Donald J. Trump takes North Carolina, putting White House within reach

Written by The Hill staff

Republican Donald Trump is defying expectations, running strong in battleground states and edging out Democrat Hillary Clinton in a presidential election where he appears on the brink of a stunning upset.

All over the electoral map, things are looking up for Trump. While exit polls had Republican operatives privately despairing about his chances, he's already proven them wrong, as he long said he would.

He has already taken Ohio, North Carolina and Florida, bringing his total to 220 electoral votes, 54 shy of the 270 needed to win the White House.

Trump leads in the electoral college, 222-209.

It increasingly appears the election will be decided in the Upper Midwest states of Wisconsin and Michigan. In the past, those two states had been safe territory for Democrats, but the Republican has jumped out to an early lead in both places.

In Michigan, where Clinton campaigned furiously in the closing days of the race, Trump leads by more than 14,000 votes with 57 percent of precincts in.

In Wisconsin, the early outlook is similar, with Trump ahead by around 63,000 votes with 58 percent reporting.

Trump has so far been projected the winner of 22 states. Clinton has been projected to take 17 states, including the swing states of Virginia and Colorado.

Trump's campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, said earlier in the evening that the campaign was feeling "really good" about where the race stands.

"The movement that Donald Trump has built has been able to grow the party in a very different way — be more pro-worker, a little less elitist," Conway said on MSNBC.

The battleground of Pennsylvania also hasn't been called. The state has 20 electoral votes, and losing it would be a crushing blow to Clinton. With 66 percent of precincts reporting, the state is a dead heat.

Two other swing states, New Hampshire and Nevada, have also not been called. Trump leads by 2 points in New Hampshire, with 64 percent of votes in.

Trump is seeking to turn Michigan red for the first time since 1988, a stunning turn in a state where Democrats spent few resources.

“If we win Michigan, we will win this historic election. Then we’ll truly be able to do all of the things we want to do,” Trump said early Tuesday morning at his final campaign rally in Grand Rapids, Mich.

As the night has progressed, the mood has changed dramatically in the two campaigns, with gloom falling over Clinton headquarters in Brooklyn and the mood rising in Trump Tower.

Polls ahead of Tuesday had given Clinton confidence, with most showing her leading the race by at least 4 points.

But those polls dramatically underestimated support for Trump, who appears to be outperforming Mitt Romney by big margins among white, working class voters.

While Trump called in for several radio and TV interviews Tuesday, Clinton mostly kept out of the spotlight, save for casting her vote in Chappaqua, N.Y., on Tuesday morning. She called the experience “humbling.”

“I know how much responsibility goes with this and so many people are counting on the outcome of this election, what it means for our country, and will do the very best if I am fortunate enough to win today,” she said.