The North Carolina and Indiana primaries (UPDATE 10: BO GIVES VICTORY SPEECH)

Election 2008**5/7: Make sure to check out my post-primaries morning after post here.**
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Update 11 – 9:47 PM: I’m logging off for the night, and will follow up on the post-election coverage in the a.m. Keep your eye on Indiana – looks like it’s going down to the wire. Apologies for the loading problems happening with the site tonight. This has gotten beyond frustrating (the site was down earlier today, too).

Update 10 – 9:30 PM: Obama is currently giving his victory speech in NC (which I have muted). The story of the night is that this is not the night Clinton would have liked to have. She’ll likely win IN, but not by double digits – certainly not decisive, while Obama is handily winning in NC (thanks in no small part to the black vote). Make sure to read this post, and scroll down to where it reads “How Obama won N.C., by the numbers.”

Update 9 – 8:30 PM: Clinton’s lead in Indiana has shrank from around 16% to 10%, with 50% reporting. Fox News hasn’t called it yet, but CBS is calling IN for Hillary.

Update 8 – 7:44 PM: Here’s another good place to check for NC voting results (h/t: The Fred Smith blog).

Fox News just reported that some precincts will be open til 8 in Indiana due to “ballot shortages.”

In NC, a double digit win ahead for BO?

Update 7 – 7:31 PM: Fox News calls NC for Obama.

Update 6 – 7:26 PM: Per AP, half of registered Democrats in Indiana said Rev. Wright’s comments were a factor in their vote. 70% of those voted for Clinton. Polls close in 3 minutes in NC.

Update 5 – 7:03 PM: Fox’s Meghan Kelly just noted the per exit polling, more Republicans voted for Hillary in IN than they did BO. Don’t know the percentage of R’s that voted in the Dem primary but is should be interesting to find out. NC polls close in 27 minutes.

Update 4 – 6:56 PM: Here was the line I saw this morning as I went to vote. It was probably 100 deep at 7:15 AM.

Charlotte - Primary Day - 2008

The Charlotte Observer’s Primary blog says that voter turnout in Meck. County (where Charlotte is) supposedly is “not especially heavy” but that record turnout is expected for the state, according to the state’s top election official.

All polls will be closed in IN in just a few minutes.

Update 3 – 6:34 PM: Per HuffPo’s sources, some early exit poll results indicate Obama may win by around 12% in NC, and Hillary possibly winning in IN between 5 and 7% (via Jim Geraghty). Marc Ambinder looks at more exit poll info and writes in response, “Forget the horse race numbers for a moment: if the surveys are accurate, the polarization within the Democratic Party has reached critical levels.”

Also, just a tiny bit of Indiana’s results are starting to trickle in. I guess that means that polls in the eastern half of the state closed at 6??

Update 2 – 12:35 PM: Via Drudge, a Hillary campaign source has said that the campaign fears she could lose by as much as 15% today in NC.

My sources are also telling me that black voter turnout is high across this city as well as the rest of the state. Fellow NC blogger Bob Owens is hearing record turnout numbers for Durham (via MM).

And via Hot Air, Indiana Republicans are reportedly crossing over “in droves.”

Update 1 – 8:54 AM: I wrote this post last night and set it to post at 8:27 this morning. Wanted to give you an update on what I’ve seen today so far. There were long lines at my precinct, much longer than normal (I’ll have a couple of pix to post later tonight). I stood in line for about 30 minutes before I was able to vote. Very unusual. Black turnout is heavy. The Charlotte Observer reports long lines in other precincts as well.

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The latest round in the Clinton v. Obama battle continues, this time in the primary contests in both North Carolina and Indiana. NC has a total of 115 delegates up for grabs, while Indiana has 72. The most recent poll numbers for NC show Barack Obama still leading, but no longer by double digits, while in Indiana, Hillary leads by double digits in some polls, singles in others.

NC polls opened at 6:30 this morning and will close at 7:30 PM ET. CNN detailed last night the poll opening and closing times for the eastern and western halves of Indiana (the state is in two time zones). Record turnout is predicted for both states.

Thanks to early voting, 8% of NC’s votes have already been cast (the Boston Globe says it’s more like 13%). In Indiana, early voting is 3 times what it was in 2004. North Carolina’s primary is “semi-open.” Indiana’s primary is an “open primary.”

You can find out much more about the primaries in both NC and Indiana (including demographics and key areas to watch as the results come in) by reading Fox News’ “Brainroom Briefing Book.”

For results from both primaries, bookmark this link for North Carolina and this one for Indiana, and refresh often after poll closing times for updates.

I’ll also be covering some local races here in NC, in addition to the presidential primary (namely, the governor and lt. governor nomination races). For more in-depth coverage of local races around North Carolina, my good friend and fellow NC blogger Lorie Byrd has posted a list of links to local bloggers you should visit for up to date info.

It’ll be a busy day for yours truly, but I will check in when I can. Unless I have to work late, I should be around this evening to blog the results from each primary.

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