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CNN projects that Barack Obama will be the nation's 44th president.
CNN projects that Sen. Barack Obama will win the presidential election.
1 of 3 more photos » As polls closed on the West coast, the Illinois senator was projected to receive enough electoral votes to pass the 270-vote threshold.
Obama is projected to win California, Washington, Oregon and Hawaii.
He also is projected to win Virginia, a state that hasn't voted for a Democratic president since 1964.
As Obama built up a commanding lead over Sen. John McCain, senior aides to the Arizona senator were growing pessimistic about his chances.
When asked if they saw a path to victory, two senior McCain aides said no.
CNN earlier projected that Obama will win Ohio, a key battleground state with 20 electoral votes. Watch more on Obama's Ohio win »
No Republican has won the White House without winning Ohio. Going into the election, polls showed Obama with a 3-point lead there.
Obama and McCain are running a tight race in Indiana as results are tallied in the battleground state.
With about 85 percent of precincts reporting, McCain held a slim lead in the state.
In addition to the presidential contest, voters were making choices in a number of key House and Senate races that could determine whether the Democrats strengthen their hold on Congress.
Former Gov. Mark Warner, a Democrat, will win a Senate seat in Virginia, CNN projects. He will replace retiring Republican Sen. John Warner.
Incumbent Sen. Elizabeth Dole, a Republican, is projected to lose her North Carolina seat to Democratic challenger Kay Hagan. Watch Dole concede defeat »
Dole is the wife of 1996 Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole.
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CNN also projects Democrats will win two other Senate seats currently held by Republicans. In New Hampshire, former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen will win over incumbent John Sununu, and in New Mexico, Democrat Tom Udall will defeat Republican Steve Pearce.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell held onto his seat in Kentucky.
Delaware voters re-elected Obama's running mate, Sen. Joe Biden, to his seventh term. iReport.com: Share your Election Day reaction with CNN
CNN's Ed Henry said there were lots of long faces in the lobby of the McCain headquarters at the Arizona Biltmore hotel as McCain allies watched returns showing Senate Republicans losing their seats.
McCain and Obama were both expected to be watching the results come in from their home states.
McCain said Tuesday night that he was "looking forward to the election results." Watch what McCain says about the race »
"We had a great ride. We had a great experience. It's full of memories that we will always treasure," he said aboard his election plane.
CNN does not project a winner in any state until all polls have closed in that state.
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CNN projections are based on klix results and exit poll data from key areas.
The first exit polls out Tuesday reflect what voters have said all along: The economy is by far the top issue on their minds. Watch more on the top issues »
Sixty-two percent of voters said the economy was the most important issue. Iraq was the most important for 10 percent, and terrorism and health care were each the top issue for 9 percent of voters.
The economy has dominated the last leg of the campaign trail as Obama and McCain have tried to convince voters that they are the best candidate to handle the financial crisis.
Voters expressed excitement and pride in their country after casting their ballots Tuesday in what has proved to be a historic election.
When the ballots are counted, the United States will have elected either its first African-American president or its oldest first-term president and first female vice president.
Poll workers reported high turnout across many parts of the country, and some voters waited hours to cast their ballots.
Reports of minor problems and delays in opening polls began surfacing early Tuesday, shortly after polls opened on the East Coast.
CNN is asking people to call its Voter Hotline at 1-877-GO-CNN-08 (1-877-462-6608) if they witness any problems or irregularities. Read about election problems
The presidential candidates both voted early in the day before heading out to the campaign trail one last time. Watch Obama family at polls »
Tuesday also marked the end of the longest presidential campaign season in U.S. history -- 21 months -- and both candidates took the opportunity to make their final pitch to voters.
As McCain and Obama emerged from their parties' conventions, the race was essentially a toss-up, with McCain campaigning on his experience and Obama on the promise of change. But the race was altered by the financial crisis that hit Wall Street in September. Watch how this election is history in the making »
Obama began to pull away in the polls nationally as well as in key battleground states. A CNN poll of polls calculated Tuesday showed Obama leading McCain 52 percent to 44 percent, with 4 percent undecided.
Although most of the attention has been focused on the presidential race, the outcome of congressional elections across the country will determine whether the Democrats increase their clout on Capitol Hill.
Few predict that the Democrats are in danger of losing their control of either the House or the Senate, but all eyes will be on nearly a dozen close Senate races that are key to whether the Democrats get 60 seats in the Senate.
With 60 votes, Democrats could end any Republican filibusters or other legislative moves to block legislation.
Many political observers also predict that the Democrats could expand their majority in the House.
Democratic Senator Barack Obama has been elected the first black president of the United States, according to projected results.
He is projected to have won enough states to guarantee that he has beaten Republican rival John McCain.
He has so far held most of the states that voted Democrat in 2004, as well as seizing at least three from the Republicans.
Several other key swing states are hanging in the balance.
In Indiana and North Carolina, with most of the vote counted, there was less than 0.5% between the two candidates.
However, the popular vote remains close. At 0345 GMT it stood at 50.7% for the Democratic Senator from Illinois, against 48.2% for Arizona Senator McCain.
The main developments include:
Mr Obama is projected to have seized Ohio, New Mexico and Iowa - all Republican wins in 2004.
He is also projected to have won: Vermont, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Delaware, Massachusetts, District of Columbia, Maryland, Connecticut, Maine, New Jersey, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, New York, Rhode Island.
Mr McCain is projected to have won: Kentucky, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Arkansas, Alabama, Kansas, North Dakota, Wyoming, Georgia, Louisiana, West Virginia, Texas, Mississippi, Utah.
Turnout was reported to be extremely high - in some places "unprecedented".
The Democrats made early gains in the Senate race, seizing seats from the Republicans in Virginia, North Carolina, New Hampshire and New Mexico.
Exit polls suggest the economy was the major deciding factor for six out of 10 voters.
Nine out of 10 said the candidates' race was not important to their vote, the Associated Press reported. Almost as many said age did not matter.
Vjerujem da ce raditi na ispunjenju svoga programa koji ce u krajnjoj liniji donjeti dobro cijelom svijetu. Ipak se on ne bira u troclano predsjednistvo
Barack Obama has made history by becoming the first black President of the United States.
The writing was on the wall for John McCain after Mr Obama clinched the key states of California, Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
They were seen as swing states and essential for the Republican candidate to make an unlikely move to the White House.
Mr Obama also won what was seen as the risky state of Iowa.
Sky's Robert Nisbet, who is with the McCain camp in Arizona, said there were "many sad faces among the Republican faithful".
Mr Obama and Mr McCain campaigned right up to Election Day, as a record number of American citizens from all 50 states cast their ballots.
Mr Obama also captured Michigan, Minnesota, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, Delaware, Maine, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, Washington DC and Illinois.
Mr Obama, 47, son of a Kenyan and white mother from Kansas, will be the first black US president.
It will mark a milestone in US history 45 years after the height of the civil rights movement led by Martin Luther King.
He will face a series of challenges over the next four years, including the economic crisis, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and an overhaul of the US health care system.
Meanwhile in US Senate elections, the Democrats have regained control - an important step towards their goal of a so-called "super majority" in the three branches of the US government.