Kaine for VA Election Night Party

What a wonderful night it was here in Virginia! Tim Kaine won his Senate seat on 52%, and local Democrats were also estatic that Barack Obama is now President for a further four years.

The room was packed last night with volunteers and well wishers for Tim. His campaign has been a real team effort and a long slog, but the many hours phone banking, canvassing and drumming up support were well worth it for his supporters.

I was also thrilled to be interviewed by CBS and other news agencies.

 

Well done to Senator Kaine!

 

 

Election night fever

Cups from 7/11 store

Long queues at this Richmond Polling station

It's currently 4.45pm here in Virginia and we are just a few hours away from the polls closing.

Yesterday I went to two rallys - one in Lynchburg for Mitt Romney, and one here in Richmond where Joe Biden was in attendence. The stark contrast between the UK and US in terms of politics is the amount of young people who are fully engaged in the political campaigns. Voting is something that young people encourage their peers to do, and it has been young people who have been the sources of energy in the last few days of campaigning. Their enthusiasm is contagious. If I can try and do anything with my experience of this campaign, I will try to encourage young people in the West Midlands to be as enthusiastic about politics as their counterparts are here.

This presidential race is far closer than much of the media would have you believe. The people of Richmond have been out on masse today voting, as you can see from the picture of the polling station I took earlier today.

Virginia is being tipped as one of the states to watch tonight in terms of determining who will be president tomorrow. We are incredibly excited to watch the results come in.

I've also had plenty of interest in the West Midlands about the work I have been doing here, and I hope I can upload an interview I've done with BBC WM and BBC Hereford and Worcester in the next few days or so.