. The news of the crash is likely to fuel speculation of outside tampering or “hacking,” especially given Colorado’s status as an important battleground state, where both campaigns have spent time and resources. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton had initially pulled advertising from Colorado, but put resources back into the state as it became more competitive again, and as Republican nominee Donald Trump campaigned there.

5:51 PM —

Record Voter Turnout Expected in Michigan According to Michigan’s Secretary of State, Ruth Johnson, “turnout is robust” in areas across the Great Lakes States and could achieve a record. The March presidential primary already shattered a four-decade record with 2.5 million voters. MLive The March presidential primary already shattered a four-decade record with 2.5 million voters. MLive quotes Johnson saying absentee ballot returns are 18 percent over typical elections. Long lines were reported in Grand Rapids, where Donald Trump made a late-night campaign stop on Monday, and in Detroit. Detroit polling places reported “disorganization,” ballot outages, and frustrated voters giving up and leaving. One Detroit voter was unable to leave a polling place on the east side of the city, because his hand got stuck in a voting machine. However, Johnson said of overall performance by voting machines: “So far, so good.” “Things turned heated in Ypsilanti Township, southeast of Ann Arbor, where two voters got into an altercation about their respective candidates. A man ended up shoving one woman, with another woman spitting at people after a group of 5-6 people started to yell,” MLive reports

5:32 PM — STATEWIDE.

#Breaking: Statewide election systems down in Colorado, delaying voters. Been down roughly 15 minutes. Officials working to restore systems. — Denver7 News (@DenverChannel) November 8, 2016

5:30 PM —

5:14 PM — Donald Trump Jr. on Twitter pushing the campaign’s anti-establishment theme — and urging voters to send a message to the elites.

DC is all talk. For decades they said they are going to fix problems. Instead, they got rich, did nothing, and got reelected. #MAGA — Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) November 8, 2016

We have the political class shaking in their boots. They fear a true outsider, someone who can't be bought. Its time to DRAIN THE SWAMP! — Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) November 8, 2016

The elites have thrown everything at us. The media, Hollywood, Wall St. & career politicians are scared. Let's finish this strong! #MAGA — Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) November 8, 2016

4:53 PM — Sen. Mark Kirk makes his choice for President.

From the live blog: Embattled Sen. @MarkKirk writes in David Petraeus for president https://t.co/qUa4VopcHW pic.twitter.com/6A44YowtgQ — POLITICO (@politico) November 8, 2016

4:48 PM —

Reuters/Ipsos Exit Poll: 3 in 4 Think Economy ‘Rigged’ for ‘Rich and Powerful,’ Want ‘Strong Leader’ (REUTERS) Americans who had cast their votes for the next president early on Tuesday appeared to be worried about the direction of the country, and were looking for a "strong leader who can take the country back from the rich and powerful," according to an early reading from the Reuters/Ipsos national Election Day poll. The poll of more than 10,000 people who have already cast their ballots in the presidential election showed a majority of voters are worried about their ability to get ahead and have little confidence in political parties or the media to improve their situation. A majority also feel that the economy is rigged to mostly help the wealthy. The poll, which will be updated as additional responses are tallied and votes are counted throughout Tuesday, found: - 75 percent agree that "America needs a strong leader to take the country back from the rich and powerful." - 72 percent agree "the American economy is rigged to advantage the rich and powerful." - 68 percent agree that "traditional parties and politicians don’t care about people like me." - 76 percent believe "the mainstream media is more interested in making money than telling the truth." Read the rest of the story at The poll of more than 10,000 people who have already cast their ballots in the presidential election showed a majority of voters are worried about their ability to get ahead and have little confidence in political parties or the media to improve their situation. A majority also feel that the economy is rigged to mostly help the wealthy. The poll, which will be updated as additional responses are tallied and votes are counted throughout Tuesday, found: - 75 percent agree that "America needs a strong leader to take the country back from the rich and powerful." - 72 percent agree "the American economy is rigged to advantage the rich and powerful." - 68 percent agree that "traditional parties and politicians don’t care about people like me." - 76 percent believe "the mainstream media is more interested in making money than telling the truth." Read the rest of the story at Reuters.com

4:41 PM —

EXCLUSIVE — Lara Trump: ‘Whatever Happens, We will Be Together as a Family’ Donald Trump's daughter-in-law Lara Trump spoke to Breitbart on Tuesday afternoon, with just hours left before polls closed on Election Day, explaining that she feels a sense of calm knowing the family did all they could to get her father-in-law elected President of the United States. “We’re very excited. It's all led up to today," Trump, who is married to Eric Trump told Breitbart during a phone call Tuesday afternoon. "I think we are all sort of a little bit in shock that today is the big day because we've all been working so hard and it's been 18 months [of campaigning] now.” “There's actually an odd sense of calm that I have, and I think it comes from knowing that really that we all did everything we could and we all really gave it our best out on the campaign trail. Now, it's up to the voters. We feel good about that,” she added. Her father-in-law posted on Twitter that he will be watching the results from Trump Tower with his family. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/796099494442057728 https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/796099494442057728 “Since the primaries, we’ve all gathered to watch the results come in for every primary and tonight will be no different,” Lara Trump added. “Whatever happens, we will be together as a family, which is how we started this whole thing."

4:34 PM — Lindsey Graham feeling good that he did not sign the same pledge as Jeb Bush.

I voted @Evan_McMullin for President. I appreciate his views on a strong America and the need to rebuild our military. #3 — Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) November 8, 2016

4:27 PM —

WATCH: Elderly PA Woman Shocks CNN Anchor Asking if She’s ‘Excited for the First Female President’ A CNN reporter was rendered speechless after he asked a Pennsylvania woman on Election Day if she was excited for the prospect of America's first female president. https://twitter.com/CNNPolitics/status/796044229990612994 Jackie Krachala, who was voting for Donald Trump, stood in line with her husband Bill, who is voting for Hillary Clinton, outside a polling place in Washington, PA. The CNN correspondent on the scene asked the couple whether they got along and asked both of them why they supported either candidate. After Jackie explained that she trusts Trump to be a strong leader and stop America from owing other countries, the reporter implied that she should support Clinton because of her gender. "Aren't you excited for the first female president?" he asked. Krachala simply replied, "No!" Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton leads Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump by three percentage points on Election Day, according to https://twitter.com/CNNPolitics/status/796044229990612994 Jackie Krachala, who was voting for Donald Trump, stood in line with her husband Bill, who is voting for Hillary Clinton, outside a polling place in Washington, PA. The CNN correspondent on the scene asked the couple whether they got along and asked both of them why they supported either candidate. After Jackie explained that she trusts Trump to be a strong leader and stop America from owing other countries, the reporter implied that she should support Clinton because of her gender. "Aren't you excited for the first female president?" he asked. Krachala simply replied, "No!" Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton leads Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump by three percentage points on Election Day, according to RealClearPolitics

4:09 PM —

Philadelphia: Multiple Reports of Voter Fraud Hit Social Media Reports of voter fraud in Philadelphia showcase the “rigged system” Donald Trump promises to clean up if elected president, as Pennsylvania goes down to the wire as a swing state that could determine the 2016 election. Reports out of Philly say that Republican poll watchers have been thrown out of polling places throughout the City of Brotherly Love. Local Republicans have taken to social media Around 8AM, the Philadelphia Republican Party tweeted, “court-appointed minority inspectors refused entry [to a polling location]. @PhillyPolice have been called.” An hour later: “Update: Ward 64-15: reports of electioneering. Our poll watcher has been barred entry.” Shortly thereafter: “Update: Ward 13-14: Won’t allow our minority inspector in, threatened to call police. Go ahead.” Then around 10AM: “Ward 4 divisions 10, 16, 17—illegal @HillaryClinton lit being distributed inside polling place.” And then: “Update: Ward 12-2 (NW Philly)—Sign-in sheet instead of clerk allowing anybody to come in and vote if they sign. Illegal.” During that same hour: “Court-appointed minority inspector at 17&Spring Garden—“I was just told… I’m not allowed to be in the room & … to wait outside.” Then around 11AM: “Ward 37-9 (North Philly): Poll workers handing out Hillary lit inside polling station.” At 9:38AM this morning, a local election worker, Brittany Foreman, tweeted a video of her explaining voter fraud that she claims to have witnessed at her location, giving specific details in her account. Most of these tweets were tagged with #VoterFraud. Political analysts sometimes say that Pennsylvania is “Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Alabama,” meaning that there are two Democratic strongholds in the Keystone State, surrounded by vast expanses of deep-red support for limited government, faith, marriage, and the Second Amendment. Philadelphia is nothing short of notorious for voter fraud. One of the most infamous examples of voting-law violations in modern history was when The Justice Department secured a court judgment against the Black Panthers for a videotaped incident of voter intimidation, a case that after the government won but before enforcement could take place, Barack Obama’s then-new Attorney General Eric Holder to drop the case and let the Black Panthers go. Some polls are split regarding whether Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton is likely to win Pennsylvania, with Republicans complaining that voter fraud is so rampant in Philadelphia that it could steal a victory from Donald Trump if the margin is close. Trump has been pounding away on the theme that aspects of the system are “rigged” urging his supporters to turn out in massive numbers to ensure victory when the polls close. Ken Klukowski is senior legal editor for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter Reports out of Philly say that Republican poll watchers have been thrown out of polling places throughout the City of Brotherly Love. Local Republicans have taken to social media @PhillyGOP to share their accounts with the nation in real-time. A small sampling of these tweets (with “minority inspector” referring to Republican inspectors) just from the morning hours of Election Day include:Most of these tweets were tagged with #VoterFraud. Political analysts sometimes say that Pennsylvania is “Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Alabama,” meaning that there are two Democratic strongholds in the Keystone State, surrounded by vast expanses of deep-red support for limited government, faith, marriage, and the Second Amendment. Philadelphia is nothing short of notorious for voter fraud. One of the most infamous examples of voting-law violations in modern history was when The Justice Department secured a court judgment against the Black Panthers for a videotaped incident of voter intimidation, a case that after the government won but before enforcement could take place, Barack Obama’s then-new Attorney General Eric Holder to drop the case and let the Black Panthers go. Some polls are split regarding whether Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton is likely to win Pennsylvania, with Republicans complaining that voter fraud is so rampant in Philadelphia that it could steal a victory from Donald Trump if the margin is close. Trump has been pounding away on the theme that aspects of the system are “rigged” urging his supporters to turn out in massive numbers to ensure victory when the polls close. Ken Klukowski is senior legal editor for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @kenklukowski

4:08 PM —

North Carolina: Voting Machines Incorrectly Say Dozens Already Cast Ballots (AP) A software glitch that indicated scores of voters showing up at the polls had already cast ballots has led to voting delays in one of North Carolina's most heavily Democratic counties. North Carolina Board of Elections lawyer Josh Lawson says officials in Durham County quickly concluded that there was a problem with their electronic poll books and began relying on paper rolls to confirm voter registrations. Attempts to vote twice are rare. Lawson says there's no indication "nefarious activity" caused the computer problems. Rather, he said it could have been a failure to clear out caches of votes cast during the primaries. About two dozen other counties using the same software have not reported problems. Lawson said those in line when the polls close will still be allowed to vote.

3:51 PM —

Rush Limbaugh: ‘George W. Bush, Laura Bush Voted for Hillary Clinton Today’ UPDATE: A Bush spokesman denies the report from Limbaugh, saying the former president did not vote for either candidate. Conservative radio great Rush Limbaugh announced to his audience Tuesday that he's been told that "George W. Bush and Laura Bush voted for Hillary Clinton today," the Washington Examiner reports. "On one level, it's personal. Remember what Trump said about Jeb. And Trump has had some unkind things to say about George W. Bush," Limbaugh explained, referencing Donald Trump's habit during the Republican primary of calling Jeb Bush "low energy." "But aside from that, think about party loyalty, think about issues, think about the direction of the country," Limbaugh added. "How does anybody vote for Hillary Clinton?" Limbaugh issued a stern warning to the "elites in Washington and New York," members of the "club" of powerful, self-interested political and media figures. "I submit to you that if you're in the club, and by the club I mean the establishment, if you are among the few elites in Washington and New York that actually, for lack of a better term, run the country, you're going to hang together with other club members," Limbaugh said. "That's how I think this happens." "Hillary Clinton's not seen as a Democrat... She may be, on one intramural level, an opponent, but she's certainly not an enemy when somebody outside the club happens to be running," Limbaugh continued. "Members of the club … they're going to hang together to preserve the existence of the club and its exclusivity." Although as many as 50 former George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush administration appointees coming out in support of Trump, there were reports earlier this year that George W. Bush would vote for Hillary Clinton.

3:50 PM — SYMBOLISM.

How 2016 ends at @Politico World HQ in Rosslyn: a cracked pipe in a 9th floor bathroom leaking sewage onto the 8th floor where newsroom is. — Kenneth P. Vogel (@kenvogel) November 8, 2016

3:39 PM — James O’Keefe posts a new video alleging illegal activity in Indiana:

NEW VIDEO: Reverends in Gary, IN: We “Tell Them Who to Vote For”#VOTERFRAUD “We’ve got people to get on school buses"https://t.co/30eJe1XuWZ — James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) November 8, 2016

3:14 PM —

Barack Obama Calls Radio Stations to Boost Clinton Turnout in FL, MI, PA (AP) President Barack Obama is hitting the radio airwaves to encourage Americans to go to the polls to vote for Hillary Clinton. The White House said Obama gave Election Day interviews to six radio stations that target listeners in Orlando, Detroit and Philadelphia. The cities are in states where the race is believed to be close between Clinton and Republican Donald Trump. Obama told syndicated host Jana Sutter that continuing the work of the past eight years depends on having a "steady, smart, serious" president follow him into office. He praised Clinton and reiterated his view that Trump is unfit to be president.

2:55 PM —

Nevada: Trump Campaign Files Lawsuit Alleging ‘Anomalies’ in Early Voting UPDATE: District Judge tosses the suit. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's campaign has filed a lawsuit in Nevada demanding Clark County Registar of Voters Joe Gloria to "impound and segregate ballots and voting materials involved in unlawfully extended voting hours." The Trump campaign also submitted a letter to the Nevada Secretary of State calling for an investigation into the "egregious violations of Nevada election law by Mr. Gloria." The lawsuit is focused on early voting in specific locations in Clark County on the last day of early voting, Friday. Voters who get in line before the polling locations' closing times are allowed to vote, but the Trump campaign's lawsuit alleges poll workers at the direction of Gloria allowed people who did not get in the line before the polls had closed. Nevada political reporter Jon Ralston described one of the locations in a Politico The line Friday evening stretched outside Cardenas Market in Las Vegas, teeming with Hispanic voters eager to cast ballots. Many had to wait for hours on the last day of a fortnight of early voting in Nevada, plied by food and exhortations from activists who didn’t have to do much. Election officials had to keep the polling place open an extra three hours to accommodate the line, which was described thusly on Twitter by Yvanna Cancela, the political director for the majority Hispanic Culinary union: “Looks like Trump got his wall after all. A wall of beautiful voters.” Clark County responded to the lawsuit with a brief statement: https://twitter.com/RalstonReports/status/796064435391512576 Democrats built a big lead during early voting in Nevada based on turnout in Clark County where Democrats built an advantage of more than 70,000 ballots cast. To win Nevada's six electoral votes the Trump campaign needed a Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's campaign has filed a lawsuit in Nevada demanding Clark County Registar of Voters Joe Gloria to "impound and segregate ballots and voting materials involved in unlawfully extended voting hours." The Trump campaign also submitted a letter to the Nevada Secretary of State calling for an investigation into the "egregious violations of Nevada election law by Mr. Gloria." The lawsuit is focused on early voting in specific locations in Clark County on the last day of early voting, Friday. Voters who get in line before the polling locations' closing times are allowed to vote, but the Trump campaign's lawsuit alleges poll workers at the direction of Gloria allowed people who did not get in the line before the polls had closed. Nevada political reporter Jon Ralston described one of the locations in a Politico article published before the lawsuit.Clark County responded to the lawsuit with a brief statement: https://twitter.com/RalstonReports/status/796064435391512576 Democrats built a big lead during early voting in Nevada based on turnout in Clark County where Democrats built an advantage of more than 70,000 ballots cast. To win Nevada's six electoral votes the Trump campaign needed a large election day turnout . The full lawsuit can be read HERE

2:43 PM — On MSNBC, a black voter flashes a Trump “Make America Great Again” hat that he used a hoodie to conceal on the way inside his polling place.

2:26 PM — Weird and awesome costume of a man in a KISS outfit and a Trump mask, seen because another man displayed a sign taunting Democrats outside a polling place:

Outside polling location in Spring Tx. Police speaking with man sitting by sign: FAGGOTS VOTE DEMOCRAT. pic.twitter.com/Zkia6h2fil — Andrew Kragie (@AndrewKragie) November 8, 2016

Man with sign being handcuffed. Officer took away his handgun. As Trump thing walks around. @HoustonChron #Houvote pic.twitter.com/XIs0CopcFo — Andrew Kragie (@AndrewKragie) November 8, 2016

Another charmer: man in Kiss outfit, Trump face & hat chants Trump's name as man arrested for sign placement pic.twitter.com/Ya4Y280Vn3 — Andrew Kragie (@AndrewKragie) November 8, 2016

2:19 PM —

2:06 PM —

Florida: Two Poll Watchers Fired at Broward County Voting Station As election-day voting began to ramp up in the crucial swing state of Florida, two precinct clerks at Herb Skolknick Community Center in Broward County's Pompano Beach were fired over a reported altercation. Police were called after there were reports of voter intimidation by two poll watchers, one Republican and one Democrat. The situation escalated to a dispute between one Democrat clerk and one Republican clerk, David Booth, from the twenty-third and twenty-fourth precincts. The precinct's Supervisor of Elections, Dr. Brenda Snipes, fired the two clerks on the spot after learning of the situation. Booth told NBC 6 Miami that “he was one of the two clerks fired and told to leave the property.” According to the local outlet's description of Booth's account, “there were allegations poll watchers were overstepping their boundaries inside the polling location and involved in voter intimidation.” Two more clerks have been brought in to replace the two that were terminated and voting is continuing smoothly. Florida, with its 29 electoral votes, is a must-win state for both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, and the polls have stayed tight between them right up to Election Day. The RealClearPolitics average of Florida polls currently shows Trump with a .2% lead, well within the margin of error for virtually all polls.

1:27 PM —

Officials: PA Voting Machines Incorrectly Registered Straight Republican Votes Voting machines in Pennsylvania were registering straight Republican votes as Democratic votes early Tuesday, officials say. The error was due to a calibration issue in Lebanon County's voting machines, where five machines out of the 270 machines available in the county malfunctioned, The error was due to a calibration issue in Lebanon County's voting machines, where five machines out of the 270 machines available in the county malfunctioned, Penn Live reported. Voters saw the errors after they reviewed their ballots before officially filing them. When questioned about the issue, no one reported their votes were incorrectly cast, according to Lebanon County Election Director Michael Anderson. Anderson said the issue was fixed and there was no indication that anyone's votes were incorrectly registered in the system. Other states have also reported problems with their voting machines on Election Day. In Utah, poll workers have had to resort to paper ballots because the machines in Washington County faced a programming problem . In Texas, a computer used by election clerks at a Houston-area polling station malfunctioned and voters had to be sent to another polling station two miles away.

1:03 PM —

First Exit Poll: Twice as Many Voters in 2016 Want ‘Strong Leader’ as President The first exit poll of Election Day 2016 emerged just after noon from Morning Consult/Politico, which reports that twice as many voters in 2016 versus 2012 (36 percent versus 18 percent) said that a “strong leader” was the most important factor in choosing a president. From the Morning Consult website: Voters heading to the polls Tuesday are twice as likely to say they want a president who is a “strong leader” than in 2012, according to Morning Consult/POLITICO exit data. More than one-third (36 percent) of 2016 voters said being a strong leader was the most important quality when picking a president, compared with 18 percent of voters who said the same during 2012 election. It’s an opinion held regardless of partisan leanings: 35 percent of Democrats, 34 percent of independents and 39 percent of Republicans said that was most important. After being a strong leader, voters said having a vision for the future, at 29 percent, was most important. Sixteen percent picked having a candidate share their values and care about people like them, respectively. Democrats were more likely than Republicans to place more value in whether the candidate cares about them (20 percent to 12 percent), while GOP voters said it was more important that the candidate shares their values (19 percent to 14 percent). Morning Consult, which was founded in 2013, is considered the “breakout” polling company of the 2016 election.

1:02 PM —

12:26 PM —

Utah: Voting Machine Problems Could Force 52,000 to Use Paper Ballots (AP) Election officials say voting machine problems in southern Utah are forcing poll workers to use paper ballots, potentially affecting tens of thousands of people. Utah Director of Elections Mark Thomas says a programming problem has affected all voting in Washington County, but so far appears it appears limited to that county. He says about 52,000 registered voters there have yet to cast their ballots. Election workers are trying to fix the computer problem and hope they can start using the voting machines later in the day. Thomas says officials were prepared with backup paper ballots. But he said they will need to print more if the problem persists. There are about 80,000 total registered voters in Washington County. Some 28,000 have already cast their ballots through early voting.

12:04 PM —

Mike Pence Rides Bicycle Before Heading to Polling Place Republican vice presidential nominee Gov. Mike Pence of Indiana took a bike ride before heading to his local polling spot on Tuesday alongside wife Karen. Pence lives and votes in Indianapolis as he lives at the Indiana governor’s mansion. He was headed to his local polling place around the time that his running mate, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump was voting at a school in New York City along with wife Melania (see Breitbart News' report on Trump's vote Pence lives and votes in Indianapolis as he lives at the Indiana governor’s mansion. He was headed to his local polling place around the time that his running mate, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump was voting at a school in New York City along with wife Melania (see Breitbart News' report on Trump's vote here ). Trump voted shortly after 11 a.m. local time in New York. After voting, Trump “chatted with some people at the polls and high-fived some kids there.” A photo of Pence and wife Karen on their bicycles was posted to his Twitter account: https://twitter.com/mike_pence/status/796021567461478400 Earlier the same morning, the potential vice president announced the opening of Indiana polls while urging Hoosiers to vote for Trump, state gubernatorial candidate Eric Holcomb, and U.S. Senate candidate from Indiana Todd Young. Trump is expected to win the state easily. https://twitter.com/mike_pence/status/795945494434422785 Should Trump win on Tuesday, current Lieutenant Governor Holcomb would replace Pence. https://twitter.com/AdelleNaz/status/796021789503737856 https://twitter.com/AdelleNaz/status/796037565094707200 Follow Michelle Moons on Twitter @MichelleDiana

11:55 AM — Eric Trump’s wife Lara Trump announces her vote. Read our exclusive interview with Lara published yesterday.

Proud to cast my vote for a man who has changed the game & stands for & w the people of #America, @realDonaldTrump – today we vote to #MAGA pic.twitter.com/e1FxCvupAq — Lara Trump (@LaraLeaTrump) November 8, 2016

11:50 AM —

Nate Silver: Polling Error Could Be ‘Higher Than Usual’ Thanks to Late-Breaking Undecideds Many 2016 polls may prove incorrect because so many Americans are undecided or else say they are backing third parties, says Nate Silver, founder of the "data journalism" site fivethirtyeight.com. “Undecideds are MUCH higher than normal,” Silver said in a Tuesday morning tweet. “So risk of a polling error -- in either direction -- is higher than usual.” https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/796016007127138304 One out of eight voters, or 12.5 percent, are either undecided or declaring support for other candidates during the last few days of the election. That is up from one out of 32 voters in 2012, one out of 27 voters in 2004, and one out of 10 voters in 2000, when Texas Gov. George W. Bush barely beat Vice President Al Gore. So Silver is cautioning people to be ready for a major failure by the pollsters in predicting Americans’ last-minute choices. Clinton is likely to win, said Silver, but: 3) Basically, these 3 cases are equally likely a—Solid Clinton win b—Epic Clinton blowout c—Close call, Trump *probably* wins Elect. Coll. If the polls understate Trump's support by three percent by a uniform margin of three percent, Clinton still wins, although just barely, Silver said. “Undecideds are MUCH higher than normal,” Silver said in a Tuesday morning tweet. “So risk of a polling error -- in either direction -- is higher than usual.” https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/796016007127138304 One out of eight voters, or 12.5 percent, are either undecided or declaring support for other candidates during the last few days of the election. That is up from one out of 32 voters in 2012, one out of 27 voters in 2004, and one out of 10 voters in 2000, when Texas Gov. George W. Bush barely beat Vice President Al Gore. So Silver is cautioning people to be ready for a major failure by the pollsters in predicting Americans’ last-minute choices. Clinton is likely to win, said Silver, but:If the polls understate Trump's support by three percent by a uniform margin of three percent, Clinton still wins, although just barely, Silver said. However, in a prior tweet, Silver noted that Trump is doing much better than 2012 Republican candidate Gov. Mitt Romney in the midwestern states, where he may be able to pick up wins that would give him 270 Electoral votes. https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/795444498671267840 Other evidence, described by Breitbart here and here , suggest that the 2016 polls are less reliable predictors than prior years' of the final presidential vote. Also, African-American support for Clinton may be sharply down from support for President Barack Obama in 2016.

11:41 AM —

Julian Assange: American Public ‘Real Victor’ of Wikileaks’ Clinton Releases WikiLeaks editor-in-chief Julian Assange has released a statement on the day of the U.S. presidential election, declaring that the American public is the "real victor" of the leaks he published from the Clinton campaign since they are “better informed as a result of our work.” He went on to claim the organisation had no political bias against Hillary Clinton but could not “publish information we do not have” on the campaigns of Donald Trump and third-party candidates. Assange added that the policy position he has supported is that of Green Party candidate Jill Stein, as she has expressed desire to protect whistleblowers and maintained that WikiLeaks' work should be explicitly protected by the First Amendment. You can read the full statement below: "In recent months, WikiLeaks and I personally have come under enormous pressure to stop publishing what the Clinton campaign says about itself to itself. That pressure has come from the campaign’s allies, including the Obama administration, and from liberals who are anxious about who will be elected US President. On the eve of the election, it is important to restate why we have published what we have. The right to receive and impart true information is the guiding principle of WikiLeaks – an organization that has a staff and organizational mission far beyond myself. Our organization defends the public’s right to be informed. This is why, irrespective of the outcome of the 2016 US Presidential election, the real victor is the US public which is better informed as a result of our work. The US public has thoroughly engaged with WikiLeaks’ election related publications which number more than one hundred thousand documents. Millions of Americans have poured over the leaks and passed on their citations to each other and to us. It is an open model of journalism that gatekeepers are uncomfortable with, but which is perfectly harmonious with the First Amendment. We publish material given to us if it is of political, diplomatic, historical or ethical importance and which has not been published elsewhere. When we have material that fulfills this criteria, we publish. We had information that fit our editorial criteria which related to the Sanders and Clinton campaign (DNC Leaks) and the Clinton political campaign and Foundation (Podesta Emails). No-one disputes the public importance of these publications. It would be unconscionable for WikiLeaks to withhold such an archive from the public during an election. At the same time, we cannot publish what we do not have. To date, we have not received information on Donald Trump’s campaign, or Jill Stein’s campaign, or Gary Johnson’s campaign or any of the other candidates that fufills our stated editorial criteria. As a result of publishing Clinton’s cables and indexing her emails we are seen as domain experts on Clinton archives. So it is natural that Clinton sources come to us. We publish as fast as our resources will allow and as fast as the public can absorb it. That is our commitment to ourselves, to our sources, and to the public. This is not due to a personal desire to influence the outcome of the election. The Democratic and Republican candidates have both expressed hostility towards whistleblowers. I spoke at the launch of the campaign for Jill Stein, the Green Party candidate, because her platform addresses the need to protect them. This is an issue that is close to my heart because of the Obama administration’s inhuman and degrading treatment of one of our alleged sources, Chelsea Manning. But WikiLeaks publications are not an attempt to get Jill Stein elected or to take revenge over Ms Manning’s treatment either. Publishing is what we do. To withhold the publication of such information until after the election would have been to favour one of the candidates above the public’s right to know. This is after all what happened when the New York Times withheld evidence of illegal mass surveillance of the US population for a year until after the 2004 election, denying the public a critical understanding of the incumbent president George W Bush, which probably secured his reelection. The current editor of the New York Times has distanced himself from that decision and rightly so. The US public defends free speech more passionately, but the First Amendment only truly lives through its repeated exercise. The First Amendment explicitly prevents the executive from attempting to restrict anyone’s ability to speak and publish freely. The First Amendment does not privilege old media, with its corporate advertisers and dependencies on incumbent power factions, over WikiLeaks’ model of scientific journalism or an individual’s decision to inform their friends on social media. The First Amendment unapologetically nurtures the democratization of knowledge. With the Internet, it has reached its full potential. Yet, some weeks ago, in a tactic reminiscent of Senator McCarthy and the red scare, Wikileaks, Green Party candidate Stein, Glenn Greenwald and Clinton’s main opponent were painted with a broad, red brush. The Clinton campaign, when they were not spreading obvious untruths, pointed to unnamed sources or to speculative and vague statements from the intelligence community to suggest a nefarious allegiance with Russia. The campaign was unable to invoke evidence about our publications—because none exists. In the end, those who have attempted to malign our groundbreaking work over the past four months seek to inhibit public understanding perhaps because it is embarrassing to them – a reason for censorship the First Amendment cannot tolerate. Only unsuccessfully do they try to claim that our publications are inaccurate. WikiLeaks’ decade-long pristine record for authentication remains. Our key publications this round have even been proven through the cryptographic signatures of the companies they passed through, such as Google. It is not every day you can mathematically prove that your publications are perfect but this day is one of them. We have endured intense criticism, primarily from Clinton supporters, for our publications. Many long-term supporters have been frustrated because we have not addressed this criticism in a systematic way or responded to a number of false narratives about Wikileaks’ motivation or sources. Ultimately, however, if WL reacted to every false claim, we would have to divert resources from our primary work. WikiLeaks, like all publishers, is ultimately accountable to its funders. Those funders are you. Our resources are entirely made up of contributions from the public and our book sales. This allows us to be principled, independent and free in a way no other influential media organization is. But it also means that we do not have the resources of CNN, MSNBC or the Clinton campaign to constantly rebuff criticism. Yet if the press obeys considerations above informing the public, we are no longer talking about a free press, and we are no longer talking about an informed public. Wikileaks remains committed to publishing information that informs the public, even if many, especially those in power, would prefer not to see it. WikiLeaks must publish. It must publish and be damned. He went on to claim the organisation had no political bias against Hillary Clinton but could not “publish information we do not have” on the campaigns of Donald Trump and third-party candidates. Assange added that the policy position he has supported is that of Green Party candidate Jill Stein, as she has expressed desire to protect whistleblowers and maintained that WikiLeaks' work should be explicitly protected by the First Amendment. You can read the full statement below:

11:29 AM —

Topless Women Protest Donald Trump at His NYC Polling Place NEW YORK CITY, New York--Topless women protested inside Donald Trump's polling precinct in Midtown Manhattan on Tuesday, before the Republican presidential candidate arrived to cast his vote. WABC , an ABC affiliate, reports the two women were arrested. https://twitter.com/Breaking911/status/795993888305594368 The women had painted a "Femen" slogan on their backs. https://twitter.com/PIX11News/status/796007016762380289 The incident occurred more than an hour before the Republican nominee arrived to cast his vote at P.S. 59. The women reportedly entered the precinct and then took off their tops. They also made anti-Trump remarks. https://twitter.com/news10nbc/status/796020207760375809

11:14 AM —

Donald Trump Votes in New York City Donald Trump voted around 11 am Tuesday morning in New York City for himself. He was accompanied by his wife Melania. Trump waved to the the crowd as he entered the polling place in Manhattan. Once inside, reporters asked what the Republican candidate is hearing about early returns. “Heard good things,” he responded. “Just very good in general." Trump bought a cookie from a young boy to give to Melania before casting his vote, then gave the child a high five. https://twitter.com/Telemundo51/status/796021792120930304 He plans on spending the day inside Trump Tower, according to Fox News. Earlier this morning, two women appeared topless at Trump's polling place and chanted statements protesting his candidacy. https://twitter.com/news10nbc/status/796020207760375809

10:45 AM —

Gun Control on the Ballot in Four States (REUTERS) Gun control-related ballot measures in four states are expected to pass on Tuesday, opinion polls show, after gun safety advocates poured a massive amount of money into backing the initiatives. In Maine and Nevada, residents will vote on whether to mandate universal background checks for firearm sales, including private handgun transactions. If those two measures pass, half of all Americans would live in states that have such expanded checks. Eighteen states and Washington, D.C., have already approved similar laws. (Graphic: Gun issues on the ballot In Maine and Nevada, residents will vote on whether to mandate universal background checks for firearm sales, including private handgun transactions. If those two measures pass, half of all Americans would live in states that have such expanded checks. Eighteen states and Washington, D.C., have already approved similar laws. (Graphic: Gun issues on the ballot here ) Voters in Washington state, meanwhile, will consider allowing judges to bar people from possessing guns if they pose a danger to themselves or to others, such as accused domestic abusers. In California, a referendum would ban large-capacity ammunition magazines and require certain people to pass a background check to buy ammunition. Read the rest of the story at Reuters.com

10:20 AM —

Donald Trump Takes Tiny Vote Lead in Early New Hampshire Towns DIXVILLE, N.H. (AP) -- Donald Trump is off to a very early lead in the 2016 presidential election, winning over the voters of three New Hampshire precincts by a 32-25 margin over Hillary Clinton. Polls in the tiny New Hampshire towns of Dixville, Hart's Location and Millsfield opened just after midnight Tuesday and closed as soon as everyone had voted. These die-hard voters are proud to have the first word on the big vote. Clinton won more votes in Dixville and Hart's Location, but Trump was the overwhelming favorite in Millsfield, with a 16-4 edge. Libertarian Gary Johnson picked up three votes. Bernie Sanders, John Kasich and 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney got write-in votes. Under New Hampshire state law, communities with fewer than 100 voters can get permission to open their polls at midnight and close them as soon as all registered voters have cast their ballots.

10:08 AM —

9:54 AM —

CNN, MSNBC Press Trump’s Sons on Agreeing to Concede Election (AP) Donald Trump's eldest son says that his family will "respect the outcome" of a "fair election." Donald Trump, Jr. told CNN's New Day Tuesday that he thinks his father "will remain involved somewhat" if he loses the election. He said he hopes that the energy surrounding his father's campaign "goes back to the people we are trying to fight for, the people who haven't had a voice in a long time." He said, in retrospect, that "hopefully we shed some light on the process," and enabled people to speak their minds freely, "without being put in some basket, without being boxed in a corner." ***** Eric Trump says that his father will concede the election if he loses and the results are "legit and fair." In an Election Day interview with MSNBC's Morning Joe, Donald Trump's son said that "all we want is a fair fight, not just for this election but for all elections." The Republican presidential nominee has repeatedly warned of a "rigged election," though there is no evidence of widespread fraud in the electoral system. Eric Trump said, "we've seen states where a few thousand votes can make a difference." Pressed by MSNBC anchors, he said of his father, "if he loses and it's legit and fair, and there's not obvious stuff out there then without question, yes," he would concede.

9:47 AM —

Bill Clinton Jokes About Being First Lady as He and Hillary Cast Their Votes (AP) Hillary and Bill Clinton are voting in their hometown of Chappaqua, New York. The Clintons greeted supporters waiting outside the polling place after casting their ballots Tuesday morning. https://twitter.com/FoxNews/status/795979674237210624 https://twitter.com/FoxNews/status/795979674237210624 Hillary Clinton said it was "the most humbling feeling" to vote "because so many people are counting on the outcome of this election." Bill Clinton said he's eager to be a political spouse, joking that he had "15 years of practice."

9:40 AM — Early, early line at a Texas polling station — and a black Trump supporter making sure to represent him at the polls in deep-blue Philadelphia.

Get out and vote! At our polling station bright and early this morning … 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/LLLmABgxMA — Kimberly Willingham Hubbard (@kimiwillingham) November 8, 2016

https://twitter.com/alaskantexanqct/status/795695033500442624

9:30 AM — Read Breitbart’s coverage of both candidates’ last-minute rallies Monday night:

Trump, Pence Close Out 2016 Campaign with Midnight Michigan Rally

Hillary Clinton ‘Living On a Prayer’ at 1:00 AM Rally

Exclusive–Michele Bachmann: Minnesota Is in Play

Patriots for Trump: Brady, Belichick Come Out for Don

Dixville Notch Goes to Hillary Clinton