Obama sweeps to historic victory
Barack Obama is the first black president of the United States.
His era-changing victory came as he swept a series of key battleground states, winning Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
Mr Obama led his Republican rival John McCain by 297 votes to 139 as he passed the magic number of 270 needed to win the presidency at 4am GMT.
The 47-year-old Illinois senator will be sworn in as the 44th president of the United States on January 20 next year.
Hundreds of thousands of people erupted into loud cheers in and around Grant Park in downtown Chicago, the scene of Mr Obama's historic victory rally later on Wednesday.
A President Obama, with his strong message of change, hope and unity, will herald a new era in US politics, bring a more multilateral approach to the world's challenges, and perhaps transform the issue of race in America.
He has pledged to tackle the global financial crisis from day one, end the war in Iraq and unveil an ambitious energy plan to tackle climate change.
The 47-year-old Illinois senator first appeared unstoppable as he swept a series of key battleground states early in the night with wins in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.
A victory in Virginia, declared by US TV networks at 3.58am GMT, propelled him across the finish line two minutes in the 21-month £1.5bn election two minutes later as his expected win in California handed him 55 electoral votes.
In Ohio, Mr Obama had the help of Governor Ted Strickland, previously a supporter of his former rival Hillary Clinton, as he won over rural areas which went strongly in her favour in the Democratic primary election.
