Swing states too close to call

White House rivals Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have grabbed states traditionally loyal to their parties but swing states Virginia, Florida and Ohio are too close to call.

Using exit polls and early partial results, US television networks projected victories for Republican flag-bearer Romney in Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia.

Obama, the Democratic incumbent, picked up Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont - all states in which he was favourite.

He also picked up the District of Columbia.

Polls also closed in Ohio, Florida and Virginia, although officials allowed polling to continue at stations where there were long lines.

The early results give Romney a lead of 82 electoral college votes to 79, but none of them are unexpected and in themselves they form no guide as to the eventual winner.

Each state has a quota of electoral college votes based on its population, and the eventual victor will be the candidate who tallies the most.

Stay with us as we will bring you the latest results and who will lead the US for the next four years.


Story by: Vijay Narayan