If the Senate is a game of musical chairs, Democrats now appear to have three fewer seats to drop their weary bones into.

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CBS News projects Republican Gov. John Hoeven will beat Democratic state legislator Tracy Potter in the North Dakota Senate race.

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The Republican gambit seems to have paid off.

For 18 months they were lockstep in opposition to President Obama's policies. That energized their base -- the some 46 percent of the country who voted for Sen. John McCain -- and convinced the independent swing voters who went for Mr. Obama that it's worth questioning what the president was pushing.

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By opposing everything, they made the Democrats fight among themselves for cap-and-trade energy legislation and health care reform, drawn out battles that soured the mood of the country.

With all House Republicans standing firm against the stimulus and other Obama economic policies, they raised the bar for success, forcing the administration to be able to show the policies worked. They were accused of betting against the economy, but they were really betting against the Democrats' ability to fix the economy.

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(CBS) While Republicans are projected to rack up seats in Arkansas and Florida, CBS News now projects that Democratic candidate Richard Blumenthal will wrestle a victory from Republican challenger Linda McMahon in the Connecticut Senate race.

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Updated 9:45 p.m. ET

CBS News projects that Republican Marco Rubio will win in the Senate race in Florida.

It's a major victory for the Tea Party favorite as Rubio beat the Independent Gov. candidate Charlie Crist, and Democratic Congressman Kendrick Meek.

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ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Election Day in Anchorage began with a heavy snowfall that left the streets wet and slushy, but by noon the sun was shining. Beyond the city, the snow covered mountains stood in the sun as emblems of the state's wild and untamed nature.

When it comes to "wild," there are few political races that have been wilder than the battle for Alaska's Senate seat. It's a three-way race with polls suggesting any one of the three candidates could win.

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The Republican, Joe Miller, is a Tea Party favorite. Incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski is running as a write-in candidate after losing the Republican primary to Miller. The Democrat in the race, Mayor Scott McAdams, was once considered a long shot, but if Murkowski and Miller split the Republican vote, McAdams could just pull off a victory.

No matter who wins the outcome will have special, even historic, significance. If Miller comes out on top, it will be a victory for the Tea Party and for one of Miller's big supporters, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. At a combination rally and country music concert Monday night, Miller was surrounded by supporters shouting "Vote for Joe." He said Alaska has to get the federal government out of the way and that the Last Frontier should use the state's natural resources to create jobs.

If Murkowski wins, it will be the first time since 1954 that a write-in candidate has won a seat in the Senate. Murkowski's name is well known in the state. Her father served as both senator and governor, and she has been senator for eight years.

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Based on CBS News' preliminary national exit polling, Republicans are poised for significant gains in Congress. The youth vote--18-to-29-year-olds--who helped catapult President Obama into office makes up an estimated 9 percent of voters this year, compared to 18 percent in 2008. About 58 percent of the youth vote favors Democratic candidates.

Independents make up an estimated 28 percent of voters in the early exit polls, with 39 percent voting Democratic and 56 percent Republican. 

Black voter turnout also appears to be lower during the midterm election. An estimated 10 percent of blacks are voting, compared to 13 percent in 2008. The exit polling found 8 percent of voters are Hispanic, with 66 percent voting Democratic.

In addition, men are voting more Republican, 55 percent compared to 43 for the Democrats. Among women, Democrats have a one point edge, 49% are voting for Democrats and 48% for Republicans. In 2008, more women voted Democratic. In 2002, women voted 49 percent Republican and 49 percent Democratic.

Exit Poll: Voters Unhappy with Obama, Congress
See the Full National Exit Poll

When it comes to the 2010 money race, Democrats and Republicans are neck and neck. CBS News added up the latest figures with the help of researchers from the Center for Responsive Politics.

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Here's what we found:

Total raised so far: $3.26 billion

• Republicans: $1.404 billion
• Democrats: $1.402 billion

More "outside spending" (excluding party committees) went to Republicans.

• Republicans: $251.7 million
• Democrats: $153 million

Democrats raised more party committee money.

• Democrats: $587.2 million
• Republicans: $497.79 million

Republican candidates raised more money.

• Republicans: $1 billion
• Democrats: $810.46 million

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Welcome to our live blog of the Election 2010 results. We'll track results of the important races and point you to analysis of the latest developments as the results trickle in.   

You can also check out our maps and up-to-the-minute election results at our Campaign 2010 Special Report, and follow us on Twitter and Facebook. 

Be sure to check out our webcasts with Katie Couric and the CBS News political team here throughout the night, beginning at 9:00 PM ET, ending around 2:00 AM ET. We'll also be streaming our coverage on YouTube.

4:01AM ET: After a long night of heavy Democratic losses - and a GOP takeover in the House of Representatives - Republicans are celebrating what is largely considered a conservative wave of success. But a number of crucial contests remain in play into the morning - and perhaps for weeks to come.

In Alaska, incumbent write-in candidate Lisa Murkowski, who is battling Republican nominee Joe Miller and Democratic underdog Scott McAdams, appears to have forced a count of the state's write-in votes. Given the unprecedented nature of a potential write-in victory (the first and only candidate in American history to have pulled one off was Strom Thurmond, in 1954), the results of the race could take weeks to resolve.

In the Colorado Senate race, Democrat Michael Bennet and Republican Ken Buck remain locked in a dead heat, after weeks of polling neck and neck.

The Washington Senate race, between Democratic incumbent Patty Murray and Dino Rossi, her Republican challenger, is also too close to call.

Several gubernatorial races remain unresolved as of Wednesday morning. In Florida, Democrat Alex Sink and Republican Rick Scott continue to fight for what is seen as a crucial leadership role in the state, and to some degree in the national political spectrum.

Other gubernatorial races still in play include those in Illinois, Maine, Oregon, Minnesota, Connecticut and Vermont.

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CBS News' preliminary national exit polling on Election Day shows that voters are disillusioned with President Obama and even more so with Congress. (There will be final exit poll results later in the evening.)

Just 45 percent approve of the job Mr. Obama is doing as president in these preliminary exit polls, while 54 percent disapprove. Congress receives an approval rating of just 25 percent, while 73 percent say they disapprove of the job Congress is doing.

More than 62 percent of voters cite the economy as the most important issue right now -- significantly overshadowing any other issue. As many as 88 percent say the economy is in bad shape, while more than 86 percent are worried about the direction the economy will take in the next year. Four in 10 voters say they are worse off financially than they were two years ago.

Just 35 percent say the country is headed in the right direction, and 62 percent said it is on the wrong track.

With that grim outlook, voters appear ready to change the balance of power in Washington. Republicans are poised to win back dozens of congressional seats and possibly regain control of the House. The new dynamic will present a challenge for Mr. Obama as he attempts to continue with his agenda through the second half of his term, and it will give voters renewed expectations for progress in Washington.

Republicans need to gain 39 seats in the House to win control and 10 in the Senate.

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Two Republican talking points of late suggest that for the next two years Washington may be as gripped in gridlock as it has been these last two years.

According to a CBS News poll last week, three-quarters of likely voters (including 66% of Republicans) said that if the GOP wins control of Congress, the party should compromise some of its positions to get things done.

Nearly as many likely voters (71%) said that President Obama should compromise if his party loses the House. (Seventy-nine percent of Republicans agreed with that idea.)

Yet prior to today's election, the question of how a split-party Congress would accomplish anything was answered by the GOP leadership with two words: No compromise.

Furthermore, many Republican figures have suggested that if there is to be any bipartisan action, it will only come if the president agrees with them. In other words, if nothing is accomplished over the next two years, it will be Mr. Obama's fault.

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From Associated Press and other reports.

President Obama took to airwaves Tuesday in a series of radio interviews, geared in part to urban black audiences, in a last-ditch effort to energize a key Democratic constituency on Election Day.

Among the target audiences were voters in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, where Democratic Sens. Barbara Boxer and Harry Reid are fighting to hang on to their seats.

He also pre-taped interviews Monday night for airing in Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Honolulu and Miami.

Interrupting the music and chat of the stations' morning shows, Mr. Obama phoned in from the Oval Office to acknowledge voter frustration with the recession-bound economy -- and say that even though he's not on the ballot, his agenda is.

"Across the board, thing have gotten better over the last two years," Obama said on KPWR. "The question is, can we keep that up? But we can only keep it up if I've got some friends and allies in Congress and in the state houses."

"Are we taking the steps now to move us in the right direction, or are going to go back to the policies that got us into that mess in the first place?" he said.

Other calls went to radio stations in Chicago and Jacksonville, Fla., with large African-American audiences.

With polls forecasting major GOP gains -- possibly including a controlling majority in the House -- Obama also scheduled a a postelection news conference for 1 p.m. Wednesday in the White House East Room.

Interactive Map: CBS News Election 2010 Race Ratings
Election Night Cheat Sheet
America Votes 2010
Campaign 2010's Biggest Online Moments
YouTube's Top 10 Political Videos of 2010
Campaign 2010's Biggest Online Moments
Election Night on CBS News and CBSNews.com

According to the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism, President Obama and his administration dominated the news so far this year. No surprise whatsoever in that finding, but the second place campaign newsmaker is somewhat surprising. Delaware senate candidate Christine O'Donnell followed Obama in the rankings, ahead of several other newcomers to the national political scene--Rand Paul, Sharron Angle and Carl Paladino.  

The four newcomers are part of the Tea Party movement, which has garnered a great deal of attention, along with revelations from O'Donnell's life before her latest senate run. California Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman made news by spending more than $140 million of her own money in the campaign versus Democratic veteran Jerry Brown and enduring a news cycle about employing an undocumented worker as a housekeeper for nine years.

Campaign 2010's Biggest Online Moments
YouTube's Top 10 Political Videos of 2010

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Here it is - the finale of all finales - the last chapter of the greatest saga ever told.... OK, that's a stretch - but it is the final installment of Hot Ads of the Week - with Election Day upon us, we bring you THE BEST OF Hot Ads of the Week!!

This week we will countdown to the number one ad of the 2010 midterms.

Number 5 - Demon Sheep

Starting us off, we travel to the California - where money was no object in this election. The number five ad comes from way back in the primaries (remember them?) courtesy of Republican Carly Fiorina. She was in a pitched primary battle against two opponents and in this viral video, attacked former Rep. Tom Campbell for being a "Fiscal Conservative in Name Only" or a FCINO.

This ad plays on the "wolf in sheep's clothing" saying to show that Campbell is a demon sheep - someone who claims to be a fiscal conservative, but in reality, is far from it. The ad made the list because it was striking, creative and got people talking. It showed Fiorina as a fighter and dented Campbell's appeal.

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