Election Night 2008

"You Can Vote However You Like"

ByABC News
September 9, 2008, 10:18 PM

Nov. 4, 2008— -- After all the policy speeches, debates, town hall meetings, rallies, polls, conference calls, bus tours, commercials, web videos, more conference calls, Saturday Night Live sketches, press releases, In Case You Missed Its, and more conference calls, the day has finally arrived.

An election night that has been nearly two years in the making – decades maybe if you go back to the point where both candidates first pondered this moment – and finally the voters have their say.

Below is a handy guide to the evening – poll closing times, Electoral College votes by state, and key congressional and gubernatorial races.

Election 2008 by the numbers:
Money Raised -- Primaries & General Election:

Obama $659.1 million
McCain $233.6 million (McCain accepted public financing)

Money spent -- Primaries & General Election:
Obama $593.1 million
McCain $273.5 million

Number of TV ad airings during the general, from the Campaign Media Analysis Group:
Obama 370,000
McCain 250,000

Events in Battleground States:
Obama: 230
Biden: 107
McCain: 252
Palin: 150

ABC News kicks off Election Night coverage at 6:30pm ET from the Crossroads of the World, Times Square, with a special edition of "World News with Charles Gibson" and continues with election coverage from 7pm ET until at least 2am ET.

On election night, ABC News will transform Times Square into an outdoor global viewing event, with thousands of people watching ABC News coverage of real time election results on three iconic jumbo screens.

ABC NewsNow's coverage tonight will be hosted by Sam Donaldson and Rick Klein and live-streaming on ABCNews.com. Klein, ever the multi-tasker, will be live-blogging while on the air.

Everything else you need for Election Night is right on ABCNews.com: Want more information on the key battleground states? ABCNews' political unit has analyzed the polling data, information and reported from across all 50 states for the last 50 consecutive days. Check out our "50 States in 50 Days" map and dig down into each state to learn more.

A map of presidential results state-by-state and Senate, House and Gubernatorial races.

Want to play pundit? Check out the ABC News.com Electoral College Calculator where you can determine the national landscape and give states to Obama or McCain.

With so much talk about exit polls, find out who voted and why in a sate by state and nationwide breakdown of voting demographics and full exit polls.

Hear from everyday voters about their experiences at the polls today and read about the Ballotwatch team's reporting on these problems with the new Ballotwatch blog here.

7:00 PM ET 58 Electoral votes

PRES Obama McCain

Georgia (15)
SEN Jim Martin- Saxby Chambliss
GA-8 HOUSE Jim Marshall- Rick Goddard

Virginia (13)
SEN Mark Warner- Jim Gilmore
VA-2 HOUSE Glenn Nye- Thelma Drake
VA-5 HOUSE Tom Perriello- Virgil Goode

Indiana (11)
GOV Jill Long Thompson- Mitch Daniels
IN-3 HOUSE Michael Montagano-Mark Souder

Kentucky (8)
SEN Bruce Lunsford- Mitch McConnell
KY-2 HOUSE David Boswell- Brett Guthrie

South Carolina(8)
SEN Bob Conley- Lindsey Graham

Vermont (3)
GOV Gaye Symington- Jim Douglass

7:30 PM ET 40 Electoral Votes

Ohio (20)
OH-1 HOUSE Steve Driehaus- Steve Chabot
OH-15 HOUSE Mary Jo Kilroy- Steve Stivers
OH-16 HOUSE John Boccieri- Kirk Schuring

North Carolina (15)
SEN Kay Hagan- Elizabeth Dole
GOV Bev Perdue- Pat McCrory
NC-8 HOUSE Larry Kissell- Robin Hayes

West Virginia (5)
SEN Jay Rockefeller- Jay Wolfe
GOV Joe Manchin- Russ Weeks

8:00 PM ET 171 Electoral Votes

Florida (27)
FL-21 HOUSE Raul Martinez- Lincoln Diaz-Balart
FL-24 HOUSE Suzanne Kosmas- Tom Feeney

Illinois (21)
SEN Richard Durbin- Steve Sauerberg
IL-10 HOUSE Dan Seals - Mark Kirk
IL-11 HOUSE Debbie Halvorson- Martin Ozinga

Pennsylvania (21)
PA-3 HOUSE Kathy Dahlkemper- Phil English
PA-10 HOUSE Chris Carney- Chris Hackett
PA-11 HOUSE Paul Kanjorski- Lou Barletta

New Jersey (15)
SEN Frank Lautenberg- Dick Zimmer
NJ-3 HOUSE John Adler- Christopher Myers
NJ-7 HOUSE Linda Stender- Leonard Lance

Massachusetts (12)
SEN John Kerry- Jeff Beatty

Missouri (11)
GOV Jay Nixon- Kenny Hulshof
MO-6 HOUSE Kay Barnes- Sam Graves
MO-9 HOUSE Judy Baker- Blaine Luetkemeyer

Tennessee (11)
SEN Bob Tuke- Lamar Alexander

Maryland (10)
MD-1 HOUSE Frank Kratovil- Andrew Harris

SEN Vivian Figures- Jeff Sessions
AL-5 HOUSE Parker Griffith- Wayne Parker
AL-2 HOUSE Bobby Bright- Jay Love

Connecticut (7)
CT-4 HOUSE Jim Himes- Christopher Shays

Oklahoma (7)
SEN Andrew Rice- James Inhofe

Mississippi (6)
SEN Erik Fleming- Thad Cochran

SEN Ronnie Musgrove- Roger Wicker
MS-1 HOUSE Travis Childers- Greg Davis

Maine (4)
SEN Tom Allen - Susan Collins

New Hampshire (4)
SEN Shaheen- John Sununu

GOV John Lynch- Joe Kenney
NH-1 HOUSE Carol Shea-Porter- Jeb Bradley

Delaware (3)
SEN Joe Biden- Christine O'Donnell
GOV Jack Markell- William Swain Lee

D.C. (3)
PRES Obama- McCain

8:30 PM ET 6 Electoral Votes

Arkansas (6)
SEN Mark Pryor

9:00 PM ET 159 Electoral Votes

Texas (34)
SEN Rick Noriega- John Cornyn
TX-22 HOUSE Nick Lampson- Pete Olson

New York (31)
NY-13 HOUSE Mike McMahon- Robert Straniere
NY-20 HOUSE Kirsten Gillibrand- Sandy Treadwell
NY-26 HOUSE Alice Kryzan- Christopher Lee
NY-29 HOUSE Eric Massa- Randy Kuhl

Michigan (17)
SEN Carl Levin- Jack Hoogendyk
MI-7 HOUSE Mark Shauer- Tim Walberg
MI-9 HOUSE Gary Peters- Joe Knollenberg

Arizona (10)
PRES Obama- McCain

Minnesota (10)
SEN Al Franken- Norm Coleman
MN-3 HOUSE Ashwin Madia- Erik Paulsen
MN-6 HOUSE Elwyn Tinklenberg- Michele Bachmann

Wisconsin (10)
WI-8 HOUSE Steve Kagen- John Gard

Colorado (9)
SEN Mark Udall- Bob Schaffer
CO-4 HOUSE Betsy Markey- Marilyn Musgrave

Louisiana (9)
SEN Mary Landrieu- John Kennedy
LA-6 HOUSE Don Cazayoux- Bill Cassidy

Kansas (6)
SEN Jim Slattery- Pat Roberts
KS-2 HOUSE Nancy Boyda- Lynn Jenkins

Nebraska (5)
SEN Scott Kleeb- Mike Johanns
NE-2 HOUSE Jim Esch- Lee Terry

New Mexico (5)
SEN Tom Udall- Steve Pearce
NM-1 HOUSE Marty Heinrich- Darren White
NM-2 SEN Jack Reed- Bob Tingle

North Dakota (3)
GOV Tim Mathern- John Hoeven

South Dakota (3)
SEN Tim Johnson- Joel Dykstra

Wyoming (3)
SEN Christopher Rothfuss- Michael Enzi

SEN Nick Carter- John Barrasso

10:00 PM ET 20 Electoral Votes

Iowa (7)
SEN Tom Harkin- Christopher Reed

Nevada (5)
NV-3 HOUSE Dina Titus- Jon Porter

Utah (5)
GOV Bob Springmeyer- Jon Huntsman

Montana (3)
SEN Max Baucus- Bob Kelleher
GOV Brian Schweitzer- Roy Brown

11:00 PM ET 81 Electoral Votes

California (55)
CA-11 HOUSE Jerry McNerney- Dean Andal
CA-50 HOUSE Nick Leibham- Brian Bilbray

Washington (11)
GOV Christine Gregoire- Dino Rossi
WA-8 HOUSE Darcy Burner- Dave Reichert

Oregon (7)
SEN Jeff Merkley- Gordon Smith

Hawaii (4)
PRES Obama- McCain

Idaho (4)
SEN Larry LaRocco- Jim Risch
ID-1 HOUSE Walter Minnick- Bill Sali

1:00 AM ET 3 Electoral Votes

Alaska (3)
SEN Mark Begich- Ted Stevens
AK-AL HOUSE Ethan Berkowitz- Don Young

POLITICAL NEWS STORIES ON ABCNEWS.COM

ABC News' George Stephanopoulos: Guide to Election Night: Six Early States to Watch LINK

ABC News' Kate Barrett: Race Boils Down to Battlegrounds LINK

ABC News' Susan Donaldson James: Historic Election 2008: For the Record Books LINK

ABC News' Emily Friedman: Democrats Vie for Filibuster-Proof Senate LINK

ABC News' Matt Jaffe: Biden Greets Virginia Voters on Election Day LINK

ABC News' Andy Fies: Small Moments Writ Large LINK

ABC News' Andy Fies: Irony in Geography LINK

ABC News' Matt Jaffe: Biden Casts His Ballot in Wilmington LINK

ABC News' Matt Jaffe: Phils fan Biden rallies City of Brotherly Love LINK

ABC News' Imtiyaz Delawala: Palin's Family Physician Says She's in "Excellent Health" LINK

ABC News' George Stephanopoulos: Turnout LINK

ABC News' George Stephanopoulos: Key Moments LINK

ABC News' Jake Tapper: Rove Calls it for Obama: 338-200 Electoral Blowout LINK

ABC News' Jake Tapper: Among the Other Voters LINK

ABC News' Jake Tapper and Matt Jaffe: Oh, That Joe! (No. 46 in a Series) -- Gaffes? What Gaffes? LINK

ABC News' Jake Tapper: All Eyes Turn to Coos County LINK

POLITICAL VIDEO ON ABCNEWS.COM

Voters Get Excited and Emotional
For some people, Election Day goes beyond just casting a ballot. LINK

Election Day Is Under Way
Long voting lines are reported in the swing states of Ohio and Virginia. LINK

McCain Casts His Vote
The senator and his wife vote at Albright United Methodist church in Phoenix. LINK

Obama Casts His Vote
The senator and his wife vote at Chicago's Shoesmith Elementary School. LINK

Obama Demands College Football Playoffs
Democratic candidate speaks with ESPN's Chris Berman on "Monday Night Football." LINK

McCain Says He Can Go, All, the, Way
Republican candidate speaks with ESPN's Chris Berman on "Monday Night Football." LINK

Hasselbeck Still Angry About Rev. Wright
"View" co-host continues to blast Obama for past ties with his ex-pastor. LINK

'View' Is Sick of Voting Problems
The ladies wonder why the election process never seems to run smoothly. LINK

Kimmel: Bush Gets the Boot
Jimmy shows a bogus ad giving McCain and Obama something to agree on. LINK

Kimmel: Obama Attacks Sagging Pants
The senator takes on the issue of ill-fitting clothes during an MTV interview. LINK

Young Muslim Voters
The Muslim community at Syracuse University weighs in on the U.S. election. LINK

Political Dream Team Breaks It Down
Cokie Roberts, Matt Dowd and Juan Williams discuss the election. LINK

What Else Is on the Ballot?
Voters in several states weigh in on some controversial ballot questions. LINK

Frank Luntz Tracks the Voters
The veteran pollster uses Squiggle technology to help analyze voter reactions. LINK

What Your Vote Means
Voters explain in three words what voting means to them. LINK

Campaigning in the 11th Hour
John McCain makes his final pitch to American voters. LINK

David Plouffe on Barack Obama
Obama's campaign manager makes a final pitch for the Democratic candidate. LINK

Candidates Fire Up Voters
Obama, Biden, McCain and Palin address crowds in the final hours of campaigning. LINK

Sen. Stevens Asks for Alaskans' Vote
GOP Sen.: "My Future is in God's hands. Alaska's future is in yours." LINK

Dole Ad: 'Promises'
Dole ad suggests Kay Hagan received money from the "Godless Americans" PAC. LINK

Final Push to Get Out the Vote
Campaigns create last-minute recruiting frenzy in battleground states. LINK

Jake Tapper on the Last-Minute Rush
A look at the final moments of the Obama and McCain campaigns. LINK

The Bottom Line on Election Day
George Stephanopoulos discusses the last leg in the race to the White House. LINK

Plunging to the Polls
Texas man hands out "Joe the Plumber" plungers to McCain supporters. LINK

The Business of Calif. Propositions
A look at who is sponsoring which ballot initiatives and with how much money. LINK