It's official: Barack Obama elected 44th president by Electoral College

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Presidential electors have formally elected Barack Obama the nation's 44th president.

Electors gathering in state capitols across the country have pushed Obama above the 270 electoral votes needed to win, according to a tally by The Associated Press. Obama takes office Jan. 20, becoming the nation's first black president.

State sets voter turnout record amid Obama win

BOSTON (AP) - Good weather, a historic presidential race and weighty ballot questions triggered a record Election Day turnout in Massachusetts.

While final numbers were still being tallied Wednesday, ballots cast for all the candidates for president already put the number of voters who made it to the polls at more than 3 million.

Quiet first day for Obama after historic win

CHICAGO (AP) - Barack Obama began his first full day as president-elect with the simple pleasure of having breakfast with his daughters, the type of everyday family activity that he often had to sacrifice during the nearly two-year-long campaign.

GOP in tatters, looks to regroup

WASHINGTON (AP) - So much for a lasting Republican majority.

The Republican Party is essentially in tatters, and not that long after President Bush's 2000 election spurred talk of enduring GOP dominance.

John McCain's shellacking, along with recent congressional losses, leaves the party searching for a new leader and identity.

National turnout also at record level

WASHINGTON (AP) - Voters cast their ballots Tuesday in numbers not seen in at least 40 years, as millions of Americans picked their president early and waited in lines that stretched the lengths of blocks and buildings.

California passes ban on gay marriage

LOS ANGELES (AP) - California voters have approved a constitutional amendment outlawing same-sex marriage, overturning the state Supreme Court decision that gave gay couples the right to wed just months ago.

Obama chooses chief of staff; Kerry as Secretary of State?

WASHINGTON (AP) - President-elect Barack Obama chose Illinois Rep. Rahm Emanuel to be his White House chief of staff, his first selection for the new administration, Democratic officials said Wednesday.

CA gay marriage vote still undecided Wednesday morning

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A proposed ban on same-sex marriage in California - widely seen as the most momentous of the 153 ballot measures at stake nationwide - remained undecided early Wednesday.

The proposed constitutional amendment would limit marriage to heterosexual couples, the first time such a vote has taken place in state where gay unions are legal.

In deep of night, CA gay marriage ban too close to call

Voters in Colorado and South Dakota rejected ballot measures Tuesday that could have led to sweeping bans of abortion, and Washington became only the second state - after Oregon - to offer terminally ill people the option of physician-assisted suicide.

Obama wins; first African-American president in U.S history

WASHINGTON (AP) - Barack Obama swept to victory as the nation's first black president Tuesday night in an electoral college landslide that overcame racial barriers as old as America itself. "Change has come," he declared to a huge throng of cheering supporters.

A historic but calm night for TV networks

NEW YORK (AP) - After successive harrowing Election Nights in 2000 and 2004, there were no muffed calls by TV networks, no screwy exit polls, no real twists and turns - only the sense of history as Barack Obama became the first black man elected president.

House Democrats gain in northeast and south

WASHINGTON (AP) - House Democrats solidified their control of the northeast and made gains in the South on Tuesday by defeating Republicans from Connecticut to Arizona as they pushed for historic gains in their majority.

"It's the night we have been waiting for," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

McCain concedes presidency, congratulates Obama

PHOENIX (AP) - Republican John McCain conceded the presidential race to Barack Obama, saying the Democrat has achieved a "great thing" for himself and the country with his historic victory.

Exit poll: Obama wins women, blacks, Hispanics

WASHINGTON (AP) - Barack Obama soaked up most of the votes from the nation's women, blacks and Hispanics and siphoned off enough white support to leave John McCain with no way to win.

McCain concedes presidency, congratulates Obama

PHOENIX (AP) - Republican John McCain concedes the presidential race to Barack Obama, saying the Democrat has achieved a "great thing" for himself and the country with his historic victory.

Obama asks McCain for help leading country

CHICAGO (AP) - Barack Obama asked John McCain for his help in leading the country in a telephone call Tuesday night, moments after the Democratic senator was declared the country's first black president.

Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said Obama thanked McCain for his graciousness and told him he had waged a tough race.

Bush tells Obama: 'What an awesome night for you'

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush has called Barack Obama to congratulate him on winning the presidency.

The two-term Republican president told the Illinois senator upon his historic win: "What an awesome night for you, your family and your supporters."

Obama supporters weep with joy at Chicago rally

CHICAGO (AP) - Cheering, screaming and weeping with joy, an estimated 50,000 Barack Obama supporters welcomed his election Tuesday night in a delirious victory celebration in the senator's hometown.

Many had crammed into Grant Park to be a part of something that would be remembered for generations.

Obama wins; first African-American president in U.S history

WASHINGTON (AP) - Barack Obama swept to victory as the nation's first black president Tuesday night in an electoral college landslide that overcame racial barriers as old as America itself. "Change has come," he declared to a huge throng of cheering supporters.

McCain calls Obama to concede

CHICAGO (AP) - Campaign official says McCain calls Obama to concede.