It's 9 pm on the East Coast and polls have officially closed in most of the country. The upshot according to a summary from BBG is that Republicans are performing better than expected, though Dems have so far averted any major disasters. Polls in nine states close at 9pm, meaning that voting has concluded in the majority of the country.
So far, things are trending well for Republicans. Toss-up districts in Kentucky and Florida have gone to the GOP, and they've held on to seats where Democrats might have been competitive in a so-called tsunami.
There's also reason for GOP optimism in the Senate, with Sen. Joe Donnelly, a Democrat, appearing unlikely to win re-election in Indiana. That makes a surprise Democratic victory in the upper chamber unlikely.
Still, Democrats avoided disaster in New Jersey's Senate race and have flipped some House districts where they were favored.
Here's a summary of the remaining tossups.
While Democrat Joe Manchin has successfully defended his West Virginia Senate seat from Republican challenger Patrick Morrisey, in Texas, what looked like a promising race for Dems early on has transitioned into a tossup as Ted Cruz has eroded insurgent Democrat Beto O'Rourke's early double-digit lead.
As of 9 pm, Democrats must pick up 21 more Republican seats and not lose any of their own to win the House. But perhaps most telling of all, CNN's Jake Tapper has proclaimed:
"This is not a blue wave."
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More at:
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-11-06/first-exit-polls-arrive-all-eyes-are-indiana-and-kentucky
