MSNBC: 2014 Midterm Elections

[LeBron]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92haPeQMQrA



David Gregory: Hello and welcome to coverage of Election Night 2014! A nation in gridlock against Congress, the voters have turned out today at the polls to try and diminish the Republican majority in the House of Representatives and fewer who would even like to end the now 8 year Democratic control over the United States Senate. We also have a great number of Senate races on the line tonight to report on many of which see a lot of Democratic incumbents in trouble and 36 Governor's races which see the Republican incumbents in trouble. Joining me tonight at the table are Rachel Maddow, Hardball's Chris Matthews, Ed Schultz, and the honorable Reverend Al Sharpton. Rachel, we've got polls closing in Kentucky, Indiana, Vermont, Virginia, South Carolina, and Georgia in just 1 hour. Let me get your thoughts on what to expect at the top of 7 o'clock hour.



Rachel Maddow: Well, this is the hour that Senate Democrats should surely feel optimistic. They're expected to hold onto the Senate seat in Virginia with the popular incumbent there, Mark Warner over Bob McDonnell, plus they have an opportunity to pick up the only two vulnerable seats currently held by Republicans in Kentucky and Georgia going into the election.



Ed Schultz: And that's the thing, Rachel. Mitch McConnell, the Senate Minority Leader, just couldn't catch a break at all this year. Grimes attacked far right against him in this crucial campaign and the Tea Party has refused to allow any corporate endorsements for McConnell after he beat Bevin in the primary. And if Democrats can unseat McConnell as Republicans did Tom Daschle a decade ago, it will not only be some sweet revenge for them, but it will give the Democratic Party good faith for the rest of the night that they'll hold onto control of the Senate.



Chris Matthews: And one has to wonder Ed if McConnell is defeated here tonight will that worry Rand Paul at all come time when he's up for re-election in 2016? He was of course elected in 2010 during the GOP wave, but that was primarily because a lot of Kentuckians saw him as a Libertarian-like Republican, but now that he's backing these lunatics like Ted Cruz or Mike Lee, he might be better off running for President as I've projected he would because Jack Conway could certainly give him another run for his money when the playing field favors the Democrats this time between those two.



Reverend Al Sharpton: You know, I think this election also shows a story. The American people are sick and tired of the lack of leadership within the Republican Party and how there's states like North Carolina, Ohio, Alabama, or Texas who seek to restrict the rights of African Americans and other minorities, but this year, Democrats reluctantly fought hard against that and if they can hold onto the Senate and take back the House, then this GOP obstruction can finally end and we can have a nation that the Founding Fathers truly envisioned.

Ed Schultz: I agree Al, but it's not only on the national level. Although there's nothing happening in Congress in terms of getting immigration reform passed or even something as simple as background checks, they are at least ineffective on most people because whatever the GOP House has passed, Reid has just held up the middle finger to Boehner and said no to any of his proposals. It's more of a matter of these GOP Governor's and state legislatures who because of our incorporated federalist system permits guys like Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin or Governor Rick Snyder over in Michigan to do whatever the hell they want which includes attacking labor unions and collective bargaining rights. The working people came out to the polls today though and said they wanted no part of their attacks and apart from all the Congressional races, I'll take an even closer look at what's happening over in Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maine, Michigan and any other states where Democrats have a shot at gubernatorial pickups.

David Gregory: That's right and that reminds me that in addition to the 2 Senate races that the Republicans will have to defend, at 7:30 Eastern Time we'll also have another 2 Senate seats in the states of West Virginia and North Carolina where Republicans are feeling optimistic about.

Rachel Maddow: And if Republicans want any chance at winning back the Senate again David, they'll not only have to hold onto Kentucky and Georgia, but they'll have to sweep West Virginia where the GOP does have an advantage, but the Republicans might also have to win North Carolina which is really a long shot for them although are hoping they can still pick it up with the State Speaker of the House, Thom Tillis.

David Gregory: With that, we'll be joined after the break by Andrea Mitchell who's live from Grimes Headquarters in Lexington, Kentucky. And don't forget, in less than an hour we'll have the first results in an ample number of House and Senate races closing in 6 states. We'll be back right after this.

[PolitiJunkie]

I started a timeline like this, but it seems like you are headed in the same direction as me so I'm gonna ditch mine and let you take over. It was called "Election Night 2014: Wait What?" and it basically entailed a very small Democratic "wave" as backlash against all the Republican obstructionism. The end result for mine was going to be D+1 in the Senate (Rs only picking up SD & Ds picking up GA & KY), D+8 in governorships with Democratic gubernatorial pickups in Maine, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, South Carolina, Georgia (Jason Carter), Arizona, and Florida and Republican pickups in Arkansas, Illinois, and Connecticut, and D+12 in the House (CA-21, CA-31, CO-6, MI-1, NV-3, NY-19, IL-13, NY-11, NY-23, VA-2, MT-AL, WV-2). But it seems like you are doing a better job of fleshing out the national mood so I'm gonna defer to you on this. Enjoy!

[LeBron]

I started a timeline like this, but it seems like you are headed in the same direction as me so I'm gonna ditch mine and let you take over. It was called "Election Night 2014: Wait What?" and it basically entailed a very small Democratic "wave" as backlash against all the Republican obstructionism. The end result for mine was going to be D+1 in the Senate (Rs only picking up SD & Ds picking up GA & KY), D+8 in governorships with Democratic gubernatorial pickups in Maine, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, South Carolina, Georgia (Jason Carter), Arizona, and Florida and Republican pickups in Arkansas, Illinois, and Connecticut, and D+12 in the House (CA-21, CA-31, CO-6, MI-1, NV-3, NY-19, IL-13, NY-11, NY-23, VA-2, MT-AL, WV-2). But it seems like you are doing a better job of fleshing out the national mood so I'm gonna defer to you on this. Enjoy!

Thanks, but you can do yours if you want. In fact, I see you're using the CNN news station, so not only will we have some different results (Such as SC & GA gubernatorial + OH CDs), but MSNBC tends to have liberal bias from the round table (which is why I like watching them ) and you have CNN which is pretty much neutral. So while we're both projecting a Democratic wave especially if this economic failure takes place in the next 10 days, there's still 2 different ways this whole thing could play out. I'm still questioning in fact whether I'll keep the House in Republican hands here or not. It will be 2000 Congressional close in reality.

[LeBron]

David Gregory: Welcome back to MSNBC's coverage of the 2014 Midterms! We're joined now by NBC's own, Andrea Mitchell, who's live from Kentucky in Grimes Headquarters. Andrea, what can you tell us about this hotly contested Senate race which closes in less than 30 minutes?



Andrea Mitchell: Hi Dave, currently I'm hearing from the Grimes campaign that they're feeling very confident that the Secretary of State can beat McConnell. The last poll before tonight was done by Rasmussen which shows McConnell only has a 1 point lead over her opponent, so Grimes is hoping to lower that small lead to an even level by getting a lot of her 2011 supporters out again tonight.

David Gregory: And Andrea, what would you say about how important and critical it is to get a lot of these voters out tonight in support of Grimes?

Andrea Mitchell: Well David, midterms almost always favor Republicans, but as was the case in 2011, Kentuckians were furious over the previous, corrupt Fletcher administration and as a result, Steve Beshear, the Democrat, won big and I think the same can be said about tonight. Kentuckians are just as mad as they were 3 years ago because of McConnell's unwillingness to work with Majority Leader Harry Reid and has led to his low approval's in the 30's. However, what McConnell is hoping for tonight is to see if the Independent in the race, Ed Marksberry, can steal enough votes away from Grimes to give McConnell a very close victory. All I want to say right now though is every single vote is making all the difference here in Kentucky which is a historically red state. McCain won the state easily in 2008, but enough Kentuckians rallied around Bruce Lunsford that McConnell came really close to losing his Senate seat in the Democratic wave that year. Now that we're inclined to say that this is another blue wave, McConnell could be in the same position as he was 6 years ago and you know, the polls close very, very shortly so if you're not in line yet to vote in Kentucky, I urge all of you to go down to your local precinct before 7 to get your opportunity to vote. I must say though David, no matter what at the top of the hour, this race will just be too close to call and I wouldn't be surprised if it stays outstanding for the rest of the night.

David Gregory: Thank you, Andrea.

Andrea Mitchell: No problem. Hopefully none of you made any cash endorsements in Kentucky this time!

David Gregory: Haha, I hope not. Poll closings there in Kentucky, Indiana, Vermont, Virginia, South Carolina, and Georgia are closing in less than 20 minutes right now. We'll be back with Chuck Todd and more coverage of Election 2014 after the break!

Poll Closings in 18 Minutes:

[LeBron]

David Gregory: And we're back! This is the live coverage of Election Night 2014 and here with us in the studio right now is White House Correspondent and NBC Political Analyst, Chuck Todd! Chuck, welcome!

Chuck Todd: Thanks Dave. Now I'd like you all to take a look at our Senate map here as I pull it up with a total of 35 Senate races on the line tonight. 21 are held by Democrats including Cory Booker who won his seat in New Jersey last year and 14 are held by Republicans. As you can see here, the states highlighted in green are seats that are up tonight and the two in yellow, Hawaii and South Carolina, each have special elections after Governor's Abercrombie and Haley respectively set those elections to coincide with tonight. Now the number I'd like you all to remember is 6 because Democrats currently control the U.S. Senate 55 to 45 counting Independents Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Angus King of Maine who caucus with the Democrats. And the reason why that 6 is so important is because it's the number of switches the Republican Party needs to take control of the Senate. 5 won't cut it because if there's a 50-50 Senate, Vice President Joe Biden will break it in the Democratic favor. Now the question is where do they find a path to a GOP majority assuming they can still hold Kentucky and Georgia. Well, I'll show you.

Chuck Todd: By also counting safe or leans for each party, that is quite possibly the only way Republicans can win control of the upper chamber. If you give the Republicans South Dakota, West Virginia, Montana, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Alaska, the Republicans get their 51. But looking at the recent polling, that is the only way left the Republicans can do it. North Carolina did vote out Elizabeth Dole in favor of the current Democratic incumbent Senator, Kay Hagan, but history is not looking to repeat itself as Hagan is being very well-favored tonight to hold onto her seat there. Basically David, if you consider both houses of Congress this whole time heading into the election, there are two completely different situations that are making it very difficult for the opposing party to flip control of the house they're after. In the Senate, it is becoming harder and harder for Republicans to win statewide with these unpopular Tea Party guys who can't associate with the average American. In the House of Representatives on the other hand, we see these undemocratic, gerrymandered lines that even in perhaps their highest disapproval since winning the majority back in 2010 still makes it close to impossible for the Democrats to contest control of. But this retaliation we're seeing now among voters for the government shutdown and default last year has made a lot of these districts that lean or were even considered likely Republican favored are now pure tossups in states like California, Florida, Iowa, or Michigan. So if any chamber changes control tonight David, the Democrats have a much better chance at winning the House than the Republicans have of taking the Senate.

David Gregory: And because we see a split in the Republicans making gains in the Senate while the Democrats make gains in the House, what can you say Chuck about how some of these heated gubernatorial races will go tonight?

Chuck Todd: Well you're right in saying it's split because these Governor races can really go either way. There are some Republican incumbents in Ohio, Florida, or Pennsylvania who are in huge trouble, but the same can be said about Democratic incumbents in Illinois, Colorado or Connecticut. I'll pull up my magical map for the Governor's races later, but for now, a lot of these races are statewide issues. A lot of the Governor's, both Republican and Democratic, are trying to disassociate themselves from John Boehner and Harry Reid and that's really a plus for them there. The disadvantage they have is if they're in a tossup state or a state that leans in the other party's direction and if they've done even one unpopular thing, it's safe to say they might be going out first.

David Gregory: Alright Chuck, thanks for that!

Ed Schultz: And adding onto what Chuck was saying, we've got GOP led states out there where job creation is at an all-time low and unemployment is rising significantly. As the Reverend pointed out earlier, it also has to deal with voting rights as well in a lot of these situations. Take Nikki Haley in South Carolina who used taxpayer money to find voter fraud that she found none of and that's added onto all the money she took for her lavish vacations!

David Gregory: That could be a reason as well for why Haley could potentially fall to the moderate State Senator Vince Sheheen tonight. We'll find out who will have a lead there, South Carolina's 2 Senate races and 7 House seats, and a number of other Congressional races in the other 5 states when we return!

Poll Closings in 3 Minutes

[LeBron]

This is awesome, continue this soon.

Thank you!

And don't worry, this won't be ending anytime soon. I have school, homework plus a job I'm trying to all keep up with, but I should find time tomorrow (or technically today: 2:40 AM) or on Wednesday to continue focusing on this. And it's good not to rush it all at once because the difference between an economic default on the 17th or not will probably be the key factor as to whether or not Republicans hold the House after the midterms.

btw, I'm not discouraging anybody else from also doing a likely 2014 Election Night scenario. I'm just kind of shocked myself that there's more 2016 scenarios than there are of the upcoming midterms especially since the forum is about divided on some who think the Senate has a good chance of falling while others who think the House might fall or others who think neither house will.

[LeBron]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92haPeQMQrA

Poll Closings Now (7 PM EST)

David Gregory: Polls are closing as I speak in 6 states and we have some fresh results coming in first from the Senate!

We'll start in South Carolina's Special Election where we can project the Republican and the incumbent, Tim Scott, will hold onto his seat against Democrat and Commerce Dept. official, Rick Wade. A seat that was originally Jim DeMint's is now officially his.


Appointee Sen. Tim Scott (R): 0
Rick Wade (D): 0


In the other South Carolina race we are now able to project that the incumbent there, Senator Lindsey Graham, will hold onto his seat as well. His hardest battle was a crowded GOP primary, but he survived there and has survived tonight against his Democratic opponent, Jay Stamper.


Sen. Lindsey Graham (R): 0
Jay Stamper (D): 0


Into Virginia where we can now project also that the popular incumbent, Mark Warner, will hold onto his seat over the former Governor of Virginia, Bob McDonnell. Senator Warner attacked right against Mr. Ultrasound all the way leading by double digits in the polls and his work with Governor McAuliffe has paid off for the state of Virginia as he holds on there.


Sen. Mark Warner (D): 68% (32,856)
Bob McDonnell (R): 31% (11,915)


In Georgia, it is too close to call right now. Georgia tends to almost always favor Republicans, but the rise in Latinos and African Americans has put this race between the Democrat, Michelle Nunn and Tea Party darling, Phil Gingrey. Less than 1% of the precincts are in which shows Nunn leading 55-43, but it remains too close to call.


Michelle Nunn (D): 55% (199)           Phil Gingrey (R): 43% (176)


And into the big race closing at this hour, in the great state of Kentucky, it is too close to call. Less than 4% of the precincts are reporting and the incumbent, Mitch McConnell, has about a 300 vote lead at this time, but those are early numbers and this can go any way at this point.


Sen. Mitch McConnell: 49% (27,265)   Alison Lundergan Grimes: 49% (26,903)   Ed Marksberry: 2% (551)

David Gregory: Let's look at the balance of power in the upper chamber at this moment.

Democrats hold 33 seats
Independents have 2 with Angus King and Bernie Sanders right in the middle there
And Republicans hold 33 seats as well

So we now have 32 races still outstanding tonight with at this moment, two closed races being defended by Republicans, two races that are Republican holds, and one that is a Democratic hold.

This means at this time Chris Matthews, Democrats are much closer to the majority than Republicans are. Assuming Angus King and Bernie Sanders caucus with the Democrats, that gives them 35 seats right there and only need to win 15 more for a 50 seat, safe majority for them while Republicans would need to take 18 of them to take control.

Chris Matthews: Well it's clear Democrats have a huge advantage here early on. You're about to report on a number of House races as well in Virginia, Kentucky or even Indiana where a lot of Republican incumbents are in trouble, so not only are we seeing Democrats doing well in the Senate, but from the most recent polling have been seen as very competitive in some of these House districts.

Ed Schultz: And as you all know, I'm originally from Virginia and it's clear democracy is starting to kick in down there. They're departing from their old Confederate ways because today's Democrats like those of Senator Mark Warner are nothing like the Jefferson Davis Democrats! There's still the Southern part of Virginia which wants to adhere to conservative values, but there's the North that wants to become more progressive on both fiscal and social issues and I think going into the 2016 Presidential Election, Virginia is almost a lock for the Democrats and it won't even be a swing state or an old Republican state like it used to be.

David Gregory: With that, MSNBC will be back right after this with any new projections coming in from all the House districts and the 3 Governor's races that are closed. We hope you'll stay with us.

Poll Closings in 26 Minutes:

[badgate]

I'm actually listening to this theme song while I read the updates. Great idea. Keep this up!

[Flake]

I'm actually listening to this theme song while I read the updates. Great idea. Keep this up!

I really hope Sheheen wins South Carolina tho

[barfbag]

Don't you all agree this is a good timeline? What would you Democrats do if I didn't make irrelevant comparisons to Fox News in this thread?

[PolitiJunkie]

Don't you all agree these people are all far left? What would you Democrats do if Fox News has Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, Bill Kristol, Tucker Carlson, and Neil Kavuto?

They basically do.

[barfbag]

Don't you all agree these people are all far left? What would you Democrats do if Fox News has Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, Bill Kristol, Tucker Carlson, and Neil Kavuto?

They basically do.

So why they double standard on the left? Why is MSNBC ok and Fox not ok based on who they have on during the elections? How is this fair?

[PolitiJunkie]

Don't you all agree these people are all far left? What would you Democrats do if Fox News has Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, Bill Kristol, Tucker Carlson, and Neil Kavuto?

They basically do.

So why they double standard on the left? Why is MSNBC ok and Fox not ok based on who they have on during the elections? How is this fair?

Some would say neither is okay; others would say both is okay. I can't imagine you'd find anyone who is okay with one and not the other, and if you do, that person is a dunderhead not worth your time anyway.

[barfbag]

Don't you all agree these people are all far left? What would you Democrats do if Fox News has Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, Bill Kristol, Tucker Carlson, and Neil Kavuto?

They basically do.

So why they double standard on the left? Why is MSNBC ok and Fox not ok based on who they have on during the elections? How is this fair?

Some would say neither is okay; others would say both is okay. I can't imagine you'd find anyone who is okay with one and not the other, and if you do, that person is a dunderhead not worth your time anyway.

I agree with you but unfortunately most Democrats would think the MSNBC lineup is fine while almost half of Republicans would say the opposite. If they were qualified, I'd love to see Bill O'Reilly and Greta Van Susteran do it for Fox actually. Although, Hannity and Beckel is very entertaining.

[hurricanehink]

I'm curious in this timeline how Graham's primary turned out Keep it up!

[badgate]

I guess I'm one of the Democrats who finds this line up fine, however one-sided. It's not like Andrea Mitchell or David Gregory are the intellectual leaders of the organized left.

[LeBron]

I'm actually listening to this theme song while I read the updates. Great idea. Keep this up!

I really hope Sheheen wins South Carolina tho

Thanks guys! And you'll see coming up because I plan to write the rest of the closed Governor/House races, the post-discussion, and probably the 7:30 PM closings to.

Also I updated the in detail results from the first closings.

[LeBron]

Don't you all agree these people are all far left? What would you Democrats do if Fox News has Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, Bill Kristol, Tucker Carlson, and Neil Kavuto?

They basically do.

So why they double standard on the left? Why is MSNBC ok and Fox not ok based on who they have on during the elections? How is this fair?

Some would say neither is okay; others would say both is okay. I can't imagine you'd find anyone who is okay with one and not the other, and if you do, that person is a dunderhead not worth your time anyway.

I agree with you but unfortunately most Democrats would think the MSNBC lineup is fine while almost half of Republicans would say the opposite. If they were qualified, I'd love to see Bill O'Reilly and Greta Van Susteran do it for Fox actually. Although, Hannity and Beckel is very entertaining.

The likes of David Gregory and Rachel Maddow might be biased, but they're in no way Hannity bad when it comes to that. As a young Democrat myself, I see MSNBC as the most interesting news base. No way in hell would I watch Fox except for comedy, CNN makes mistakes way too often (especially with Blitzer's recent Obamacare comment, and the others like CBS and ABC are eh. I personally like MSNBC's fierceness on a lot of these issues that anger me as much as they do them. I don't even live in Nebraska and I was pissed when I heard out about how they're ruining the life of an innocent 16 year old, pregnant girl because she's "too immature" to get an abortion.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Key Democratic wins Walsh wins in MnT and Ed Fitgerald wins in OH.

[LeBron]

David Gregory: This is coverage of the 2014 midterms and right before the break, NBC announced that Senators Tim Scott, Lindsey Graham, and Mark Warner are all going back to Washington. We still have two outstanding races in Kentucky where the five-term incumbent, Mitch McConnell, is holding on for his political career against Secretary of State, Alison Lundergan Grimes, and the open seat in Georgia from Saxby Chambliss' retirement between Michelle Nunn and Phil Gingrey. But right now, I'd like to get to these three Governor's races that closed just moments ago in the states of Vermont, Georgia and South Carolina.

In Vermont, it's too early to call, but the incumbent has a lead with about 21% of the precincts reporting. The Democratic Governor and DGA Chairman, Peter Shumlin, has maintained a fairly high approval rating over his four years as Governor, but is facing a tough re-election up in the Green Mountain State. It's a three-way race between him, the Republican candidate again, Randy Brock, and Progressive Party Chairwoman, Martha Abbott.


Gov. Peter Shumlin (D): 49% (25,442)  Randy Brock (R): 43% (22,089)  Martha Abbott (P): 6% (3,802)

In Georgia, on the other hand, it is too close to call. Republican Governor Nathan Deal trying to hold on in this deep southern state for another term. His opponent may be even stronger than former Governor Barnes as he's facing Democratic State Senator Jason Carter whose grandfather is the own former Governor of Georgia and 39th President of the United States, Jimmy Carter which could convince voters tonight that Carter is the man for the job. Deal has had approvals in the low 30's and has faced large scale ethics problems which have hurt his campaign throughout. If Carter wins tonight, it will be because of the large amount of money spent from being unopposed in his primary and the increasingly diverse population specifically in Atlanta, but as it stands because of the 50% rule, the Governor might have the advantage.


Gov. Nathan Deal (R): 52% (45,992)                   Jason Carter (D): 46% (40,310)

And into the key Governor's race that closed at 7 Eastern Time. In South Carolina, it is too close to call between Republican Governor, Nikki Haley, and Democratic State Senator, Vincent Sheheen with 3% of precincts in. Haley, a favorite of the Tea Party, has faced high unpopularity ratings, but if she pulls it off tonight in the Palmetto State, it will be in part from outspending her moderate opponent who she beat by only 4 points in the 2010 wave.


Vincent Sheheen (D): 50% (27,282) Gov. Nikki Haley (R): 49% (25,811)

David Gregory: So as it stands, none of these races NBC is yet ready to call and the Governor seats still stand at 7 being held by Republicans and 7 which are held by Democrats. This is the current map of the still undeclared 36 Governor races and the map going into tonight of which seats are being defended by whom so our viewers can get the general idea of who's on the defensive tonight, who's on the offensive, and which seats are open.

Rachel Maddow: You know, speaking as someone from a very liberal state like Massachusetts, I can see why the Democrat in this Vermont gubernatorial race is having such a hard time. Progressives often see Democrats as spineless individuals who aren't left enough in their viewpoints. Their main accusations against him are that he's putting restrictions on health care and other programs to hurt low-income people there, but what the Progressives don't realize is that because they're left-wing and not right-wing or even independent, they're not going to win the election first of all because the Progressives are a third party and Abbott isn't the incumbent. Also though, the party is going to steal votes away from a lot of Democrats and because of that, this puts this race from safe Democratic to possibly a potential pickup for the Vermont Republicans.

Ed Schultz: And that would make those Repubs. real happy because if Randy Brock wins tonight, they'll not only overthrow the Democratic Party's own Chairman for the country's Governor's, but he'll be able to veto anything the Democratic controlled legislature there passes. Even if they were to try to override them, there could be some instances where they just won't have the votes to do so which could be annoying to deal with.

Chris Matthews: In my opinion though, I think this gubernatorial seat in South Carolina is a lot more at risk than Vermont. As Dave was saying, Haley beat Sheheen by only about 60,000 votes, 4 points, in a year and a state where the political divide should have favored Haley remarkably! But you know what, it's partially because of how polarized the Republican Party down there has become and the Democratic Party is not looking too bad to a lot of Southern voters.

Reverend Al Sharpton: It's interesting that you mention that Chris because I was looking into Sheheen and how a Democrat such as himself could be so popular in South Carolina. He is against same-sex marriage and during his re-election bid for the State Senate last year, was even endorsed by the National Rifle Association. So from what it appears, Sheheen seems to be very moderate on a lot of these social issues and that appears to be the key for a Democrat to win in the traditional valued South.

Chris Matthews: And a large part of it has to do with Nikki Haley to. If former Governor Carroll Campbell was running again, he would be a lock for the Republicans because he knew how to connect with the voters and his approval was unprecedented, but with Haley, nothings for certain. She was endorsed by the former Governor, Mark Sanford, and that automatically brought hatred among voters, but another reason was because she spent her people's own money like there was no tomorrow! Just like Sanford, Haley went on a pretty well-known "vacation" and that of course angered a bunch of her constituents. And it surely didn't help when she continued to use the state's money to find "voter fraud" among fake dead people that she found none of!

Ed Schultz: Don't forget her conservative buddy just North of the border, Pat McCrory in North Carolina who cut social programs in the state and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxpayer money to get his extravagant bathtubs and toilets. The problem with them and the base of the Republican Party continues to be caring only about the needs of themselves before those of the American people and this could be the reason for why Haley loses tonight.

David Gregory: With that, MSNBC's coverage will be back right after this with polls closing in West Virginia, Ohio, and North Carolina in less than 20 minutes.

[hurricanehink]

Any updates here? I'd love to see some other states called

[LeBron]

Any updates here? I'd love to see some other states called

Yep, I'm about to post the House races. Unfortunately, it's really hard going into detail like I would prefer to do on all of them because of the 11,000 character limit, so while I did try to lower it as much as possible which includes w/o commentary, the next update will have some comments on the 48 House races from the 6 states in addition to the 7:30 PM closings.

If my math is correct for the 8:00 PM closings, there's 132 House races to report on and there's NO way all of them would fit within 11,000 characters w/in depth descriptions.

But what do you guys think? 1) Continue doing it the way in the upcoming post or    2) Do it how news station usually have it done and show just brief descriptions of the House races going by on the bottom of the screen while they're talking?

[LeBron]

David Gregory: Another matter to attend to as well, we have 48 House races that have closed to report on here many of which are safe, but let's go through these right now.

In the state of Indiana:
IN-1 goes for the Democratic incumbent, Pete Visclosky, who wins re-election for a 16th term.

IN-2 is too close to call. Rep. Jackie Walorski (R) is in her first term in the House and while she has been seen as safe after Brendan Mullen opted out a run, Democrats are still feeling optimistic here in the northern part of the state.

IN-3 stays in the Republican column as Rep. Marlin Stutzman holds on here over his Democratic opponent, Justin Kuhnle. Stutzman carried 67% of the vote in 2012 and according to NBC's projections, he's going to win by a large double point margin tonight as well.

IN-4 also remains in the GOP camp with two term incumbent, Todd Rokita.

IN-5 is reliably for the Republicans as well tonight as Rep. Susan Brooks is going back to Congress for a second term.

IN-6 to the Republicans. No surprise here as the GOP Rep. Luke Messer wins another term in a R+12 district near Ohio. It is also worth noting Democrats have not won here in over three decades now, so Messer hardly having to break a sweat in his re-election campaign.

IN-7 goes to the other House Democrat from the Hoosier State, André Carson as he also gets another consecutive term in the Capitol. An urban district in the heart of Indianapolis, Carson over the past six years has drawn a lot of support from the white collar workers there and has won re-election tonight.

IN-8 stays in Republican hands where Rep. Larry Bucshon, who won in the 2010 GOP wave, is going back to the House of Representatives.

IN-9 is too early to call between GOP Rep. Todd Young and Democrat, Bill Bailey in the famous Hill/Sodrel district.


Into Kentucky we go:
In KY-1, the Republicans hold onto their seat there with Rep. Ed Whitfield who has hopped his way into another congressional term over Tom Barlow tonight.

KY-2 in Bowling Green in the Bluegrass State bowls a strike for the GOP as the incumbent Republican, Brett Guthrie, holds onto his seat over Democrat, Ron Leach.

In KY-3, the popular and only House Democrat in the great state of Kentucky has won re-election for a 5th term after first winning the seat in the Bush catastrophe of 2006 over former Republican incumbent, Anne Northup.

KY-4 just north of the capitol of Frankfort stays with Republican Thomas Massie who won the seat in a special election two years ago after Representative Geoff Davis resigned.

KY-5 is also another safe Republican hold. Rep. Hal Rogers, a veteran of Congress, has easily won re-election tonight in southeastern Kentucky over Democratic nominee, James Holbert. A Democrat has not won here in over half a century now and by the time the sun sets, NBC can project that Sommerset will send Rogers back to DC.

KY-6 is too close to call where the very unpopular Congressman Andy Barr is trying to hold on over Elizabeth Jensen.

Up to Vermont:
In Vermont's At-Large District there is no surprise in projecting that the Democratic incumbent, Peter Welch, is going back to DC for a 4th term. His minor opposition was again Republican, Mark Donka, and Liberty Union candidate who's to the left of Welch, Jane Newton. Welch remains as the sole representative to the maple syrup state though.


And results from the Commonwealth of Virginia:
VA-1 reliably remains Republican as Rob Wittman holds onto his seat there along the Chesapeake Bay. It went for Mark Warner in 2008, but tonight they stick with their GOP representative.

VA-2 is too close to call. Republican Rep. Scott Rigell has a tough Democratic challenger in Suzanne Patrick, but NBC is not yet ready to make any characterizations here.

In VA-3, Rep. Bobby Scott has been re-elected for an 11th time by Richmond in a large African American district which went for Obama by over 50 points in 2008.

VA-4 is a major swing district that went for Obama in '08 and Romney in 2012, but tonight, the Republican incumbent, Randy Forbes, gets re-elected by his constituents.

VA-5 goes to the Republican, Robert Hurt. This district has been the home to the likes of James Madison and Presidential candidate Virgil Goode, but in this southern part of the Old Dominion State, Rep. Hurt will not be hurt tonight as he goes back to DC as well.

VA-6 stays with Republican Bob Goodlatte whose been in the House since 1992. The Democrat, Bruce Elder, attempted to defeat him, but that will not be the case as Goodlatte retains his seat in Roanoke.

VA-7 no surprise goes for the House Majority Leader, Eric Cantor in his district west of Richmond. Peter Greenwald failed to win the primary while tonight Cantor overcomes Democratic nominee, Wayne Powell. However, after tonight Cantor may no longer be holding the phrase "Majority Leader."

VA-8 is a hold for the Democratic Party. Jim Moran, a member of Congress since 1990, defeats 3 time Republican challenger, Patrick Murray, in the famous district that includes Arlington and parts of Washington DC.

VA-9 stays with Republican Morgan Griffith. He carried 61% of the vote in 2012 and wins big tonight again over Democrat, Anthony Flaccavento.

VA-10 is too close to call where Rep. Frank Wolf is trying to hang on for another 2 years.

In VA-11, Rep. Gerry Connolly (D) wins a 4th term over Republican Ron Meyer. The legacy of George Washington continues on as the people of Mount Vernon and Fairfax have voted Connolly in again.


South of the border we go into South Carolina:
In SC-1 along the coast, the controversial Mark Sanford is going back for another term in Argen (ehem...DC) over Democrat, Ben Frasier. He barely survived the primary against Larry Grooms, but once he overcame the odds, it was smooth sailing from there for the former Governor.

SC-2 goes for Rep. Joe Wilson (R) who gained national attention for his verbal attack of President Obama on the House floor. He goes unopposed tonight as Columbia and Hilton Head go big for him.

SC-3, a heavily Republican district formerly represented by Senator Lindsey Graham, goes for Rep. Jeff Duncan again since being elected in 2010.

SC-4 in upstate South Carolina handily goes for Republican Rep. Trey Gowdy. Democratic candidate Jimmy Tobias was unsuccessful in defeating Gowdy here tonight. And with this, Trey is Spartanburg.

SC-5 no big shock has gone for Republican Representative Mick Mulvaney.

SC-6 stays put in the hands of James Clyburn according to NBC projections.

SC-7 is retained by Rep. Tom Rice (R) after defeating Democrat, Gloria Tinubu. After nearly 80 years, the district was recreated two years back and is in reliably Republican territory.


And in Georgia:
GA-1 goes to State Senator Jeff Chapman after Kingston’s retirement. It goes for the Republicans.

GA-2 goes for the Bluedog Democrat, Sanford Bishop yet again.

GA-3 no surprise for GOP Rep. Lynn Westmoreland. His toughest challenge was in the primary against Chip Flanegan, but tonight he wins soundly over his "uppity" Democratic opposition.

GA-4 has gone for Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson. In his most recent elections, he's carried 70% or more of the vote and tonight, he wins in a landslide over Republican Chris Vaughn.

GA-5 in a blowout for Democrat, John Lewis going unopposed in his bid for re-election.

GA-6 will also stay in the Republican column. Rep. Tom Price wins here in a seat that used to be held by the Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich.

In GA-7, two term Republican incumbent Rob Woodall is our NBC projected winner.

GA-8 is retained by GOP Rep. Austin Scott according to our projections having won the seat from Jim Marshall originally in 2010.

GA-9 stays in lock for Rep. Doug Collins of the GOP as he defeats Democrat, Jody Cooley.

GA-10, Paul Broun's old seat is a Republican hold as State Representative Donna Sheldon takes the seat from a crowded primary and a projected victory over Ken Dious tonight.

GA-11 as expected is added to the Republican total. This is Phil Gingrey's old seat who is hoping to win that Senate seat tonight, but as for this House race, NBC News can project former Congressman, Bob Barr (R), will take it for the Republican Party.

GA-12 is too close to call where Rep. Barrow (D) is trying to hang on in his conservative district.

GA-13 stays Democratic as expected where Rep. David Scott easily defeats Republican Deborah Honeycutt.

And finally in GA-14, no shocker here, Republican Rep. Tom Graves goes back to Washington as expected.

David Gregory: Let's look at the balance of power at this moment.

Governorships:
Democratic Party - 7 seats
Republican Party - 7 seats

Senate:
Democratic Party - 33 seats
Republican Party - 33 seats
Independents - 2 seats

House of Representatives:
Republican Party - 30 seats
Democratic Party - 12 seats

David Gregory: And we'll see in just moments the latest results as polls are closing in Ohio, North Carolina, and West Virginia in just 4 minutes along with more discussion and coverage over all of these House, Senate and Governor races when MSNBC returns!

Races still outstanding:
Governor - Vermont, Georgia, South Carolina
Senate - Kentucky, Georgia
House - IN-2, IN-9, KY-6, VA-2, VA-10, GA-12

Poll Closings in 4 Minutes:

[ElectionsGuy]

Can't wait to see these next races, great work!

[badgate]

Yeah, this is very ambitious and I'm impressed by the scope you're going for. Keep it up.