This story has been updated as results have come in throughout the night.
Donald Trump has exceeded expectations in a number of key swing states he would need to win the White House, suddenly and dramatically shifting the terrain that will determine the outcome of the election.
After hours during which Florida was too close to call, Trump was projected to win the state around 11 p.m. ET. North Carolina — another crucial toss-up — was called in his favor soon thereafter. As Wisconsin and Michigan remain too close to call, it appears that the blue firewall of Rust Belt states Clinton was depending on is in serious jeopardy.
Pennsylvania and New Hampshire, two other state Hillary Clinton could use to shut Trump out from his path to 270, are still too close to call.
At the very least, both campaigns are in for a long night.
Clinton’s campaign finally got some good news Tuesday evening when Virginia was called in here favor. At first, the state — which was barely treated as a swing state, given her consistent lead in the polls — was too close to call. But her victory there, at least, means that no state expected to be in her column has been upset by Trump.
Trump also has been projected to win Ohio a state that was leaning towards him, but that Clinton supporters hoped she could have pulled out, had the presidential race turned into a Clinton landslide.
Polling in the Sunshine State remained tight throughout the end of the race. But a surge in early voting by Latinos and low-propensity voters had made Democrats fairly confident that it was trending toward a Clinton win, before the results came Tuesday evening that suggested otherwise.
Trump has been able to clear easily most of the Southern and Midwestern states he was expected to win, though Georgia also remains too close to call. Clinton has swept through the Northeastern states that were comfortably in Democrats’ column.
Attention is now on the remaining states in the Rust Belt that have yet to be called, like Michigan and Wisconsin. If Trump was able to win those, he will be well on his way to the White House.
