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i'm wolf blitzer in washington along with kaitlan collins. this is "america's choice, election day in america" your headquarters for all the crucial issues driving voters to the polls. key races are in mississippi, kentucky and ohio. >> the first polls close in hours from now. these races can help us get a sense of where the voters are. we'll see in abortion rights will continue to be the driving force so clearly in last year's election after the supreme court overturned roe versus wade. in ohio tonight, voters are deciding to enshrine the right to one in the state's constitution. and governors' contests in kentucky and mississippi, along with control over the government of virginia, where all 140 seats

in both the house and the senate there are up for grabs. >>. we have live team coverage of it all. jessica dean is in richmond, virginia. kyung lah, you're no franklin county, ohio. what have voters been saying as they cast their ballots today. >> reporter: what you're hearing and what you're seeing here, at least in this one polls place, you're right, this is on populated county. there's a lot of people coming to this polls station. i want you to look at what we're not just hearing, but seeing. you can see the number of people. this is an off-year election at a polls place. this is known as a busier place. they didn't expect it to be this busy. this is the sort of traffic they have seen. people checking in, getting their ballots here at the table, and heading over to the voting

booths to cast their ballot. what is motivated people here. what they are telling us is issue one, deeply personal that they have decided to make the time, because they are fueled by it. they want to make their voice heard. when you also ask them about what is motivating them to come out? they also understand that ohio is poised to make a real state leadi ing into 2024. >> that's a big thing that directly affects people's lives. they want to give an opinion on how the law should be. >> this election in how will set the tone for the rest of the country. >> i'm hopeful. i'm really hopeful. >> reporter: both of those voters decided to vote in support of issue one, in enshrining thor rites in the state's constitution. that's not the state across the

state. what we are hearing from both sides on issue is, they believe this will be down to the wire. they think it will be very close. wolf, kaitlan? >> we'll be watching closely. kyung lah, thank you. let's head to richmondy governor youngkin is hoping to game cross of the state. what are you looking for, jessica? >> reporter: the republican governor here, glenn youngkin is not on the ballot, he's midterm. he is asking virginian to give him full republican control of the state legislature. up until now, democrats have been control of the senate here, and republicans have been in control of their house. he's been all over the state

making the case, asking virginians to give him the full control so he can enact his agenda further. one key issue -- abortion. he had pushed for and offered up a 15-week abortion ban. worth noting, virginia is the only southern state that's not seen further restrictions on abortion since roe v. wade was overturned. youngkin believes a 15-week ban is a bit of a compromise. it's not as far as florida, iowa, and democrats have leaned heavily in, saying the rights should not be curbed at all. it also speak to say youngkin as an individual, as a governor.

who will this mean for him if he pushes forward his brand of republican politics. he's serve a conservative, but not necessarily a maga republican. we're looking for things in that regard, to see how well he can do. one more thing to keep in mind here in virginia, a reason we all watch in politics what happens in virginia is because often, what happens in these off-year elections correlates with what we see in the following years. then we saw biden within the state by ten points. and in 2021, the republicans took back the house, and then we saw republicans on the hill take back the house. that's why we like to keep an eye on what happens here in virginia. >> jessica dean, thank you very much. gloria borger, as we look at

this in glenn youngkin is successful, tell be the first time their governor had had total control in over a decade. >> if he's able to do that, it would be quite a feat. the interesting thing to me about watching this virginia race is the way the language has changed on abortion. now, karen is shaking her head yes. now republicans are no longer talking about a ban on abortion. that's a bad word. the word now is limiting abortion. what youngkin is saying around the state is, the people who say we want to ban abortion are lying to you. we adopt want to ban abortion. we want to limit abortion in a sensible way, and we'll see if he's making any headway with that. let's listen to the governor right now, the virginia governor glenn youngkin has used the

issue to help turn out republicans for the assembly in virginia. listen. >> we've been completely straightforward and clear. i will back a bill to protect life at 15 weeks. this is a choice between no limits and reasonable limits. >> so, what do you think? how is that argument going it go? >> most voters still see 15 weeks as a ban. the conversation has really shifted particularly post the fall of roe v. wade, where people say a woman and her doctor should make the decision. when you put a blanket ban, whether it's 15 weeks or six weeks or however many weeks, that starts to make people nervous. it also makes people nervous in virginia, with a full republican legislature, what else would they do? but gloria is exactly right. the language matters. next, in ohio, there's been a lot of back-and-forth battles about the language that's on the

ballot, that is different from the amendment to the state constitution would say. >> but i think the flow through between ohio and virginia is we're seeing republicans try to adjust their strategy. they realize they have lost every single time since the overturning the roe, even in deep red states. now they're trying to say the democrats' position is what's extreme. they're trying to point to it as maximalist. youngkin is trying to carve this lane out. but words have meaning. maybe 15 weeks is reasonable to a lot of people, but it's still setting a ban, with exceptions importantly. >> i think if republicans had a credibility on a 15-week ban thing, there's resume there to -- that that's a happy compromise in the middle for a lot of persons who don't like

extremes on either end. the problem i think they have -- tip o'neill, may he rest in piece -- the shelf life of "all politics is local" is over. even talking about prosecuting women and all that, people are thinking about the national brands of these parties in these races. even though i think youngkin is making a plausible pitch here, i don't think voters are hearing he's reasonable. >> youngkin is distill framing this as a ban. the backdrop is a right was taken away from women, so it's women who are charged up to solidify, to codify that right. so the, to your point, it's a national issue but against a backdrop against something that was taken away. 80% of americans favor some kind of abortion, yes, with

restrictions in some cases. 38% of republicans approve. >> so he's trying to make this dance, but it doesn't rep -- >> given how radioactive this issue has been for republicans, and we'll learn more tonight, why is youngkin pushing this? >> first of all, he doesn't speak for all republicans. >> but in virginia, why is he pushing it? >> i think we'll see if it motivates people. i don't think a ban will motivate people to the polls in favor of his platform. if anything -- >> that's part of the reason he's not talking about it very much. >> correct. >> here's the problem. it's the candidates, the candidates in a legislative races, they were talking about it. democrats have been on offense on this issue, so youngkin realized he better get ahead of it, because if candidates were saying bans, horrible things, so

he's trying to re-claim the narrative. i don't know if it's going to work. >> what he's trying to do is find middle ground here, at 15 folks would say was okay, but he's got a problem, because it's definitional. is it a ban? is it a limit? what is it? right? >> i guess we'll see what the voters decide. speaking of another state where abortion will be a key issue tonight, that's ohio. we're going to speak to former congressman tim ryan. he'll be with us in just a moment with his prediction on the vote in his state and why the democrat is calling for presidident biden n to drop out the e 2024 race.e. that's n next.

ohio is the seventh state weighing in on the issue of

abortion. joining us now is the former democratic congressman from ohio, tim ryan. he also ran for president back in 2020. thanks for joining us. let's begin with your state of ohio. in all six states before ohio, voters overwhelmingly upheld abortion rights for women. do you expect that to happen once again tonight in the state of ohio? how will results in ohio impact the national conversation about abortion rights? >> well, i think we will win this this how. i think the latest poll had it about 57% before the amendment or issue 1, and i think that probably will hold. i think even more than ten republicans are pro-choice, moderate republicans voting for the amendment. i think it will pass and will

send a signal that really in america, nobody wants to get in the whole big conversation every day, but it's an essential right left to the woman. this is a country that respects freedom. women are citizens of this country and should be able to make those very difficult decision. many of thinks ads are full of misinformation. how concerned are you that voters may not not exactly what they're voting for? >> there's always a concern. there have been ads on both sides. i think there's been a ground game on support of issue one, a lot of door knocks, and people on the ground throughout the state. i think that will win the day. you do worry that people get snippets of things that have all

been debunked clearly, so i think it's going to pass. i think we'll be good. you know, cutos to all the men and women in ohio running a very aggressive game. congressman, another very sensitive issue, yesterday you toll cnn's casey hunt that you don't think president biden should be running. who do you think should be running? let me be very clear, wolf, if it's joe biden against donald trump, i'll be with joe biden. i think trump is a threat to our country. he's a very dangerous proposition. i would be with president biden 100% in that regard.

i just believe that we need generational change in this country. people are so frustrated, and i think the president's message on the economy of telling people that they're doing better than they're doing is not going to work. i wish that would stop. i'm on the ground in ohio. i hear what people are saying. bacon is more expensive. gas is more expensive. grocery is more expensive. rent is more expensive. so lower growth is not matters. we need to focus on their concerns. you know this, when you don't meet people where they are emotionally, they stop thinking you're understanding the challenges that they're going through every single day. that is a very, very high risk. that's why donald trump, no matter the circumstances that he's in, if you're struggling out there, you're going to say i was doing better in 2020 than

i'm doing novemw. at least it really feels that way to me. the pitch needs to be you're struggling, we're re-industrializing the country. it's not happening soon enough, and i'm going to bust my rear end to make sure we go ahead your families where they need to be. now telling them they're better. stop with that. it puts us as risk. >> is there a specific younger democrat you're looking at to potential challenge biden for the nomination? >> i wouldn't give you any name that anybody else hasn't talked about. we have talented governors, talented senators. i'm not sure it matters all that much. if you look at the number of trump, i think 55/45, so i hope -- and again, i love joe biden, i will support joe biden

100% if he's running, no question about that, but what i'm saying is, i hope we can get a new generation of leadership. i think the country is ready to move on. we have to start healing. that's the direction we need to move in. i hope the republicans elect someone who has the guts to take on trump. the country's got to heal. we have to move on from this. i represent the frustrations of millions of people in the country. >> former democratic congressman tim ryan of ohio, thank you for joining us. >> thanks, wolf. i appreciate it. karen, what do you think -- >> i knew that was coming to me. [ laughter ] >> i'm listening to him say, what the white house is doing when they hear these concerns, and we'll be watching to see if they have any drag on races ton

tonight. what did you make of what he said? >> i think you take polls seriously. clearly we've had a number of polls that have said similar things. we need to understand why people feel that way. that's where the campaign is. you hear me say this. that is where the messaging comes in. why are people feeling that way? and why is the message not actually moving voters toward president biden. clearly, what they've been doing isn't working. i agree with the congressman on that. there needs to be some kind of change in terms of the messaging, and also probably how we're reaching people. >> but he showed why he remains one of the best communicators in the party. he said, stop talking about macro economics. there's a lot of good statistics that the team can point to, but you need to meet people where

these live. he's making a case from northeast ohio, you know, talking about manufacturing, meet people where they are, like a human being. that kind of common-sense perspective is what democrats need more of. >> i think the fear is among democrats, that they're losing democratic constituencies. they have to figure out a way to get them back. they're not doing as well with minority voters. >> biden's really don't. >> younger voters are bleeding. >> when the polls are like gloria is caking about, my experience is not change up the messaging, but change up from the top. this is coming from the top. you can't communicate differently about biden, or george w. bush after katrina and the iraq war. people have formed opinions. here's where i disagree. it's called the informed vote,

you poll, ask the direct question, and ask, did you know a, b and c? and then you ask again. that tends you to see what moves people for or again clearly they need to do something, but -- >> it's the way they feel. >> but he should. >> you talk about younger voters, which i've been looking at. it's astonishing to me that they're -- the economy, trust donald trump on the economy more than joe biden by 28 points. >> that's one poll. let's be clear, they also, though, care about reproductive rights, climate change, and when we talk about the economy, it means very different things. for black voters, racism is the economy. if i'm dealing with racism, i'm not getting a raise, i'm not getting the job opportunities that i think i deserve. you've heard black voters say

they're concerned more hasn't been done. similar with women and reproductive rights. so understanding voters and how they deal with these issues. >> none of the democrats running are talking about supporting joe biden. they're not talking about a link with joe biden. they realize that he's a deadweight on them in these races. that should tell you something about what sets up for the 2024. we're going to continue this conversation down the road. will the deep red state of kentucky oust its democratic governor? will elvis presley's second governor turn the governor's mansion blue? we'l'll hahave details, coming .

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this election day, we are following two key governor races with high stakes. in kentucky, andy beshear fighting to turn his race into a referendum on abortion rights versus daniel camden. and tate reeves amid questions about his involvement in one of the biggest public fraud scandals to ever happen in the state's history. his challenger, brandon presley, is related to elvis. dianne gallagher is standing by in jackson, but first to eva mckenn.

>> reporter: we have seen abortion really become a potent issue even in this state. governor beshear has elevated this conversation. we were at the polls this morning and spoke to one woman, and she said that was the key issue she was voting on. she she was concerned about the future of reproductive rights in this country. beshear has this searing ad that's played time and time again by a woman of the name hadley, a victim of sexual assault. she also joined him on the campaign trail. he uses her story as a way to basically call out republicans who do not support exceptions for rape or incest. this is something that's been heavily elevated here. if governor beshear is victorious, we could see democrats use the say playbook,

but daniel cameron is a serious competitor here. he's work overtime to try to tie beshear to biden, who is not popular here in kentucky. >> a democratic governor in a red state. thank you, eva. now to mississippi. cnn's diane gal better joins us now from a canvass event for brandon presley, the challenger. why is this race all of a sudden so close? >> reporter: i think the question right now for people in mississippi, can this state election a democrat as governor. i have brandon presley here. this is the democratic candidate. this is your final event. you have crisscrossed the entire state. can mississippi actually elect a democrat as governor? >> i think we're going to win tonight. i've been in all 2 counties. the energy has been amazing.

we have knocked over 260,000 doors throughout the state and we have more people ready to knock on more doors. >> reporter: i know you run on a populist message, how do you convince them to go? people say they have a hard time voting for someone who isn't a republican. >> we've got proud to get republican support throughout the campaign. i think this election is as much a referendum on saving our hospitals, ethics reform, and that reeves knows he's out of touch with them. i would be a governor in touch with mississippians, and this campaign has never been about national politics. he's trying to mick it that way. it's about issues in our state. >> reporter: has it been difficult to be attached to national politics, national democrats, running in this state for you? >> we have kept this centry to

the state of mississippi. this is whether or not our hospitals already open the next four years, whether or not we end the corruption of tate reeves, with the largest scandal until his leadership. this is not about national politics. i've disagreed with the national party plenty. this is more about mississippi than anything else. i think that's why we're going to win tonight. >> reporter: you talked about expanding medicaid, one of the few remaining states that's failed to do so. i've talked to people who said it's the idea of cutting taxes. is that what's going to push you over the finish line? this would be an upset if you won. >> look, i'm a populist. i said that clearly. the issues in mississippi are not right and left, but us pushed on the outside, with a few select led by tate reeves.

this is a campaign for the people. i've said i wanted to build a coalition, black mississippians, white mississippians, republicans and democrats to take back the governor's office for the state. we have the highest tax on food in america. and tate reeves has had 12 years to fix that. they realize i'm a fighter. tate reeves has been a low energy governor. he doesn't have any guts and backbone. i'm willing to stand up and fight. >> reporter: thank you. i appreciate your time. i will point out he's tried to tie tate reeves to the welfare scandal, where $77 million worth of welfare funds were misspent and then funneled to the politically connected and celebrities. many know that brett favre is counted as one of those in that.

he was lieutenant govern art at that time. he's never been accused officially of anything involving that, though his name has come up. reeves has said he believes he can get across the finish line. we shall see. dianne gallagher, thank you. >> even if you are elvis' second cousin, can you become the next democratic governor in a state like mississippi? >> we'll see. one thing that's interesting. a jim crow era was repealed. it was diluting the impact of the black vote, so actually black voters will have a much bigger say this time. it will be interesting to see if that will make up the difference. >> to the point we were discussing before, what we didn't hear brandon presley say a lot is joe biden. you know, i'm with joe biden all the way, and look what he did on that infrastructure bill for all of us, and look what he did for

all of us during the pandemic. >> also, to the point earlier, he's pro-life. he's not talking about that. he's running as a very conservative. >> by the way, we need big tent politics. what you hearty was a master class on how to communicate from that perspective. we'll see if it works. 80% of those running in mississippi are uncontested. >> this is why i married my husband, the politico version of good boy. 62% of mississippi is registered republicans. not even 30% are democrats.

so, while you can aspire to the change you believe in, the likelihood that mississippi votes for a republican is just -- >> keep it alive. >> also, of course, kentucky is a much more competitive race. also, next we are going to go to the ground in israel. how the country is now marking a month -- hard to believe it's already been a month -- since the october 7th attatacks. we'll l have a livive updat next.

in israel today, pausing to mark the horrific attack a month ago. more than 1400 israelis killed, men, women and children. more than 240 taken hostage into gaza. ed lavandera joins us live in jerusalem today. it has to be an incredibly

emotional day today. >> reporter: it was, wolf. to mark the attack, hundreds gathered at the western wall, one of the most holy sites in the world. they came to mourn the hostages, and to plead for their release. ♪ israelis gathered to mark the one-month passing of the atarget, holding a mass prayers for the return of the hostages. one mother pleaded for her son's return. he was kidnapped, marched by gunpoint on to a hamas pickup truck, led into gaza. that was 32 days ago. the hostages have been underground in gaza for 32 days! [ chanting ]

>> reporter: it's a sign of unity in a country coming to terms with a terrorist attack that's once again plunged the middle east into war. >> i think the country is in trauma. i think we still don't get it, you know? it's beyond grasping. it's something that is non-human. >> reporter: every evening they gather and hand out yellow ribbons. >> they want the families to feel as if all the people are with them. they're not alone. we won't take off the ribbons until they are back in israel. >> reporter: while the yellow ribbons are prominently waiting, there's an undercurrent simmering across the country. much of it directed at senior israeli government officials. a member of prime minister's netanyahu's cabinet was shouted

away from a hospital a few weeks ago as she tried to visit attack victims. to cope with the tension and the angers, this man turned hi anger into a volunteer mission out of his tel aviv restaurant with a group means giving to help others. they pack meals for soldiers and the victims of the attacks who have been displaced from hair home. as you do all of this work, do you think about the day there will be peace? is peace possible? >> we pray every morning, afternoon and evening for the peace to come for us and all of the world. >> reporter: wolf, the prayers tonight here in jerusalem were about national unity, focusing on the soldiers and the hostages, but this country also knows in the months ahead, it

would have to come to terms with the political division. wolf? >> certainly a lot of depression in israel. thank you very much, ed lavandera. with israel signaling the post plans, the u.s. is warning again a a --

israel's defense minister says israeli troops are now fighting hamas right in the heart of gaza city and declaring today that after the war ends, israel will quote retain complete freedom of action of the gaza strip.

>> and those comments come after we heard from the israeli prime minister netanyahu talking about what the situation in gaza could look like last night. >> i think israel will for an indefinite period, will have the overall security responsibility because we've seen what happens when we don't have it. >> joining us now is the middle east expert political reporter for axios. does israel actually have a plan for what happens if, and it's a big if, if it destroys hamas and takes control over all of the gaza strip? has israel planned for what it's going to do? >> the short answer is no, but the longer answer is there are sort of principles you can see. hamas is not going to be in control of gaza and rule gaza. the second principle is that

israel will retain overall security responsibility for gaza strip. i don't think that means we open in gaza forever. obviously not. but i think it is more what you see in west bank in recent years and especially after the second, meaning the idf will keep some forces inside gaza. not the numbers we see right now. and will go on almost daily raids into gaza to rule out whatever is left of hamas that they have. >> because remember, about a month or so ago, shortly after the hamas attack on israel, president biden said it would be a big mistake for israel to reoccupy gaza. >> again, i don't think it's going to be, you know, netanyahu was met a few people several days ago. it was a closed meeting. and one of them asked him, are you going to, are we going to reoccupy gaza in the sense of rebuilding settlements. netanyahu didn't answer but he did something like that, you know? and i think that's the state of

mind right now. he's not interested in you know, reoccupying gaza. he's not interested in you know, rebuilding settlements there. that's not the plan, but the question is whether he's really in control of his government because inside his government are several people that have very strong views about you know, retaking the clock back to before israel pulled out of gaza in 2005 and rebuilding settlements there. that will be a whole different story. >> even though he claimed to me once he's the ultimate decision maker in his cabinet. clearly, that has shifted since what happened a month ago. i think the more pressing question for the white house is is there going to be a cease fire or tactical pause or humanitarian pause. whatever they're calling it each day of the week. your reporting is that president biden wants to see a three-day pause but is that doesn't seem to be something netanyahu wants to publicly accept. >> yesterday, biden called netanyahu again. the tenth or 11th phone call. he told him very clearly,

listen, there's a proposal on the table. it includes a three-day pause in the fighting. it includes hamas releasing between ten to 15 hostages and it includes that during those three days, and the reason that biden claimed those three days are needed, is because hamas claims it doesn't know exactly where all the hostages are. so it will use those three days to gather this information and give a full list of the names of the hostages that are right now in gaza. problem is that these netanyahu told biden yesterday. listen, it's a trick. they're only interested in israel helping. they don't trust hamas and they think that if after a three-day cease fire, nobody around the world will really support israel if it resumes the fighting in gaza. >> great reporting, as always. thank you for sharing that with us. >> thank you. we have much more to come. jon king is here at the magic wall. right after this, he's going to lay out the key stakes and the

key races that we are watching this election day. plus, our very first cnn exit polls are ahead.

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>> boabortion right ss a big through line in some of the key races, particularly in ohio, where the issue is directly on the ballot a institutional amendment that would enshrine the rights to abortion. there are also governors races with high stakes in kentucky. also in mississippi, both deep red states. in the state of virginia, every legislators is up for re-election. >> it all comes just exactly ten weeks before the first contest of this presidential primary season. we have team coverage. eva is joining us from louisville, kentucky. you're there with ohioans united for reproductive rights. the watch party. what are you anticipating tonight? >> well, as they look ahead to what tonight is going to look like, what we are hearing from this pro issue one group is that they expect that the early returns will be favorable for them. the question will be according

to the spokesman is quote, where do we land? here is what they are encouraged by. i want to show you this video of a polling place we spent most of the day today. this is a democratic stronghold and it's images like this where turnout has been strong in those democratic quarters that the pro issue one people, the groups that want this to pass, have the abortion rights enshrined in the constitution. they feel very encouraged that turn out is strong. that enthusiasm is high and that passions are high. when you talk to people about why they are coming out, they all, almost unilaterally, people we've spoken with say they are here because of issue one. with two and a half hours left to vote, there are, both sides, the pro and anti issue one forces, say they are out knocking on doors. that they believe it will be a race to the finish. and even though they are en

encouraged by the turnout, neither side believes to be a slam dunk. they believe it will be very close throughout the evening. >> thank you very much. >> the polls will close in parts of kentucky in just under an hour. the key race that we are watching, democratic governor andy bashir going up against daniel cameron. eva is watching this from louisville tonight. eva, obviously we have seen what this race could mean. what people are looking into it, not just for the state, but what it could mean for democrats nationally. looking at how governor bashir has won this race. >> yes, absolutely. it's because he's adopted this strategy that really centers this idea of team kentucky. he has been over the pandemic, natural disasters, a number of tragedies in the state. that allowed him to really stray away from partisanship and lead with this idea of kentucky

first. when we were at the polls today speaking to voters, some said that was something that really resonated with them because they are tired of the bitterness of our politics. but listen, attorney general daniel cameron, the republican in this contest, he really presents a threat to governor bashir. what we have seen is that the trump endorsement matters in a state like this one. trump winning kentucky in 2020 by nearly 30 points. the attorney general has been able to campaign on that heavily as well as really make this argument that he would be better suited to work with the republican controlled state legislature here and that this state should have representation that reflects their conservative values. >> yeah. it's a race we're going to be watching closely to see what those voters decide. do they keep a democratic governor in that deep red state? thank you. >> jon king is here with me at the magic wall. it will be a long night.

let's start off in virginia. >> this is like 2020 when joe biden won by ten points. is the turnout like that? the voters in the swing areas and suburbs, is that how they're voting? legislative elections. this is the county map. not the president. or is it more of an electorate like this. when glenn youngkin just narrowly won governor. around richmond and up here in the d.c. suburbs. out here, to loudon county. there are a couple, including a key state senate race. house of dell egates races. 44-55. you say wow, he got beat in the suburbs. only by ten points. 11 points. in 20 20, the presidential race donald trump got trounced. youngkin thinking he has the formula to bring republicans back. in places like loudon and in places like here just outside of richmond. that's where the key

legislative, whether it's the house of delegates or state senate. most of the key places are in the suburban areas. that's blowout. almost 30 points in the governor's race. if you come here back to 2021, you come here, see youngkin still getting beat by not by a bigger margin. you can win on the margins. can he sell the suburbs on a 15-week abortion restriction, ban, call it what you will. that's what he's campaigning on. he's trying to recreate the abortion debate. >> let's go to ohio right now. because there's a pair of very big ballot initiatives that people are looking at including a constitutional amendment on the issue of abortion. >> and again, the same issue. the suburbs. here's a blank map. a couple of areas to watch. not just cleveland in the suburbs but look how i stretched this out up to lake county. toledo in the suburbs. columbus in the suburbs. cincinnati. i want to come back to the 2020 presidential map. this is a red state. this is a state donald trump won

quite comfortably. see cleveland up here. not just cleveland in the suburbs around it. again, the abortion issue, if you look at kansas, a red state. michigan, a blue to purple state. when they had initiatives after the dobbs decision, it was republicans saying the supreme court went too far. do voters in a place like lake county go that far? this is a county donald trump, lopsided, right? the suburbs. more affluent suburbs. what does this look like tonight on the abortion question? urban areas need big turnout in democratic strongholds but need to make inroads in more traditional areas. >> and kentucky right now, let's take a look at kentucky. the governor, he's got a tough race. what do you see? >> so, again, sound like a broken record, but close elections in america are decided in the suburbs and if you look here and you look out here, right, this is daniel cameron running. you go back to the presidential race in 2020. you see that's donald trump

country. even the cincinnati suburbs. this is a big red state. donald trump won by such a lopsided margin. now look at the governor's win in 2019. you go back to this race here. you see this? look at this. he won the suburbs south of cincinnati. northern kentucky. cincinnati suburbs, he won. out here, he won. again, look at the blue in this map when he ran four years ago. look how different it is when donald trump went. andy bashir, a more moderate democratic is more competitive in the suburbs than other democrats. certainly more competitive than joe biden was, wolf. and that is the question tonight. is this a presidential electorate? can he recreate his 2019 map, which was favorable to him or does it look more like a presidential map? if it looks more like a presidential map, then you'll see mr. cameron as the next governor of kentucky. >> jon king, it's dwgoing to be long night for you. the very first exit polls are

coming in. david is joining us now. he has brand-new numbers. so far, what are they telling us, david? >> these are preliminary exit polls out of ohio. just remember, this is a survey of voters who voted today as well as voters who voted before election day. whether they voted early in person or by mail. they're all represented here. in these early numbers, look at this. we asked should abortion be legal in all or most cases or illegal in all or most cases and if you add up the 29% that say legal in all cases and the 33% of ohio voters say it should be legal in most cases, you see you are well over a majority of ohio voters today say that abortion should be legal in all or most cases. we also asked about feelings about the supreme court overturning roe v. wade. look here. 18% of ohio voters today say they're enthusiastic about the overturn. 17% satisfied.

21% dissatisfied. 39% of voters in ohio today, wolf, say they're angry about roe v. wade being overturned. you see where the passion is on this issue. that's among all voters. look at it become female voters in ohio today. and that anger number goes up to 45% of female voters in this ohio election today are angry about the overturning of roe v. wade. we also asked who do you trust to handle more. which party do you trust to handle the issue of abortion. 49% say the democratic party. 42% say the republican party. these numbers look like a kind of numbers that the pro abortion rights movement, those looking to get issue one passed in ohio and enshrine abortion rights into the constitution, these are the numbers they've been looking for and believe they're more likely on course for that than not. but these are early numbers and we'll see when the votes get counted. >> these are the first exit polls. there's going to be several more. thank you very much.

>> and david makes a good point. obviously these are early numbers. we'll wait to see what the numbers look like when the polls close, but margaret, when you look at this and that third number david showed there. feelings about scotus, about the supreme court overturning roe versus wade, this was asked to female voters, and the number who still feels angry. it was at 45%. 48% in 2022. clearly, that number has not changed much. >> dissatisfied, 65 t%. a strong majority of people. if you add all of the people who believe abortion should be legal, at least in some cases, it's 85% of the exit polling results. so not only has opinion not changed, it has remained, remained robust. in the column of women having the ability to choose their healthcare. whether to have an abortion or not. that is you know, the messaging is just so clear and the

reflection as a republican is that republicans have not figured out how or why they are getting beat on this issue. they just haven't figured it out. so i look forward to seeing just exactly how that shows up in the polls. >> they haven't been able to move the needle from 2022. the question we also ask in politics is will this issue, will people feel as strongly about it a year from now as they did a year ago or will it fade? looking at our numbers in 2022, you know, in people who were angry, 39% now, but 37% in 2022. same thing. so, it has not faded and you're right. republicans haven't figured out how to get their arms around this. and turn this case around for them, but maybe they can't. i don't know. >> look, i think if these numbers are accurate, i'm pretty skeptical about early exit polls.

>> as you should be. >> yeah. >> i am, i have reflexive burn reactions to them because i've been so scarred by them. but if these are actually reflective of where the actual final electorate is on this, this is a huge win for the pro abortion rights crowd. i don't think there's any way you can interpret that otherwise. at the same time, i am, first of all, again, i'm skeptical about all that. i do think the thing the republicans are struggling with is that they did not have a post roe plan. at all. and for most of our political lives, abortion was a better issue for republicans for turning out voters and better issue for democrats raising money. that now appears to have flipped and republicans do not have a plan on the ground for how to deal with it. >> even though they worked for decades to get what happened achieved. to get that. >> it's often very shocking when the dog catches the car. >> during the course of that

time, having been involved with reproductive rights movement, we were working very hard to understand the people we call in the mushy middle. when i started at naral, six in ten americans supported roe v. wade. it's now eight in ten americans. the number is deepening. but i'll tell you the number i find fascinating. the who do you trust more. 49-42%. that's also the case in virginia that the voters trust democrats over republicans on this issue so when this issue is front and center, it looks like democrats -- >> why isn't that margin larger given -- >> it's early. >> for those who aren't seeing it, it's 49% democratic party. 42% for the republican party when the question is asked who do you trust more to handle abortion. >> as a card carrying centrist, i object to the phrase mushy middle. but particularly on abortion, i want to make a strong case here. the old formation, which was

formulation, which was safe, legal, and rare. between a woman, her doctor, her family, and her god. turns out to have been right. in terms of a super majority of american support. this is one of many issues in which we should not have max mallist opinions driving the decision and what i think most americans understood was this was kind of rammed through the supreme court. all of a sudden, congress started pushing a national abortion ban, contradicting that argument and people were saying you took away a freedom that had been in place for 50 years. it's a complex personal issue but this is some trying to find a middle ground. whether republicans have any future on this issue, that's what they're trying to carve out but this will be the seventh election in which they've been reputed on this. >> if these polls are right, it's a continuation of what wherever seen ever since roe v. wade. >> look, it's exactly the same almost. these are early.

but the evidence is here that people feel very strongly about this. and you know, maybe the reason republicans haven't been able to find a way to get around it is that people are angry about it and it's not just women. it's women and men. and they are the dog that caught the bus, right? because there was no plan b unless you were listening to mike pence, you know, who said you have to outlaw it federally, et cetera. that's not going to fly. so what do republicans do now? donald trump, we've heard him try and make like a real estate deal. like, okay, well, maybe 15 weeks will be okay. this is an emotional issue and you can't treat it like any other issue. so -- >> yeah, a lot are not seeking out clear positions on this. >> no, they're not. >> there's a multiplicity. what republicans said always was that what's happening now, federalism, is what the solution should be. let it go back to the states.

let ohio codify their constitution. it turns out the party was too fractured and some had more extreme views. >> these are the early exit polls. not the final numbers. they'll be coming out soon. we'll see what the final numbers are. so what might today's elections tell us about 2024? we'll be back with our pananel jujust a momenent.

back to our special coverage of election day in america. tonight, state and local races will not only determine which political party will have control in the coming year, but it will also serve as tea leaves for 2024. president biden and donald trump likely watching these contests very, very closely tonight. and let's talk a little bit, gloria, if democrats have a big night tonight, i assume this issue of abortion rights will help them. >> yeah. i think this issue of abortion rights is the wind at their back and it could be in a bunch of races. i think the question that's interesting to me is could somebody like governor bashir in kentucky who's a popular

democrat in a state where joe biden is unpopular, can he win? can he, can he manage to win and override those sort of negative coat tails, right? and that is something that the white house will be looking at, also, because you know, if you're popular, does it matter if the president is unpopular? that's something they've got to really be considering. >> i don't even know if he has mentioned president biden's name at all while he's been campaigning. it's not like they've appeared together. he has tried to focus on just kentucky and not at all focusing, trying to bring the president in the democratic national politics. >> major superpac outside groups have spent loads of money on attack ads against him in favor of cameron. >> he already defied political gravity once. he beat a republican who was an unpopular incumbent governor in the middle of trump's term.

he comes, his father previous governor, so there's a certain brand name that makes him more of a local brand. i'd say this race is one of the more fascinating ones to watch. both these candidates are extraordinarily talented. whoever wins will be a national figure because for bashir, if he wins re-election in kentucky, a state donald trump won twice by you know, more than 20 points, he will show there's a red state democratic connect with rural voters. that's a big deal. if cameron wins, he will not only be the first black republican governor in kentucky's history, but since reconstruction and that will be of national resonance as well. >> kentucky is what political scientists call weird. >> technical term. >> i don't like to bring up old jargon. kentucky wasn't really a southern state. it's kind of demographically a midwestern state but they

consider themselves southern. it's a strange place. it's appalachian which is kind of strange. and it's the one state where you have a mcconnell machine and the trump machine coexisting in a very weird way. >> bluegrass and bourbon. you've got this guy running on kentucky first, not mentioning joe biden. if bashir wins, i don't know that biden gets to say, oh, this speaks well of my chances in 2024. i think it's this weird thing going on over there. it's not like biden's going to have any chances of winning. >> shows that someone can win without him, right? and that's important for them to know since he's not exactly popular right now. >> he was a great substitute for biden's running mate. >> i think we should give him a little credit. 60% popularity. running on a very strong record. has stayed very close to the electorate. visits rural kentucky frequently

and often and people feel like he's really delivered. you've got to stay connected to your voters and keep your race focused on those issues. >> when you look at a state like virginia where it's up for re-election because of how they changed the redistricting and put some people against each other. when you look at how youngkin has instructed people to talk about abortion politics, that 15-week limit he is seeking, how does that factor into if that is successful, if that works for republicans, what people look at compared to how youngkin and president trump. >> both parties have put real resources behind finding candidates who are more moderate. more sort of in the middle, electable. the democrats put up a bunch of guys who have law enforcement or military background.

youngkin tried to find a bunch of mini mes who cannot scare voters. for the passionate centrist here, the future kind of lies in those moving the goal posts closer to the center of american politics. it will be interesting to read. i don't know that you can read the tea leaves are going to be that interesting for 2024. you're going to have some house delegates who are going to get elected with 20,000, 30,000 people voting. >> what it does i think for the republican side is if youngkin, if youngkin takes the house and senate, this is seen as a massi massive victory for him and that's a win for republicans looking for somebody other than donald trump. even if he doesn't get in. if he's missed these filings deadlines. i think there's still a dream out there on the republican side that youngkin -- >> lighting candles nightly. >> yeah. and regardless of how realistic

that is, what it does is reflect there's still a significant portion of the republican party that hopes for something other than donald trump for the nomination. and so this will give, put wind in those sails. >> it's interesting because donald trump has been talking a little bit about what youngkin's been talking about, right? a compromise. 15 weeks. now, he's not talking about it in the same way that youngkin is but if i were look at that and i were donald trump, i'd be saying oh, yeah, maybe that's a good idea. maybe i'll do that. if i were joe biden, i'd say, you know, yeah. that was smart of youngkin to do that. he'd be a tough competitor. >> thankfully, the republican rul rules will make it hard for youngkin although there's a lot of hoping and praying. but you know, to your point, youngkin has put a lot of his personal credibility on the line in this race. many of the ads he ran were not about the candidates.

they were abilout him so he reay tied those candidates to him and his agenda. just as it could play well for him, the flip side is we could see his decline afterward ifs they lose. >> what does it say to you that we didn't see the incumbent president out there? >> it says they didn't want him on the campaign trial. >> didn't see trip much either. >> it's when primaries of course, he's tied up in court. we saw that though remember even in obama's first term. you know, a lot of democrat candidates not wanting to be seen with him in 2009, 2010, 2011. so look, i do think all politics is local. yes, i'll invoke tip o'neill. but if you look statistically, the virginia state house race seem to be predictive. he's been saying elect republicans so people in the state house will work with me, not against me. in a way, it's an argument for

functio functional government. >> that's two tip o'neill references. we'll count them all night long as we wait for these polls to close. the big question is still will a right to abortion become part of the constitution in ohio. the republican governor of that state is urging voters not to vote for that measure. he is here live next to explain why he thinks it goes too far.

state where voters have had the chance the weigh in directly on the issue of abortion rights after the supreme court overturned roe versus wade in

all of the six prooeevious stat both red and blue, voters have chosen to protect a woman's right to get an abortion. i'm joined by the governor of ohio. governor, thank you for being here. this issue on the ballot tonight is called issue one. it's about abortion rights. do you believe it's going to pass or is it going to fail? >> well, i really don't know. i saw what your exit questions were and i watched you, but i prefer to wait until we see what actually comes in. what i do know is that issue one goes much, much too far. it allows abortion at any point in the pregnancy. the majority of people in ohio, if you ask them do you believe abortion should be able to occur late, late into the term, most are going to say no. so, this goes much, much further than where i think most in ohio

are. it also threatens -- >> but governor -- it also threatens what? >> i said it threatens the parental consent law in ohio. ultimately, this will be decided by a court, but parental consent law, it threatens, which basically requires a parent to be involved if a minor is making this very, very important decision. >> you're saying it goes too far, that it would allow these late term abortions. only about one happen after about 21 weeks but the language in this amendment says abortion may be prohibited after fetal viability. which as you know, is generally determined to be around 23 to 24 weeks. so it does say you can prohibit it. >> look, we've talked to const constitutional scholars. there's an exception to that which you also have to know. if you're looking at, and the

exception says for the health of the mother. health of the mother has been defined extremely broadly by the united states supreme court in an abortion case. the exception really takings over everything. so it would allow an abortion right up until the time of birth. look, we have experience with this in ohio. we have a guy who developed this partial birth abortion. basically deliver a baby, kill a baby and deliver the rest of the baby. we outlawed that in ohio, nationally for any case involving interstate commerce, but that would be overturned. >> you're talking about the health of the mother being broadly determined. that's a determination made by a doctor who they have a duty to follow medical science. do they not? >> it's made by the person at

the planned particenthood clini who performs abortion after abortion. >> which is a doctor. >> just let me finish. that person is making that decision and they're the person who, and there's no under this, there's absolutely no appeal. you look at the language in this constitutional amendment. state may not interfere directly, indirectly, it goes on and on then it has this huge exception for the health of the mother. look at the supreme court decision that was handed down where they defined health of the mother. question of poverty. it could be a question of i have too many children. it could be any number of different things. that's what the united states supreme court said. so in all likelihood, that's what we will end up with in ohio. >> but governor, this amendment is short. it's only about 200 words. doesn't say anything about finances or parental consent. something you just said that the republican --

>> i just explained to you -- >> said nothing about parental consent is mentioned in this amendment. you can read it. it's quite short. >> well, there's no doubt there's nothing mentioned about parental consent. i just explained it. if you go back, if you look at the language in the amendment, it talks about an individual. these are very smart aclu lawyers who wrote this. they knew exactly what they were doing. if they wanted to say only an adult and not a child, they would have used the word woman. they didn't. they used the word, an individual. so it's clear what they were trying to do. this is a right for an individual and it's clear, very clear that a court very well could come to the conclusion that a child, you know, has that individual right and that would, this is a constitutional amendment. t

that will trump any law we have on the books if they are in conflict with each other. >> ai've got to push back on wht you said about the finances being considered on the health of a mother. can you name one instance where that has happened? >> look, all i know is what the united states supreme court says and you tell me you've read the same decision and you know it's an extremely broad. look, even people -- >> but has this ever happened where someone got an abortion because they were citing the governor? >> you will not let me finish. look, the supreme court of the united states has defined this extremely broadly and so it's very, very clear that even people who are pro-choice, who are in favor of issue one, many of them will admit, yes, this will allow an abortion anytime. >> governor, my last question. if this amendment does what you say it does, if it goes too far and you don't believe voters should vote for it, why not have

the language of the amendment on the ballot? because it's not on there. instead, it's a summary from your republican secretary of state when the amendment itself is quite brief and straightforward about what it does do. >> look, everybody's had an opportunity to look at this. the thousands, these hundreds of thousands of these copies have been made of this. people have had a chance to look at. it's not a question of the language. it's a question of understanding with legal experts how this is going to be likely interpreted by courts in the future. >> we'll see what the voters decide tonight. thank you for your time tonight. >> thank you. >> we're going to get reaction to that and much more with our panel and we're also waiting for some new exit polls as our election day coverage continues.

in a crisis caused by a terrorist massacre. warning civilians to clear out, while hamas forces them back. allowing in food and water, which hamas steals. right now, we're getting new exit polls in from ohio.

let's go to cnn's political director. he has these brand-new numbers. david, so what are we hearing about who fired up the voters more in ohio? >> it's a good question. remember, these are preliminary exit poll numbers. that he could shift over the night as we get more information. it's a survey of voters who voted today in person as well as those who voted before election day either by mail or at an early voting site. but we wanted to look at the different coalitions. so look first, we asked folks, this is among the folks who voted yes on issue one. the pro boabortion rights supporters. 63% of those who voted yes with angry about the wroverturning o roe v. wade and 48% of those say abortion should be legal in all cases. the plurality position there. now contrast that, wolf, with those who voted no. these are the anti abortion

rights folks, the pro-life supporters who voted no on the issue today in ohio. 39% feel enthusiastic about the overturning of roe, wolf, but that did not compare to that 63% who felt angry on the other side. in terms of whether or not abortion should be illegal in most cases, you see 56% of those who voted no on this issue in ohio say it should be illegal in most cases. it is just 24% who say it should be illegal in all cases. so you see that the passion, the anger, the energy, that's on the side of the people voting yes today. the pro abortion rights voters in ohio, wolf. >> interesting numbers, indeed. david, thank you very much. >> and i want to make sure it's clear for everyone because this is confusing given we covered an issue one in ohio not long ago. the vote was to raise the threshold. voting in the affirmative here is a vote for yes for abortion

rights. a vote no is against adding and enshrining into the constitution. what stands out you? >> something we've been talking about tonight, which is the passion and the anger and the frustration is still very hot and people have not, and early on after roe v. wade was struck down, they thought, they'll be okay. it's about taking away a fundamental right. i'll be interested to see the breakdown of who turned out in terms of the demographics because again, young voters have been very motivated on this issue. >> yeah, and these are just early numbers. the first polls are about to close in just a few moments. some of the final predictions from our great political minds. that's next.

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