Today’s Election News Roundup

Ill. Sen. Barack Obama was elected to be the 44th president of the United States last night. As January approaches, Obama will prepare to transition to the White House and is anticipated to begin filling Cabinet positions as early as this week. The race is part of a large-scale Democratic sweep, with several incumbent Republican senators ceding to Democratic rivals.

The Washington Post examines a series of reasons why Sen. Obama was elected president, with a focus on demographic shifts that occurred between this election and the race in 2004.

Watch Sen. Obama’s acceptance speech, or read a full transcript of the address on The Huffington Post.

Democrats scored key victories in statewide races across the country, despite failing to reach the 60-seat majority to prevent Republican filibustering in Congress. Although several GOP incumbents ceded the race to Democratic challengers, no Democrat gave up a seat to a Republican.

Mitch McConnell, the highest ranking Republican senator, managed to hold his position in Kentucky despite an extremely tight race against Democratic rival Bruce Lunsford. McConnell, who has been in office since 1984, campaigned hard on the platform that an “Obama-Pelosi-Reid machine" would "steamroll a host of new taxes and left-wing social policy across the Senate floor."

Sen. Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina ceded her senatorial position to Democratic rival Kay Hagan. A team of Democratic fundraisers came to Hagan’s aid in the race by producing a series of campaign ads that depicted Dole as ineffective and out of touch. Dole’s aggressive response, which included a campaign ad that appeared to question Hagan’s faith, may have turned voters against her.

Democratic cousins Tom and Mark Udall both won senatorial races, helping Democrats secure a solid majority in Congress. Tom Udall beat Republican rival Steve Pearce in New Mexico, while Mark Udall defeated Republican Bob Schaffer in Colorado. 

Sen. Mary Landrieu defeated GOP state treasurer John Kennedy to claim a third term as senator of Louisiana. Landrieu used her significant funding to run a television ad campaign that derided her opponent’s inexperience.

Sen. Roger Wicker defeated opponent Ronnie Mugrove in the Mississippi race. Republicans considered Wicker’s win essential to maintaining a balance of power by preventing a filibuster-proof Democratic majority.

In California House races, Republican Duncan D. Hunter won the 52nd congressional district and will succeed his father. In early results, Brian Bilbray was slightly ahead of Democratic rival Nick Leibham in the 50th district. In the 4th district, Republican Tom McClintock battled closely with Democrat Charlie Brown. Other House seats in the state will not change hands.

Former Democratic Sen. Gary Peters defeated incumbent Republican Joe Knollenberg in Oakland county Michigan, which has been under Republican congressional leadership since 1933.

Washington’s Gov. Chris Gregoire won re-election, securing a majority of 29 Democratic governors across the country. Gregoire won through grassroots outreach, with over 7,000 volunteers making 2 million phone calls and visiting nearly 1 million homes to garner support for the candidate. 

N.C. Democrat Bev Perdue was elected the state’s 74th governor. Perdue’s victory means that the only two Democratic open seats this election year will remain Democratic, as Gov.-elect Jack Markell defeated his Republican opponent in Delaware.

As California officials continue to count the votes for Proposition 8, it appears that the constitutional ban on gay marriage will go through. In early voting, Proposition 8 supporters led and the state is currently counting ballots from absentee voters, which tend to be more conservative votes. Proposition 8 was supported in Florida (which went for Obama) and in Arizona. 

The findingDulcinea 2008 Election Web Guide highlights the best online resources relating to the candidates and the election.

Project Vote Smart describes the process of nominating a presidential candidate, with concise descriptions of the convention, caucuses, primaries and the process of awarding delegates.

An overview of the role of delegates and superdelegates is presented by the Council on Foreign Relations.

Daily coverage of the 2008 Election is gathered from media sources across the political spectrum and presented by Real Clear Politics to provide up-to-the-minute coverage. The site publishes daily political transcripts, including addresses on the campaign trail and withdrawal speeches. It also constantly updates and compares polling reports from Rasmussen, Gallup, CNN, Pew Research, and other major media sources. Additionally, the site provides a 2008 Primary Delegate Count, which presents the delegate counts of each candidate.

NPR provides an interactive calendar of past primaries. Headline stories that detail the events of the primaries and campaigns accompany the primary map. In addition, NPR hosts a “National Delegates Total,” with an ongoing count of delegates won by each candidate.

Minnesota Public Radio’s online “President Survey” matches the political convictions of respondents with the candidates’ policies in order to help voters make an informed choice come election day.

The New York Times publishes a constant stream of articles from the Associated Press. These concise AP stories cover new developments on the campaign trail.

As election momentum picks up, the Times of London offers British readers a glossary of campaign jargon that will be of use to many Americans as well.

OpenSecrets.org compares the total campaign donations for each candidate and looks into the war chests to see where the money comes from.