Wild About Writing

9:25 p.m. Fox News has just given Ohio to Obama, putting his Electoral College number up to 183 to 81 for McCain. On that result, I’m ready to say it – Barack Obama has won the U.S. presidency.

8:20 p.m. – How is the CBC able to allocate far more electoral votes than any of the U.S. networks? The CBC is showing Obama with an edge of 117, and McCain only 21. Yet, the U.S. networks are more cautious — CNN giving Obama a 77-34 edge. Is an Obama sweep shaping up?

The big win so far is Obama’s victory in Pennsylvania. At the same time, he’s very competitive in indiana.

7:40 p.m. – The polls are closing in more states, and Barack Obama is showing a slight lead in the popular vote. CNN has McCain ahead 8 elec toral votes to 3, on the strengtrh of carrying Kentucky, while Obama has taken Vermont.

Wolf Blitzer keeps referring to “real numbers” that show McCain well ahead in Georgia and holding onto a narrow lead in indiana. Yet apparently the Democratic districts haven’t been heard from.

CNN shows a huge crowd gathering in Grant Park in Chicago. How will they behave if their hero doesn’t win? I don’t think I’d want to be there!

CBC will be on the air at 8 and I’ll switch there to see a Canadian perspective.

I’m wandering around downtown Toronto in the bright sunshine of this November 4th, thinking that if the weather’s anything like this in the U.S., there’ll be a record turn-out at the polls. Could even hit 66 per cent.

Then I heard the news from Dixville Notch, the tiny village in New Hampshire where they open their poll at midnight and everybody troops in to vote. The result: Obama 15, McCain 6. They say it’s the first time since 1968 that Dixville Notch has gone Democratic. The makings of a landslide?

I’ll be watching the returns tonight with my buddy,Michael Callaghan. If you’re interested, check in here to see how we’re taking the news.