Alaska - 3 electoral votes officially cast for McCain/Palin. http://www.fortmilltimes.com/...
Alabama - 9 electoral votes officially cast for McCain/Palin at 12 PM today. http://www.pnj.com/...
Arizona - 10 for their native son. http://www.kvoa.com/...
Arkansas - 6 votes formally cast for McCain this morning. http://www.katv.com/...
California - 55 for Obama! http://www3.signonsandiego.com/...
Colorado - 9 votes officially cast for Obama/Biden, after a weather-related delay. http://www.rockymountainnews.com/...
Connecticut - 7 electoral votes for Obama/Biden. Nice article: http://www.newsday.com/...
Nicholas Paindiris, a Glastonbury attorney who immigrated with his family from Greece to the U.S. about 50 years ago, was elected chairman of the Electoral College on Monday. He called it the most profound, meaningful honor of his lifetime and proof that the American dream is open to all.
"It is a great honor that I'm able to vote today on the Electoral College of Connecticut on behalf of a person who exemplifies that American dream, Barack Obama," Paindiris said. Newsday
District of Columbia- No protest abstentions this time. 3 electoral votes for Obama. http://www.wjla.com/...
Delaware - 3 for Obama and native son Joe Biden. Thanks LynneSin for the update! http://www.wboc.com/...
A group of students from South Dover Elementary School were on hand to witness what Smith Windsor called "history in the making."
Florida - 27 electoral votes cast for Obama/Biden at 2 PM ET today. http://www.pnj.com/... If anyone can find video, I really want to see this one with my own eyes!
"This is a very special and historically significant event," Secretary of State Kurt Browning said, asking for decorum in the Senate chamber during the proceedings. Some of the electors and their invited guests snapped pictures as souvenirs of the occasion.
"It's been a long time coming," said Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, the only Democrat in a statewide-elected state office, who watched from the gallery. "This is the first time in 12 years."
Georgia - 15 votes for McCain. http://wsbradio.com/...
Hawaii - only state left to vote
Idaho - 4 for McCain/Palin. http://www.ktvb.com/...
Illinois - 21 electoral votes for Obama. Apparently, Illinois electors usually vote in a committee room, but the process was moved to the floor of the state Senate today in honor of their favorite son. http://www.wrex.com/...
Indiana - 11 electoral votes cast for Obama/Biden at 10:35 AM. http://www.howeypolitics.com/... UPDATE: Pictures/inside account here: http://news.aol.com/...
Iowa - 7 electoral votes formally cast for Obama/Biden. http://www.desmoinesregister.com/...
A marathon presidential campaign that began in Iowa nearly three years ago formally ended Monday morning with seven presidential electors casting their ballots for Barack Obama.
The electors — one for each of the state's congressmen and for each senator — marked the final step in a state that played an important role in this year's campaign. Iowa handed the Democrat a surprising win in the leadoff precinct caucuses and then an easy win in the general election.
"This year, we saw a 50-state strategy," said Democratic Gov. Chet Culver, who convened the meeting of electors. "It really worked in 2008 precisely as it was designed."
Kansas - 6 for McCain/Palin. http://primebuzz.kcstar.com/...
Kentucky - 8 votes for McCain/Palin. http://www.wztv.com/...
Louisiana - 9 electoral votes for McCain/Palin.
Maine - 4 votes for Obama/Biden. http://www.newsok.com/...
In Augusta, Maine, the moment was freighted with emotion for Jill Duson, the first black mayor of Portland and chairwoman of Maine's four electors.
"Every time I think of it, I get a little misty eyed," Duson said. "I am undone by the election of Barack Obama and what it says to me as a black American, and his victory in the whitest state."AP
Maryland - 10 electoral votes formally cast for Obama. http://www.baltimoresun.com/...
After the last elector cast his ballot for Obama, the room filled with schoolchildren, state workers and other observers burst into a standing ovation. The electors signed the official certificate of vote forms, which will be sent to the office of the vice president of the United States, the National Archives and a federal judge.
Massachusetts - 11 for Obama/Biden. http://www.wten.com/...
Michigan - 17 votes officially cast for Obama/Biden. http://www.chicagotribune.com/...
LANSING, Mich. - After a rough week in Washington, Michigan Democrats were in better spirits Monday while watching the state's 17 Electoral College votes be cast for President-elect Barack Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden.
"I need some celebration," Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., said during a 75-minute ceremony in the state Capitol.
Minnesota - All 10 electoral votes for Obama. No faithless electors this time. http://www.kxmc.com/...
Mississippi - 6 votes for McCain/Palin, as expected. http://www.sunherald.com/...
Montana - 3 for McCain. Another one that was heartbreakingly close. Oh well. http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/...
New Hampshire - 4 for Obama/Biden. http://www.politickernh.com/...
Interesting factoid: Electors in NH apparently get paid for being electorals, $3 per elector plus 10 cents per mile for travel. http://www.boston.com/...
New Jersey - 15 for Obama/Biden. http://www.newsday.com/...
New Mexico - 5 for Obama. http://www.newswest9.com/...
New York - 31 for Obama. http://www.newsday.com/...
Nebraska - 4 for McCain, 1 for Obama. First time since 1892 that any state has split its electors. http://www.kcautv.com/... First time in 44 years that a Nebraska elector has voted for a Democrat: http://www.omaha.com/...
Nevada - begins at 2 PM (PST) today. http://www.ktnv.com/...
North Carolina - 15 electoral votes for Obama/Biden cast in Raleigh today. http://www.charlotteobserver.com/...
UPDATE: Here's a full video of the electors voting. Thanks to Blue South for this.
North Dakota - 3 for McCain. http://www.thedickinsonpress.com/...
Ohio - 20 votes formally cast for Obama/Biden. http://www.ohio.com/...
Oklahoma - 7 for McCain. http://www.kfsm.com/...
Oregon - 7 for Obama/Biden. http://www.katu.com/...
Pennsylvania - 21 electoral votes for Obama. http://ydr.inyork.com/...
"In Pennsylvania, American democracy is in great shape," Governor Rendell said. "Ninety-percent of eligible voters are registered and 68-percent of them cast a ballot in this election. That is one of the highest turn-outs of voters in Pennsylvania history.
"As you cast your vote for president, do so with hope, optimism and faith that we can set this country on course to revitalization that this country has not seen in decades and decades."
Rhode Island - 4 for Obama. http://newsblog.projo.com/...
Fellow Kossack Ivy476 gave us this firsthand account:
There were four electors (sp?) so the whole thing only lasted 30-45 minutes. Part of the fun was watching our governor (Carcieri, R-RI) pretend he was happy to be there. Senator Reed and Congressmen Langevin and Kennedy processed in with other dignitaries, including a colonial band. They say normally only a handful of people show up to watch the ceremony, but today they had to move it to the House Chamber and open up a separate room with closed circuit TV for the overflow crowd.
It's sort of ironic, knowing the hundreds of millions of dollars that are spent every 4 years, to see the whole thing end with a low-key ceremony involving a few hundred people signing a piece of paper in front of a couple of cameras. But I also got the sense sitting there that this country is just so awesome - I was moved by the pomp and circumstance, but mostly just amazed at the power of our democracy.
South Carolina - 8 for McCain/Palin. http://www.counton2.com/...
South Dakota - 3 electoral votes cast for McCain.
Tennessee - 11 votes for McCain, in a ceremony that took 18 minutes. http://www.commercialappeal.com/...
Texas - 34 for McCain. http://www.elpasotimes.com/...
Utah - 5 votes for McCain/Palin. http://www.localnews8.com/...
Virginia - The seat of the Confederacy has just cast 13 electoral votes for the first African American president. http://www.washingtonpost.com/... You can read the formal state announcement here: http://www.wdbj7.com/...
Gov. Tim Kaine, a Democrat and close ally of Obama, noted the poignant and historic moment of Monday's vote at the Capitol in Richmond.
Not only was the Capitol the venue for the Confederate Congress, it was where legislators plotted in the 1950s to thwart Supreme Court orders to desegregate Virginia's public schools.
West Virginia - 5 votes for McCain. One elector admits that the state gets more than its fair share of electoral votes. http://www.wvmetronews.com/...
Washington State - 11 electoral votes - http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/...
Wisconsin - 10 votes for Obama, with applause. http://www.wqow.com/...
Wyoming - 3 for McCain. http://www.localnews8.com/...
UPDATE - GreenSooner just asked if any Kossacks were electors. So if anyone here is an elector please speak up and describe your experience today.
Here are some nice stories about today's voting:
"I never thought this day would happen. The election is one thing, but it's really official when they seal those ballots with wax and send them off," said 81-year-old retired dentist Sedrick Rawlins.
Rawlins, of Manchester, said he had traveled to Selma, Ala., in 1965 to help Martin Luther King Jr. in a voting-rights movement for black Americans. He wept when Obama won the election in November and, on Monday, couldn't stop smiling as Connecticut's Democratic electors unanimously picked the Illinois Democrat for president.
"The election is one thing, but it's really official when they seal those ballots with wax and send them off," Rawlins said.
Stamford Times
In Florida, state Sen. Frederica Wilson, 66, never thought she would see a black man elected president.
"White water fountains, colored water fountains. You couldn't sit at the lunch counter, go to the bank or get a hamburger," Wilson said after signing a document certifying that Obama got all 27 of her state's electors.
"The pain will always be there, but I think there's a realization that people have evolved," she said.
USA Today
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — As 13 electors cast ballots Monday for the nation's first black president in the Confederacy's old Capitol, Henry Marsh emotionally recalled the smartest man he ever knew — a waiter, who couldn't get a better job because of his race.
"He waited tables for 30 years, six days a week, 12 hours a day, from 12 noon to 12 midnight, and he supported his family," Marsh, 75, a civil rights lawyer and state senator, said of his father as he fought back tears. "He suffered a lot. He went through a lot."
AP
One of Maryland's electors, former Rep. Michael Barnes, said he and his wife cried on Election Night last month when Obama delivered his victory speech in Chicago's Grant Park.
"When I grew up in Montgomery County, what we are doing here today was unthinkable," Barnes said. "Barack Obama, where I grew up in the 1960s, would not have been allowed in a movie theater in Montgomery County, Maryland, or in a bowling alley in Montgomery County, Maryland. There was not a decent restaurant where blacks and whites could dine together.
"So this was unthinkable. This was inconceivable."
Another elector, Nathaniel Exum, who was active in the civil rights movement, said, "To go from King to Obama, it's a wonderful feeling."
Baltimore Sun
UPDATE: You can see a little video clip of the Massachusetts electors voting here, and Blue Hampshire has a firsthand account of the electors voting in New Hampshire.
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