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BARACK OBAMA HAS won a second term as President of the United States, beating former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney in a hotly contested election.
All major US television networks called the crucial state of Ohio for Obama just after 4am on Wednesday morning, giving the incumbent 274 electoral votes – well clear of the 270 needed to claim victory.
Below you’ll find our liveblog showing events as they unfolded throughout the night.
Things won’t be in full swing until around midnight, but we’ll be here to report on any tidbits that happen until then – so stay tuned!
To bring you up to speed in the meantime, check out Hugh O’Connell’s lowdown on what you need to know if you’re watching the US election tonight…
Speaking to Prime Time’s Richard Crowley, reporting from Washington, Washington Post columnist Colbert King says the result will be down to the wire – commenting: “We’re not going to have a landslide tonight.”
Frank Sesno, Director of the School of Media and Public Affairs at The George Washington University, said Obama’s chances had been permanently dented by his “disastrous” first debate with Romney – and that the incumbent “never recovered” from it.
So what if Romney were to win? King and Sesno are split on whether he would take a ‘centrist’ or right-wing position as president. “It may not be possible for Romney to move to middle and stay there,” King points out.
Meanwhile, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright tells Crowley she believes it’s essential to keep swing state Virginia ‘blue’ for an Obama victory.
King and Sesno say the economy is still the “main concern” for US voters – and the preliminary results of an exit poll conducted for The Associated Press backs them up, with 6 in 10 voters putting this at the top of their agenda.
Only one quarter of those surveyed think they’re better off than they were four years ago, when Obama took the reins.
Anyone will tell you that the electoral college, the system by which the US president is elected, is ridiculously complicated – and they’re completely right about that.
But it all really boils down to this: there are a total of 538 electors (or electoral college votes) and the first candidate to reach 270 electoral college votes wins the presidency. Boom.
Keep your eye on the swing states, which will give the best indication of which way this race is heading – namely: Colorado (9 electoral votes), Florida (29), Iowa, (6), Michigan (16) Nevada (6), New Hampshire (4), North Carolina (15), Ohio (18), Pennsylvania (20), Virginia (13), Wisconsin (10).
There’s under one hour to go before the first state closes its polls, but voting doesn’t end until 6am… So, to stop you from twiddling your thumbs, Sinead O’Carroll has put together a list of things to do while the American’s are casting their ballots.
Why not play the New York Times’ 512 Paths to the White House graphic, which provides the various paths-to-victory available to either candidate if they win in one of the more competitive states.
(Warning – it’s weirdly addictive.)
He knows it’s close. A last-minute appeal from the sitting president:
The Drudge Report has some interesting exit poll info – reporting that it looks like Romney will take North Carolina and Florida. Obama, meanwhile, could be set to take New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Miami and Nevada, according to the polls.
It’s apparently still a toss up in Ohio, Virginia, Colorado and Iowa.
So, NBC are reporting live from ‘Democracy Plaza’ tonight, apparently… (any guesses for where that is?)
Outside Rockerfeller Centre. Go figure.
(Ps: those flags are usually the flags of the world. Message? The rest of the world is not getting a look-in tonight.)
If you’re suffering from election fatigue after all these months of campaigning, we’d like to remind you that elections can be great fun…
In case you need to visualise that…
Fun fact: Republicans haven’t won a US presidential election without a Bush or Nixon on ticket since 1928.
With minutes until polls begin to close, Michelle Obama and Ann Romney give another push:
Obama:
All of our hard work these past 18 months comes down to what happens right now. Let’s not leave anything to chance.
Romney:
We’re so close to the better future we deserve – we just need you to vote. Find your polling place.
A whole lot hinges on Ohio – but that doesn’t stop people asking…
I think that I’m going to win, intellectually, and I feel it as well.
NBC exit poll: 46 per cent believe US is going in the right direction, 52 per cent think it’s on the ‘wrong track’…
IT’S ALMOST TIME… polls close soon in Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, South Carolina, Vermont and Virginia.
Virginia and Ohio are the ones to watch here – it’s worth noting that Obama took a good chunk of the female and younger vote in Virginia.
Exit polls from CNN indicate the Latino electorate account for nearly 10 per cent of the vote, after turning out in a double -digit percentage across the nation for the first time.
Mmm it’s close. It’s very close. So, what happens if the electoral college is a tie? Gavan Reilly figures looks at ”where the fun politicking happens”.
Here we go again: West Virginia (5): Romney, North Carolina (15): too close to call, Ohio (18): too close to call.
(That means Obama 3, Romney 22, too early to call 58.)
CNN exit poll gives Ohio to Obama, 51-48.
FRUSTRATING FACT: North Carolina too close to call with a 49 per cent tie… just like Virginia.
Polls to close shortly in: Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee
A word to the wise…
The incumbent appears to have the upper hand according to the first polls from the Buckeye State, which will be crucial – check out what’s going on in on Ohio and Florida so far…
Meanwhile, over on Fox News…
Check out the predictions coming from guests at the Guinness Storehouse tonight… more tweets from @usembassydublin
Uploaded by U.S. Embassy Dublin
Good news rolling in for Obama…
Picture by: Kerim Okten/PA Archive/Press Association Images
Meanwhile – Oklahoma and Mississippi go to Romney
Picture by: Charles Dharapak/AP/Press Association Images
Every voter in the state of Ohio got the option to vote early this year – according to a (very early) count, Obama in the lead.
Maybe so… but then what excuse would we have to do maths in the early hours of the morning?
Two networks call the once-Democratic state of Arkansas for Romney. Native Bill Clinton won’t be best pleased.
Votes on Columbus, in Franklin County, and Cincinnati seen as clinchers for which way Ohio state will swing.
Romney feels his campaign has “put it all on the field”, “left nothing in the locker room”, “fought to the very end”, and other big, manly metaphors – VIDEO via the Guardian.
Don’t start flagging on us now…
The auto bailout seems to have gone down well with voters in Michigan – does this spell good news for Obama in the all-important state of Ohio?
Minnesota is predicted to support Obama, having voted Democrat solidly since 2000 – with MBC, CBS, CNN, the New York Times, Real Clear Politcs and the BBC all expecting the incumbent to win in that state.
Colorado is a wild-card, having voted Republican in 2000 and 2004, but switching to Democrat last election.
Wisconsin has supported Democratic candidates in the past three presidential elections – even so, it’s predicted to be a toss-up there.
Finally, Arizona, is predicted to go with Romney.
If any of you have a problem with suspense, you won’t like this: queues mean final Virginia, Florida results could be delayed by hours. Sorry.
Voters in the queues have been advised to stay in line – if they’re there already, their votes will be counted.
Meanhile, Congress will remain divided for the next two years. Republicans will keep control of the House while the Democrats stay in control of the Senate.
We hope you like John Boehner, because he will remain the Speaker of the House for at least the next two years. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Speaking from Obama HQ in Chicago Debbie Wasserman Schultz – US Representative for Florida’s 20th congressional district – says she thinks they might have an early night.
Prediction that Obama will take New Hampshire – where Romney has (one) home. Not good news for the Republicans.
Ted Kennedy’s old Senate seat is back in the hands of the Democrats – and there’s another new generation of Kennedys in Congress – as Elizabeth Warren takes Scott Brown’s seat.
Elizabeth Warren, left, emerges from the polling booth as she votes in Cambridge, Mass. on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2012. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds)
AP is calling Utah (6) and Montana (3) for Romney – no surprises on Utah, but Montana had been a toss-up.
Meanwhile the swing-states of Iowa (6) and Nevada (6) still remain too early to call.
Fox says Romney wins all 5 electoral votes in the split state of Nebraska, while Obama takes all 5 of Maine’s.
Itching for someone to take a one of these swing states so I can play this for real… #c’monsomeone
New York Times’ Paths to the White House
It’s still too close to call in Florida but Obama is shading it with over 7.4 million votes counted – around 84 per cent of the total. The president now leads by just a few thousand votes.
Arizona (11) called for Romney (John McCain’s home state) so no surprises there.
Meanwhile, CBS News is projecting Minnesota for Obama…
A landmark election in Wisconsin sees Tammy Baldwin become the first openly gay member of the Senate after defeating Republican rival Tommy Thompson.
Republican candidate for Wisconsin’s U.S. Senate seat, former Gov. Tommy Thompson, left, participates in a debate against Democratic candidate U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin at Marquette University Friday, Oct. 26, 2012, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)
Al Gore GOES there.
Feeling a bit lost over tonight’s proceedings? Gavan Reilly’s bumper state-by-state spreadsheet could help get things into context…
In the next few minutes, polls will close in California, Hawaii, Idaho, Oregon, Washington. None of these are swing states but the 55 electoral votes of California, predicted to go to Obama, will significantly boost his electoral tally.
Obama is pitched to take Hawaii (4), Oregon (7) and Washington (12) too – while Romney is expected to take Idaho (4)and North Dakota (3).
Todd ‘legitimate rape’ Akin has been defeated in his campaign for a Senate seat.
Akin caused international furore when he said the female body could repel a pregnancy after a “legitimate” rape.
He’ll have a bit more time on his hands now, so we suggest he buys a biology book.
All the polls, expect for Alaska, are now closed.
Obama has taken Washington state, California, and his birth-place Hawaii.
Romney, meanwhile, has taken Idaho and Oregon is still too close to call.
We’re bating our breath for outcomes in the swing states amid rumours – and we stress rumours - that Romney has lost Florida.
NBC calls Ohio for Obama.
That means it’s all over folks…
OBAMA WINS FOUR MORE YEARS.
(AP Photo/Paul Vernon)
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And what happens to the person responsible for the animal, nothing.
@cryptodon: you can beat a dog to death in front of a park full of children in Ireland and you won’t even get jail time, hell the judge won’t even ban you from owning any dogs in future!
“One witness saw Liam Dowling (44) swing the Jack Russell dog overhead by its lead and smash it to the ground up to 30 times as he crossed a park area by Clonliffe College.”
“He said he would not impose a ban on Dowling keeping animals, as he didn’t want to deprive the man’s child of having a dog.”
https://www.thejournal.ie/dog-court-violent-killing-animal-2240201-Jul2015/
Given the high dogh ownership in Ireland you’d think there would be at least strict setencing for beating a dog to death in such a monsterous way, so there’s zero chance the owner of this horse will be held responsible sadly.
@Barry Somers: god that’s disgusting & of course look who the judge is , so not surprising!
@Barry Somers: judge martin nolan . Theres a shocker
@Lindsey O Connor: although judicial discretion is enshrined in our constitution there are times when one has to question that discretion……whilst he may assidiously apply the letter of the law when it comes to discretionary matters you have to ask questions
@Barry Somers: Martin Nolan. Again.
I am a real animal lover. What happened Tue horse is terrible. The commenters here though are trying to vilify the owner. There’s a possibility this was just an accident. It’s a young enough horse. It may have slipped on newly disturbed mud and gotten caught. There was a lot of rain lately. Also, the fall might have spooked the animal and caused him to panic. Up to the incident he may have been galloping around a fifty acre field. Don’t vilify the owner on public social forums until you know the facts. Nothing in the article refers to cruelty. The owner might have been away…
@Shane McGrath: of course it could have been an accident but it’s simply not good enough to put a horse in a field at this time of the year without at least a rug and some supplementary feed and it should be checked on twice a day. Horse does look thin and neglected have to say even before the supposed accident.
@Shane McGrath: I hope you don’t own too many animals. The owner is responsible for its care even if he was away. Animals out on grass should be looked at twice a day especially this time of year. Gates should be secure so they dont fall down, and horses especially should have companions keep them calm and stop them doing stupid things like fooling around gates.
@Shane McGrath: I agree entirely. There is no evidence in the article to suggest there was any form or cruelty or neglect involved.
@Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin: of course there is evidence of neglect where is the owner? Horse there for hours. No microchip. No responsibility. Maybe you should read the article again or go to the MLHR Facebook page so you can see the evidence of neglect there. And take your blinkers off.
@wondermiss: Climb down off your pulpit! I’m commenting on the information in the article, which I read carefully, not on any other sources. There is in fact no mention of owners or microchipping so any reference to either is nothing other than conjecture.
@Johnny Rielly: so let’s say the owner was checking on the horse twice a day, that gives the horse 12 hours to get into trouble, which is entirely possible. I had a young horse here a few years ago that did the exact same thing but luckily I heard the racket and got him out before any harm was done. You can’t always blame the owner.
@Seamus Murphy: Precisely. They get themselves into the most awful trouble so quickly.
@Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin: look at the horse for god sake, its so thin and dried mud all over it no head collar before it ever had the accident it was neglected
@Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin: sure believe what you want if it makes you feel better
@Loretta stiletto: The majority of good horsepeople won’t leave headcollars on horses wintering away from their property as they’re a safety risk. The mud is clearly as a result of the incident, and even if it has been there longer a bit of mud is no harm. Mine practically swim in it for a hobby! No statement that this young horse is underweight and the fact that the horse is wet is deceptive. My point is people are making stuff up to suit their agenda. It’s incredibly sad and if this turns out to be a case of sheer neglect I’d be the first to condemn it, but knowing just how quickly horses can get themselves into trouble I prefer to react to the facts presented in the article and give the owner the benefit of the doubt before jumping to conclusions.
@Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin: oh stop, I wouldn’t like to be your horse. I’ve had horses all my life. Its neglect end of.
@Loretta stiletto: Resorting to personal insults from behind an anonymous profile…stay classy!
@Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin: is that the best you can come up with? Where was the personal insult directed at you. The horse was neglected as far as i am concerned whether you agree or not I really don’t care. The poor thing is dead.
The poor horse, it must have been terrified.
This drives me fukkkin mad.
someone must know who owns this poor animal – speak up and name them to the gardai or even the charity ‘my lovely horse’ ! then again it will probably only mean a small fine and a telling off — when it should lead to a ban on keeping ANY animals for life !
@Eric Davies: I doubt there would even be a fine.
My lovely horse rescue are all volunteers. They are the ones pulling horses from canals in the dark, feeding horses in the snow drifts and going out to horrific cruelty day or night. Where are ispca, gardai and dept of agriculture officials, the ones actually paid to protect animals and their welfare?? We need to follow the Netherlands example and bring in dedicated animal welfare police and strict sentencing for cruelty. If you read the post about how the Netherlands now have zero stray dogs on my lovely horse Facebook its amazing. We can stamp out this cruelty, it starts with voting out all the politicians who see no cruelty. Please donate to my lovely horse, they get barely zero help from government but do all the work. Please help horses and lurchers, they are the most abused in Ireland. please feed any horses who need help
@marianne ryan: agree totally
People have no idea of the lengths the volunteers, and I stress volunteers, go to to rescue animals. People need to realise that the humans involved see so much trauma and cruelty and as much as the charity need monetary support, they also need emotional and social support. All acts of kindness help to build up resilience..So please support the animals and also the amazing humans who help them
Shocking, all horses are supposed to be micro chipped owner should be charged and jailed. There are no excuses for the conditions this horse was kept in. Disgusting and disgraceful .
Burns my eyes…..what cruelty
Its a sad indictment of this country that we pushed through a bill on Circus animals where no cruelty was apparent but do nothing about this or puppy farms and sulky road racing
@Dnom: there is ALWAYS cruelty involved when ‘training’ wild animals for circuses, it’s against their nature to perform for people so their spirit is broken. On top of that then is the confined spaces, inability to express their natural nature. It’s not a competition, all forms of animal abuse and neglect should be tackled.
The poor thing
Oh thanks to the volunteers who went to help . Thanks for trying
And who owns this wonderful animal?? Why was she not missed or checked on?? Have the owners been identified??? Are they going to be prosecuted?? This is disgraceful and pure ANIMAL NEGLECT & CRUELTY. Please punish these owners to the full extent of the law. A HUGE THANK YOU to the rescue group for finding and helping this wonderful animal
Not really the actual image I was hoping to see
( in the main view of the topics )
@Peter: that’s the reality
Sickening to see ane sickening that nothing will be done about it .
We have no laws in Ireland to protect man or animal you can do what you want it’s a lawless country and it’s the politicians and judges fault who wont enforce the legislation .
The do gooders are always on hand to protect the offenders in this country and God forbid mention the !!!I wont say it or I’ll be accused of been racist . Do what you want in this country but dont get caught with 2 pints worst crime going .
@Michael Mcloughlin: I think the ‘do gooders’ in this case are the volunteers who spent hours of their own time in the cold trying to save this poor animal. How exactly are they being protected? The horse and greyhound industries receive €millions of taxpayers money each year but it’s rescues and volunteers who pick up the pieces when the animals are abused and neglected.
We have animal welfare legislation but until it’s properly enforced this kind of tragedy will continue to happen.
@EillieEs: theres a difference in Ireland in people who do good and do gooders most of the people who will be knocking on doors shortly looking for votes are do gooders
Remember! Put this on your agenda for the next Election. Nothing is being done for animals in country. So shameful.
@Anne: oh there’s lots being done it’s one of the only industries that’s vat free for one
A lot of farmers are just lazy cruel, greedy sods that should never be allowed near an animal in my view.
@TamuMassif2019: have you ever worked a farm? Lazy is not a word i would associate with farming in my limited experience.
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