An update from the swing states
MSNBC is reporting that Florida and Virginia still "hang in the balance," with McCain trailing 52 percent to 48 in the former but leading 51-48 in the latter.
More on Virginia, though: the New York Times' electoral map shows that Fairfax County, a densely populated area in the D.C. suburbs, is reporting a 57-42 lead with only 23 percent reporting. Obama's current lead in Fairfax is about 13,000 votes; extrapolate that lead out across the remaining 77 percent of the county's votes, and you're talking about about 44,000 more votes for the Obama camp to gain. McCain's current lead in Virginia? Twenty-seven thousand.
Virginia is still very much in play for the Democrats. It was a lost cause four years ago for John Kerry, but as 538's Nate Silver has documented, state polls show a 12- to 15-point improvement for Obama over Kerry in the eastern part of the state. It's hard to conclude anything at the moment, but things do not look good for the Arizona senator who is struggling even to win his own state.
On the other hand, keep an eye on Indiana. Still looking red for the time being.
