Live blogging election night

Live blogging Tuesday's historic election

3pm: As polls close in parts of Indiana and Kentucky, the first returns of the night start coming in. The networks have vowed to be extra careful in calling states, so look for a majority of precincts to report before we can line up any states in the candidates’ columns.

5:05: MSNBC beats the other networks by calling Pennsylvania for Obama. McCain blitzed the state with ads and appearances in the final weeks of the election, but many analysts worried that he poured too much capital into a state that was impossible to win.

6:25: Fox News, and next MSNBC call Ohio for Obama. Next comes CBS news, and Bob Scheiffer declares, “I think Barack Obama is going to be the next president of the United States.” Network’s can’t call the race until the last polls close at 8 p.m., but conservative pundits on MSNBC and FOX look rather dejected now that Ohio is gone. Most analysts agreed that McCain would have a nearly impossible chance of winning if he didn’t win Ohio.

7:00: Another round of poll closings in Denver and New Mexico, among other states. Florida’s polls have been closed for two hours, but the race there is still too close to call. No calls yet in other crucial states like Virginia, Indiana and North Carolina.

7:55: At the Annenberg lobby, about 200 students are gathered in front of the gigantic TVs, hanging from the stairs or leaning over balconies.

7:59: The CNN countdown clock reaches 20 seconds until the next and last polls close on the West Coast, which means the networks can call the election. At 10 seconds, the entire room starts counting down. Four ... three ... two ... one ...
At exactly 8 O’ Clock, the CNN “Breaking News” screen flashes. “CNN is calling the presidential race for Barack Obama.” Annenberg goes bonkers.

8:02: Standing with Dan Schnur, who was John McCain’s communications director in 2000, taking in the scene at Annenberg, as students continue to cheer. “I didn’t vote for him,” says Schnur. “But this is cool.” I think that pretty well sums up the night.

8:15: Pandamonium in the Daily Trojan office, as whoops and cheers continue for the Obama victory. Champagne is also involved.

8:30: That’ll wrap up tonight’s coverage. As it stands, the Democrats didn’t get the 60-vote filibuster-proof majority they wanted, but had a sweep in just about every other way. 252 seats in the house and 56 in the Senate will give them a commanding lead, and the ability to pass legislation with much more ease than their Republican counterparts.