There was discussion of this in the days before the 2008 election, when it seemed like a possibility that Obama could clinch with called states before the West Coast closed. The network execs basically said they would have to call the race in that case.
As it turned out, he did not clinch before the West Coast closed. However, it was obvious to everyone for a couple hours that he was going to win, barring a state the networks had previously labelled "safe" flipping somehow. You could tell the on-air anchors were struggling not to acknowledge that it was over.
Note though, Hawaii still hadn't closed when it was called.
You mean Alaska. Hawaii closes with the west coast states.
