hello and welcome to washington, this is a us election special broadcasting in the uk and around the world. long queues of voters across the united states suggest a high turnout in the presidential election. polls suggests hillary clinton maintains her narrow lead over her republican rival. helped by signs of a big swell of hispanic voters. i know how much responsibility goes with this. so many people are counting on the outcome of this election, what it means for our country. i will do the very best i can, if i'm fortunate enough to win today. donald trump casting his ballot in new york believes donald trump casting his ballot in no aig css donald trump casting his ballot in new york believes he can pull off a victory. he says voting so far looks good for him. today is our independence day. cheering. today, the american working class is going to strike back. also coming up, we will explain how the us presidential election system

actually works and why not all votes are worth the same. in front of me you can see a map of the usa, all 50 states, it's about the electoral college. hello from washington, dc where the polling stations will close in four hours' time on the east coast in what is being seen as the most bitter presidential contest of the past 50 years. there have been long queues to vote in many of the key battle ground states as tens of millions of americans choose between the democratic nominee, hillary clinton, and the republican candidate, donald trump. as well as choosing a new president, americans are also voting in elections to

congress with a balance of power, it will affect the president's ability td will affect the president's ability to govern. with the latest on the voting is nick bryant. it's not often that a polling station is emblazoned with one of the names of the candidates, but this is manhattan and the 2016 election and it has been a break from the rules kind of race. striking this morning, was the number of women who had brought their daughters. never before have americans queued up to vote for a female candidate with a chance of becoming president. i am prepared to cry. i was going to dress all white, in suffragette white, but i am a working mum. on the stroke of midnight in a small hamlet in new hampshire, people have been going to the polls in record-breaking numbers, writing the next chapter of the american story, after a campaign filled with anger, mistrust and hate. this is where the story started, philadelphia, the city of america's founding fathers, where a crowd gathered late last night determined to send an american mother to the

white house. singing. they were serenaded by the boss, bruce springsteen, the warm up for two presidents two first ladies. the democrat's political a list. i'm betting that america will reject the politics of resentment. and a politics of blame. and choose the politics that says we are stronger together. and more star power later on at a midnight rally with bon jovi and lady gaga where hillary clinton almost framed this election as a battle between good and evil. it is a choice between division or unity. between strong, steady leadership or a loose cannon... cheering. who could risk everything. when it comes to big-name backers, donald trump is a bit of a johnny no mates, but his legion of supporters adore him and their votes count just as much. he is promising a brexit-style upset.

today is our independence day. cheering. today, the american working class is going to strike back, finally. after the 11th-hour rallies, the early-morning voting. cheering. hillary clinton, on hardly any sleep, casting her ballot near her home on the outskirts of new york. so many people are counting on the outcome of this election, what it means for our country. and i'll do the very best if i can, if i'm fortunate enough to win today. the hand that has put his name to so many deals. but as he cast his vote this morning, donald trump seemed less confident than usual, the opinion polls at least suggest he'll end up a loser. so, who did you vote for? tough decision! this is the most consequential presidential election in decades. the difference between the

two candidates are so very stark. in terms of policy, in terms of personality. in terms of the wildly different visions they have of what sort of country america should be. the road to the white house is now lined with voters. so much of the focus in the us is on the key battle ground states that will help decide the election and what the turnout is going to be in those states. we can take it to a battle ground state, virginia and our correspondence, paul wood. how has the turnout been throughout the day? it has dropped off, it is late afternoon and we saw long lines at this polling station in arlington since 6am when the polls opened. this particular ward is heavily democratic. people were saying on the way in that they took

great pride in voting. not only for their candidate but also, they thought, underlining the legitimacy of the system. that is important, i think. if there wasn't enough drama already in this race, donald trump has, again, today been raising the question of whether he would accept the results. in three different places outside the polling station, interview with fox news and a press release, he said if he didn't win, he would question whether the whole system was raped. whether it was rigged. that kind of language is very offensive. age is very offensive. i was in virginia at the weekend and the polls were putting hillary clinton ahead. they thought this entire race is too close to call. 1 got a sense of nervousness.

what was your sense from the crowd today? ii may well be too close to call. the private assessment from the clinton campaign people is that she could get a very comfortable electoral college victory, 315 votes was the figure they banded around, they hoped for 340. this does not take into account the phenomenon known to pollsters as shy trump voters. in virginia, that is a swing state command paper mrs clinton has a comfortable lead of six percentage points. one democratic official told me privately he thought four of those percentage points could go back to mr trump. (th) on that basis it could be too close td on that basis it could be too close to call. everybody will be watching for early results from florida. it's ej for early results from florida. it's a swing state that if mrs clinton wins, it will be all over. mr trump has to win that states to stay in

the game. all eyes on florida. thank you for joining us from virginia. as we heard from nick bryant at the start of the programme, today's voting got underway in new hampshire. so far, the votes from just three small townships are the only ones that have been counted. let's show you pictures from dixville notch who voted at midnight, local time. across those three towns, donald trump won 32-25, four hillary clinton which shows a swing away from the democrats. barack obama beat the republican nominee, mitt romney by 33-30 and went on to take the state. that is something that everyone is contemplating. you can't read too much into it but those are the only votes so far that have been counted. we have correspondents across the us and they are keeping us up to date as people continue to head to the polling stations. let's get a sense of how

it is going with my colleagues in three other key states, florida, ohio and pennsylvania. first, miami. well, donald trump wants to win the white house, he really needs to win here in florida. right now, polls put him and hillary clinton virtually neck and neck in this state. more than six million people have already cast a ballot. in early voting initial indications show there has been a record turnout amongst hispanic voters, a key demographic in this election. last sunday i was at a polling station in tampa and saw long queues of black voters waiting to vote. minorities tend to favour the democratic party. that could play to hillary clinton's advantage but florida is a state that donald trump calls his second home. he, too, has a huge base of support here, which is why, right now, the state of florida is still too close to call. ohio is also want to watch, because it has a good record of picking presidents,

it has gone for the winner for every election since 1964. donald trump could win because he is ahead in the polls and he has to win ohio along with florida to have any path to the white house. voting has been steady so far, lots of white, working-class voters. they like his message that he will bring back lost manufacturing jobs and that appeals to blue-collar democrats. mr trump is trying to win them over, especially in the democratic stronghold of cleveland. we've been hearing a lot about that early vote. in pennsylvania, there is none. this is it, today is the only day people can get out to vote. that's why we have these youngsters haranguing drivers and passers-by, telling them to get out and pass their ballot. there is a party atmosphere in philadelphia, especially after hillary clinton's rally last night. this is one of her strongholds. she has less support in the rural areas and this is a statement. donald trump has to

flip from blue to red if he has any chance of reaching the white house. pennsylvania is a state everyone is watching closely. stay with us on bbc news, still to come. that was the campaign that was, how are own unique take on the race for the white house, hastags and all. (tm you are watching a bbc news us election special. our top stories: long queues of voters across the united states could be pointing to a high turnout in the presidential election and latest polls suggesting hillary clinton maintains a narrow lead over her republican rival. donald trump casting his ballot in new york, he still believes he can pull off a victory and he has said voting so far looks good for him. most polls opened at 6am most polls opened at gam this morning on the east coast and the

first state polls to close will be at 7pm local time. we will have to wait for some of the big states like florida before we know who the 45th president of the us is likely to be. jeremy vine with a look at some of the key states and how the night might unfold. let's take a look at how the system works in our virtual worlds. on the floor in front of me you can see a map of the usa, all 50 states, it is all about the electoral college. let me show you the result of the last presidential election, red for republican and blue for democrat. each state has a fixed number of electoral college votes. 520. you need 270 or more. if you win that state you win them all. the focus is on the battle ground states. 12 states that are most in contention. (tm states that are most in contention. you can see them flashing on the floor, florida with 29. a lot of focus in the

midwest, the so-called rust belt states. where i am standing. what about the chronology of the night? as donald trump tries to turn the blue states red. come to the washington monument and we will see what happened last time. when mitt romney lost to barack obama. 2012. going through the night, as it happened in british time. lam we got some pretty obvious wins on both sides, no clue at this point. new england states sculling democrats and some obvious republican wins like tennessee and oklahoma and so on. i will take the numbers and put them beside the washington monument. quite early days so far. we started to get a clue at about 2am. but at this. michigan went democrat, obama, that was the stately republicans wanted then and again now. the republicans just winning in their

core areas. i will put the electoral college votes beside the monument. at this point, it looked as if the republicans were ahead but it didn't last. by 4am, just after 4am, what happened? california came through, reliably democrat with 55 but maybe more importantly they won in pennsylvania. and wisconsin, stately republicans desperately need if they will get into the white house. mitt romney was just winning in idaho, utah and montana. i will put them next to the monument and now you see how close obama was at 4: 1am in next to the monument and now you see how close obama was at 4:11am in the morning. one more state, ohio. 18 electoral college votes, for 14 in the morning. -- for 14 am. it took obama to the crucial 270 figure and he knew he had been re-elected. more states followed but it was certain. by 2am we may have a steer

as to who was winning bid by 4am, we could know. by gam we should be certain, unless it's very close indeed. the maths is so important in this race. with me is the democratic pollster and republican party consultants. good to have you with us. how are you feeling, frank? w are you feeling, frank? how are you feeling, frank? are you relieved? i will miss the tv commercials and the 200 e-mails begging for money i get every day. no, not really. this election was way too long, both candidates have had their say and now the voters will have their say. hopefully we will get a decision and the country can move on. polls have got hillary clinton ahead, do you believe them? are you confident tonight? i feel good, not just from polls, which consistently show clinton up nationally but also in battle ground states, a lot of them. field reports also showed an early voting benefits

[ellfy) c also showed an early voting benefits clinton, number of contacts the clinton campaign has made against what has happened with the trump campaign. there is no real qatar narrative, the trump campaign does not have a set of its own proof points -- no real counter narrative. other than there are some voters that we don't know about that will show up. that is not a good counterfactual. what about the polls? have they got it wrong, could we see an upset? the polls are close, most of the polls show hillary clinton ahead but not much a couple of points. a good ground game could still reverse. i will give you a counter narrative. e i will give you a counter narrative. it is true that clinton is probably ahead in the early voting but not as much as barack obama was in 2012. whether that is enough for trump to get an upset, we don't know. will this be a brexit style upset? we would need a lot of shied supporters. -- we would need

a lot of shied trump supporters. ld need a lot of shied trump supporters. -- we would need a lot of shied trump supporters. it is close enough. there is a path for him. some of the battle ground states are close. some of the midwestern states that haven't gone republican in a long time. not impossible they could go for trump. impossible they could go for trump. i grant you, it is less likely than not. that's why we have elections. let's have the people have their say. unprecedented levels of voting among the hispanic community in the crucial southern states and the clinton campaign has to be pretty happy about that, does that give you some confidence? it would be incredible if trump would have lost the campaign within the first few minute of his announcement by insulting the entire latina community. they went 44% for george j community. they went 44% for george w bush and then about a third for mccain and a quarter for romney. the percent of the electorate that is latino has

increased. it can't run up the score, there are not enough voters that are not lead he know, given how he is doing with so many different groups. she has a point. also amongst women. he has not polled well consistently amongst women and today we saw the people wearing white to remember the suffragettes. it is not the race i would have run. it is not the race that any of the other candidates would have run that went for the nomination. their hope from the beginning was that they could double down on the white vote. and that the minorities, including latinos would not turn out. that may or may not be true. one good thing i am looking for tonight a very good shot at the republicans holding the senate. in keeping the house. if we can keep both houses of congress,

we can maintain the equilibria next year. hillary clinton still has a problem hillary clinton still has a problem in that many voters don't trust her and it doesn't matter how many a list of people she brings out, particular with millennial 's, jay-z, beyonce, lady gaga last night, she doesn't inspire trust amongst young and also amongst african-americans. she will have to work hard to win them over. she did so well with african-americans in the primary. and she is strong with democrats. they united behind her in the primary. may and june, they were consolidated. i am not concerned about african-americans or millennials, they will rebound if she is in millennials, they will rebound if ica millennials, they will rebound if she is in office. that is what we have seen when she had previous jobs as secretary of state or senator. let's look at what could happen tomorrow. we have already seen donald trump coming out today saying he would have to say how things play

out before he accepts the election result. are things going to get ? are things going to get ugly? i did think so, i really don't. i went early to vote at my polling place and people were friendly, even though they were wearing different buttons. our system is governed by volunteers, these people give up their time and they volunteered to have a free and ells they volunteered to have a free and fair election. this is happening all over america and once the votes are in, no matter who wins, i'm confident that the leadership of the party will get behind the others. are americans going to accept this result, is donald trump going to accept it? those are important questions, two separate questions. a lot of voters will take their cue from trump and if he wants to milk his last few minutes on stage by rejecting the outcome he will be shut down by everybody else, including the

republican party. but there will be a group of voters who will follow him and that is very dangerous. we did a poll that showed ej dangerous. we did a poll that showed a majority of americans said that there would be violence as a result of the election. thank you, we will els of the election. thank you, we will talk more about this incredible campaign and the day ahead in a moment but as we look ahead to the results in just a few hours' time, it is amazing to think what has transpired in the past year. this adventure all started in lowa, let's have a look back at some of the memorable moments. release the hounds. they're rapists. you've called women you don't like

"fat pigs". only rosie o'donnell. wherever. that's what washington, dc does, the drive-by shot at the beginning. .. referred to my hands, if they are small, something else must be small. i'm sick and tired about hearing about your damn e-mails. excuse me, i'm talking. please clap... a total and complete shutdown of muslims. and what is

aleppo? i have a winning temperament. ok! you can do anything... because you'd be in jail. ok, donald. you're the puppet.

trust fund. such a nasty woman. it has been a remarkable campaign. many americans simply saying they are relieved it's over. stay with us. some of the major weather stories happening around the world. whether anniversary in the philippines that they would rather forget. the story of the day. not the weather in the usa, that has been relatively quiet.

the satellite picture, a couple of weather systems to talk about. this one has been a major player in canada, not the usa. south-west canada, british columbia, more heavy rain, mountain snow and strong winds. a bit of a gap as we go into wednesday before the next weather system. we have had in the usa a band of wet weather working through the great lakes. that will hit the north-east of the usa during wednesday. new york, washington, dc at least, there will be some showers. it was three years ago that typhoon hyam devastated the philippines. incredibly powerful tropical cyclone with the area around tackler banned the worst affected. thankfully, three years on in this part of the world, no tropical cyclones to show you, looking relatively cloud free around the philippines. the odd shower here and there but other parts are dealing with some heavy

rain. southern areas of china. hong kong is mainly dry. thailand is getting heavy downpours with vietnam see in flooding and some risks of showers. japan, it is about snow showers. the further north you are, north of hokkaido, top temperatures of seven celsius. some of the pictures in india, the smog and pollution in new delhi, it is affecting parts of pakistan. no changes as we look at wednesday, weather systems that mix up the air and dispersed that pollution. it will still be a problem. australia, stormy weather across new south wales, queensland beginning to pull away for thursday. the weather system will move east towards new zealand. later this week, some heavy rain. a busy picture across europe. we know in the uk we have some rain td we know in the uk we have some rain to content with and some snow in places but we have

a lot of weather places but we have a lot of weather in the south east as we go into it will pull away from southern part of italy. we will play away the storms. into the balkans, potentially flooding downpours, mountain snow, weather warnings in force in serbia. later on on wednesday, greece will see heavy downpours. this is the strip of wet weather, some rain and snow moving through the british isles and moving through france. cold air in places through france. cold air in places in scandinavia and europe. n places in scandinavia and europe. what is on the way for the answers in half an hour. -- what is on the way for europe? get all the answers in half an hour. this is the bbc news us election special, broadcasting in the uk and around the world. our headlines: long queues of voters across the united states point to a high turnout in this presidential election. latest polls are suggesting that

hillary clinton maintains her narrow lead over her republican rival, helped by signs of a big swell of hispanic voters. 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 i'll do the very best i can, if i'm fortunate enough to win today. donald trump casting his ballot in new york still believes he can pull off victory. he said voting so far looked good for him. today is our independence day. cheering today the american working class is going to strike back. also coming up, when politics and maths collide. we will explain the unique the us presidential election works and why having the most votes doesn't always

quarantee victory. welcome to washington. the us stock market has risen for a second consecutive day, as investors are betting that hillary clinton will be america's 45th president. wall street sees the democratic nominee as creating stability. while her rival's position on foreign policy, trade and immigration as well is less certain. both contenders for the white house cast their ballots the white house cast their ballots in new boo mr trump receiving ej in new york. boo mr trump receiving a chorus of boos. o mr trump receiving a chorus of boos. boo mr trump receiving a chorus of boos. he arrived with his wife and daughter ivanka. rived with his wife and daughter ivanka. earlier addressing supporters in michigan, he expressed

confidence that he could win. i'm asking you to dream big. , that he could win. i'm asking you to dream big, because with your vote, we are just hours away from the change you've been waiting for your entire life. so to every parent who dreams for their child and to every child who dreams for their future - child who dreams for their future - i say these words to you tonight: i am with 1 i say these words to you tonight: i am with you. i will fight for you. 1 will win for you, i promise. hillary clinton was up very early this morning voting as well. she had this message for her supporters there. message for her supporters there. 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 i'll dot very best i can if i've fortunate enough to win today. hillary clinton there with

her husband bill clinton, standing proudly beside her. with me is the political reporter with the wall street journal. let's talk about turnout, so crucial in this election. i was told that americans were feeling quite apathetic about this election, look at the queues. they have been out the door and round the block in many cases. absolutely. i think there has been a lot of excitement generated as we've gotten closer to election day. there's been a lot of weariness. our elections are long, as you know. this one has been going on for more than a year-and-a-half, when you count the primaries. there's been so much negativity that people were feeling beaten down by it, for a long time. as we got closer, i've noticed a lot of women being very excited about voting for hillary clinton as the first woman president. trump has always had his loyal supporters excited about him. the excitement on the clinton side is catching up. we've seen these women in their pant suits up and down the country today. it is interesting that this hasn't been a huge part of hillary clinton's narrative, though she did mention it today when she voted.

its not something that she refers to as often as you'd expect, this historic moment. it's interesting she doesn't refer to it as an historic moment. but in the campaign, she's leaned into but in the campaign, she's leaned nckus but in the campaign, she's leaned into the fact that she is a woman. it's a sharp contrast to 2008 when she ran when she shied away from it. this time, feeling that maybe she wouldn't be seen as strong enough for the job, this time she talks about women's issues, talks about being a grandmother. her slogans, "i'm with her. " her supporters say, "i'm with her. " her supporters say, "i believe she can win - emphasis on the she. she doesn't bell low it from the roof tops, this is historic. but she has been more in tune to it. what do you say to trump supporters who say this great turnout we're seeing, this is down td turnout we're seeing, this is down to us. we're bringing in new republican voters. i'd say we'll know in a few hours s he bringing in new? that's the essential question of this election coming down to just that.

that is - did donald trump bring new people into the system? was his appeal to working-class, white voters, was this a narrow appeal that was never going to get him located. or was it a broad appeal? when we know the answer to that question, we will know more about the state of the american politics. you say many americans are feeling relieved after what has been ej feeling relieved after what has been a bitter and divisive campaign. whoever does win inharnts a lot of anger -- inherits a lot of anger and division. they have a task ahead of them in terms of healing this country. hillary clinton has addressed that directly in the last few weeks, conscious of that, trying td few weeks, conscious of that, trying to pave a path for her presidency, if she were to win. she's been talking about wanting to be the president for all the people, the people who voted for her and the people who did not vote for her and talking about a healing. now whether she'll be able to do that or not, we'll see. donald trump not so much. he's been talking about jailing hillary clinton, if he's health secretaried. i -- if he's

located. i don't think that would qualify as healing. i don't think he is particularly concerned about that. ink he is particularly concerned about that. i don't think he is particularly concerned about that. 1 think that she very much s thanks so much for joining us. we've heard from donald trump today, who has said he will see how things play out before accepting the results. that's something that people are watching. president obama has been out campaigning for hillary clinton. many people say they haven't seen a us president do it in this way before. he urged americans to cast their ballots and brief comments he made at the white house. go vote. it's up to you. as long as the american people vote, i think we'll do a good job. very relaxed president obama there. let's go to the clinton headquarters. give us a

sense of the mood there. i think the mood here right now would be characterised as cautious optimism. the senior advisor to hillary clinton came into this arena just a little while ago. he told a bbc reporter that he was feeling good about the result. feeling good right now doesn't matter. how he feels in about six hours, when a lot of the polls have closed and we may know the winner, that's the key. what are the thoughts of the clinton campaign in terms of early voting, particularly that unprecedented voting we've seen from hispanics in the south? i think they've been boasting particularly about the hispanic turnout in florida. early voting blew their projections out of the water. in particular they were looking at hispanic voters who hadn't voted before or who were less likely to turn out. apparently they were coming out in droves, particularly coming out in droves, particularly in the miami

the donald trump campaign said they had high campaign campaign said they had high campaign in the northern part of the you're seeing high turnout across the board. this is one of those elections where a lot of people said they would pick the lesser of two evils, hold their nose. if that's the case, they still are showing up at the polls. there's a reason why they're coming out. i think for donald trump, high turnout is good, but he needed lower turnout amongst certain people. we're seeing high turnout across the board in the cities and in the areas where there are the disaffected trump voters. that's good news for hillary clinton. the bigger the numbers voting, the more likely we're not going to see a donald trump wave to take the old poll numbers that we've been seeing up until now and turn them on their heads. i love talking td them on their heads. i love talking to you about the maths of this election because your brain is a bit like a computer who it comes to this stuff. what are you looking for this evening? what are the states that will tell us which way this is going? this isn't like the

uk election, where all the polls close at once. the us is in four time zones. the us is in four time zones. we get a series of states closing at different times. the first are at 7pm, in a few hours here. i'll be watching virginia. that's a hillary clinton blue firewall state. if she does well there, the firewall she's built may hold up. if she wins in florida it's pretty much game over. how she does pretty much game over. how she does in the midwest, donald trump's banking a lot on doing well there to make up for losses elsewhere. donald trump has to basically sweep all the at-risk states. if he loses one of those, new hampshire, florida, ohio, arizona, nevada, any of those states don't go his way, he will have a very long night. anthony, great to see you. thanks for joining us from clinton campaign headquarters. to become the 45th president of the

us isn't simply a matter of winning the pop already vote. you have to win -- popular vote. have you to win 270 votes from the electoral college. if you're confused about all this means, here's katty kay to explain. the united states is a big place, but you wouldn't know it by looking at where the candidates bother to campaign. ohio, pennsylvania, north carolina, florida, they are goo-to destination -- go-to destinations for would be presidents. over one weekend, the candidate's planes we even parked next to each other on the tarmac in cleveland, they almost bumped into each other just to win those ohio votes. these swing states, also known as battle ground states, our so-called because they can go to either party. let's face it, the republicans have alabama locked up. and california, well, you can't get much more democratic. but take ohio, going back to 1976, that's ten whole election campaigns, the state has

been perfectly split. five times for the republicans and five for the democrats. therein lies the amazing fact. even if the candidate wins a state by just one vote, they chalk up the whole state and what are known as the state's electoral college votes. each state has a different number of electoral college votes, ohio has 18. a candidate needs 270 in total, to win the white house. and in the game of numbers that is american politics, that's the only number that matters. sometimes a candidate can lose the popular vote but win the electoral college vote, and still get the presidency. we learned that back in 2000. al gore got a bigger percentage of the population's votes, but george bush got those electoral college votes. it's all because of the old complicated maths of us elections. there are 538

electoral college votes in total. more populous states like california and new york getting a larger share. so, the states that matter are that precious combination of population size and party flexibility, which is why some states see the candidates far too much, and others never see them at all. do stay with us here on bbc news. still to come: we hear from voters across the us about their final thoughts and their predictions too, pic thoughts and their predictions too, after this bitter and divisive election campaign. [wu election campaign. nupers election campaign. i'll have more for you from the us election in a moment, first let's have a lock at some other news today. (prince harry has issued a strongly

worded statement, criticising the media for its treatment of his girlfriend, american actress, meghan markle. the 35-year-old is best known for her role as a lawyer in the tv series suits. in recent days, a number of newspapers have carried front-page stories about ms markle, including a reference to her african-american mother. prince harry's statement confirms the couple have been in a relationship for a couple of months. he says it's not right that she has been subject to what he calls "a wave of abuse and harassment, some of it with racial undertones". he's confirmed that meghan markle is his girlfriend and also, he's confirmed that he is absolutely, 1 girlfriend and also, he's confirmed that he is absolutely, i won't say incandescent with rage, but he is angry at the media exposure that she's getting. not a lot he can do about it, when it comes to social media and the web, but he's hoping that the british media will sit up and listen and he's probably concerned that what he's seeing is history repeating itself. similar things happened to his mother.

the supreme court has formally set a date to hear the government's case for triggering talks on leaving the eu, without a vote in parliament. the court said the case will be heard by 11 judges beginning on december 5. last week the high court ruled that law makers should have a say before britain officially starts withdrawal talks from other eu leaders. theresa may still expects talks to begin by the end of march. iraqi forensic teams have begun an investigation into a mass grave south of mosul. the decapitated bodies were found yesterday in a town liberated from the so-called islamic state group at the weekend. footage from the site shows bones and decomposed remains of about 100 bodies. is militants have carried out mass killings and have been accused of appreciate atrocities in the area in recent weeks. what is unclear is who the victims are or when they were killed, but a solar at the site pulled a

child's stuffed animal from manning the rubble. animal from manning the rubble. =- among animal from manning the rubble. =-- among the rubble. these are the xorpss of chops heads, including children, elderly men and women. it is an unforgiveable crime. these people are innocent. the islamic state militants brought them here and killed them. thanks for joining us on this special bbc news us election special. our top stories: long queues of voters across the united states could be pointing to a high turnout in the presidential election. latest polls suggest that hillary clinton maintains a narrow lead over her republican rival. donald trump casting his ballot in new york still believes he can pull off victory. he said voting so far looked

good for him. it's not just here in america that people have been voting. expats around the world have been casting ballots as well. many are going to be watching the results come in. it doesn't matter what time it is. they'll be having parties in the country that they're in. let's take you right now to the american embassy in london and my colleague richard lister is there. the party hasn't started yet, of course. but how have they been preparing there? yeah, it starts in about 15 minutes actually, the quests have just begun td actually, the quests have just begun to trickle in. there will be 1500 people here later on. it's a little bit awkward for an ambassador, who is a political appointee, as is the us ambassador in london. he was of course appointed by the obama administration. but this party, this election party has to be a nonpartisan affair. democrats abroad and republicans abroad are given an equal allocation of tickets to ensure

this is a party that represents both sides. that will be the same in all of the united states' embassies and diplomatic missions around the world. whatever the result, though, there will be a new president in january. how do they prepare for that? it is quite a complex procedure. of course, they've done it many times before. all the career diplomats in all these nearly 300 diplomatic missions know the next few months are going td know the next few months are going to be a very comprehensive, detailed, transition process. transition teams from the winning candidate's side come into the embassies and state department quickly to prepare the ground work, by quickly to prepare the ground work, so that they can be ready to get up and running as soon as a new president is installed in january. of course, not all those transition teams will be equally experienced in this. i think you can expect that around the world, american diplomats are aware of the fact that if it's a clinton victory, because of her state department history, there will be shall we say a bit

more experience about how these things are done. donald trump has never held located office. he will have a more inexperienced transition team. things could be more tricky. that said, they would be much smoother than everybody anticipates. we simply don't know. there will be a very comprehensive system in place by very comprehensive system in place so that the new teams can hit the ground in january. of course, all of the ambassadors around the world by convention all resign some of them will be asked to stay on, career diplomats. other appointees will be changed. that process also takes time. how much time is taken on that will depend very much on the attitude of the new senate and house of representatives. good to see you. they have a reputation there for holding a good party. i'm sure you have a good night ahead. after the most divisive and bitterly fought presidential campaign in modern american history, there say growing sense that

from tomorrow, there needs to be a determined effort to close some of the deep divisions exposed by the schaengs of the past 18 months. -- schaenks of the past 18 months. [eu] i am officially running for president of the united states. donald trump announcing he would be running for president an outspoken billionaire business marn who had the profile, the money but had never held any public office. i'm running for president. two months earlier hillary clinton announced she would seek the democratic party nomination. the former first lady, new york senator and secretary of state running to become the first female us president. it sounds like you want to make a political refer lugs. her main chal -- revolution. her main opponent was bernie sanders. donald trump joined a crowded republican field. mp joined a crowded

republican field. during the primaries where candidates picked up the delegates, trump and clinton emerged as the front runners. in clinton's case it was a combination of political experience. she'd run before. high name recognition and strong ties to core parts of the democratic party. in trump's case, it was the fact that there was a very wide field, a lot of candidates , very wide field, a lot of candidates, but very deep resentment inside the party against the party establishment. he managed to take advantage of that. his campaign has been mired in controversy. he deannounced mexican migrants as rapists. they're bringing crime. they're rapists, and some, i assume, are good people. he proposed building a wall along the mexican border. he called for a ban of muslims entering the united states. lled for a ban of muslims entering the united states. he was accused of inciting violence amongst supporters with some of his campaign speeches. hillary clinton's campaign was dogged by the scandal of her use of the private

e-mail server when she was secretary of state. the fbi investigated. it discovered more than 100 classified e-mails on the server, manying she had always claimed wasn't the case. the investigation concluded mrs clinton had been extremely careless, but cleared her of any criminal wrongdoing. still, it left her rival repeatedly questioning her integrity. let's knock out crooked hillary clinton, crooked as a $3 bill. mrs clinton, for her part, painted donald trump as a man whose temperament made him unsuitable for high office. a man you can bait with ej high office. a man you can bait with a tweet is not a man we can trust with nuclear weapons. late in the campaign, new poe ten sally damaging developments for -- potentially damaging developments for both. donald trump bragging about using fame to grope women he dismissed it as locker room banter. for hillary clinton the e-mail scandal re-emerged. the fbi first announcing it had new

information that it needed to look at. then it said it found nothing to alter it its original conclusion. this campaign has been full of twists and turns, as much about personality as policies and has been one of the most divisive in recent history. so many people have told me here in america, since so many people have told me here in mlulsdlemihle-l] so many people have told me here in america, since i aroifd, that they want this healing process to start. let's talk more about this with my quests. do you feel like hillary clinton has been able to listen to the concerns of ordinary americans, era the concerns of ordinary americans, bausz one of the criticisms is that she's a bit robotic, remote. perhaps the years at the state department have insulated her from real americans and their worries? she has done a tremendous job going around the country, doing small venues, even back to lowa, having small meetings like this, across the el cm meetings like this, across the table, having meetings. she's been doing this for a long time. you can watch her web videos. she's within writing letters to high school

students for 20 years who are now grown up students for 20 years who are now grown up and want to show their love and affects for -- affection for her. we just have a toxic political climate right now. i don't think it's a fault of herrant to connect it's a fault of herrant to connect -- her ability to people are saying they don't like elites, politicians. this frayed, "drain the swamp", that resonates with people. frayed, "drain the swamp", that resonates with people. they like the idea of an outsider. he's strong there. that's the big irony of this election, that people of all stripes, no matter what party, feel like there needs to be major changes in washington. yet, it is possible that we may elect one of the ultimate insiders that is basically endorsed the policies of this administration of the last eight years. either way a final thought, what are the republicans going to do whether donald trump wins or not? this is a divided party, they

have big challenges ahead of them. that is correct. the republicans have to work that out over time. 1 republicans have to work that out over time. i will say republicans have to work that out over time. 1 will say that we are very lucky to have paul ryan and lulced very lucky to have paul ryan and mitch mccolonel leading our party in the house and senate. 1 do mitch mccolonel leading our party in the house and senate. i do believe that they would be open, if hillary clinton is the new president, to getting an outreach from her and beginning the process of working together on some issues. finally, if she wins, hillary clinton, tonight, she's going to inherit this massive public anger and distrust. what does she need to do? i think she's going td she need to do? i think she's going to stick to what she does best, really great policies. when people see the policies in detail and see her in action, they're going to be really excited that they made the decision that they did. thank you both very much for being with us on this bbc news special. you can, of course, watch all the excitement of the election results unfold here on bbc news. i'm going to be back with

you in an hour's time. andrew neil and katty kay are live in times square in new york, as the race to be the president of the united states reaches its dramatic conclusion. we are still hearing from across the country that there are long lines outside some of the polling stations. people are heading there after work, fired up, ready to vote. turnout is going to be key in this election. we're across all the developments for you. that's all from the programme. from me and the rest of the team, thanks for being with us. well, it's been cold for several days now. it's often the case in this country that we get our snowfall when mild air bumps into the cold air. that's the case in the last few hours. on wednesday, some significant snowfall around, not blizzard conditions, but given its the first snowfall for many, some disruption rather

more than would perhaps be the case. this area of low pressure is the culprit. atlantic air is pushing in but it comes up against the cold block from the east. that generates the snow. most of us have just had a very wet night. it is mostly rain. the rain lingers across eastern counties well into lingers across eastern counties well nckus lingers across eastern counties well into the day. brighter skies further west. even here, one or two quite heavy showers. another chilly day for many. particularly the further east we are. something a little bit milder with the atlantic influence across some south-western areas. now as we head into the night and into thursday, the weather front responsible for the rain and snow ball responsible for the rain and snow still there actually, close to the east coast. that will be the focus for heavier and more prolonged showers. also showers coming into western areas. in between, actually on thursday, some reasonable weather, dry and bright. not as chilly as it has been. though temperatures still on the disappointing side across the more northern and eastern parts, something milder towards the south-west. we look to the atlantic for the

next developments. an area of low pressure pushing in and eem of low pressure pushing in and again, we've got the problem that it's going to be trying to push in against relatively chilly air. that block of cold air still to the east of us. the progress of the weather front is a bit uncertain. ogress of the weather front is a bit uncertain. the progress of the weather front is a bit uncertain. it will be trying to push these milder conditions in from the west, coming up against the block to the east. where the two meet, well, those weather systems could stall. watch this space for the detail. it looks as if on friday, weather fronts will be pushing into western areas with higher temperatures. the cold air stays put further to the east. really the challenge for us here in the weather centre through the weekend will be to track this weather system as it tries to push across the country, certainly generating heavier bursts of rain. its progress eastwards, its speed very uncertain indied. it will move erratically west to east. and it will introduce milder conditions with time from the atlantic. later on in the weekend, it looks as if that system could stall, possibly over us, possibly just

to the east of us. don't take this weather chart too literally. i think most of us actually by sunday will be drying up as that weather system edges away. hopefully some sunshine and again, we're losing the chilliest air. temperatures in many places managing td temperatures in many places managing to get up into double figures. again, i must stress there's a lot of uncertainty on the progress of that weather system and whether it will push the cold air out entirely. it does now look as if most of the computer models indicate that the atlantic will win. there is a small chance that won't. and the cold block to the east will have more of ej block to the east will have more of a say. it looks as if our winds will come off the atlantic. there is cold air in greenland, on the other side of the jet stream. as long as it stays on the other side of the jet stream through next week, so conditions will be milder than they have been during the course of this week. i must stress once more that's not a bolt on certainty. but for a time next week, it looks milder.

wettest conditions closest to the ige wettest conditions closest to the jet stream. driest conditions furthest away in southern areas. temperatures a few degrees higher than they have been. i'll update you again tomorrow. tonight at ten - america votes in the most significant presidential contest of the past 50 years. tens of millions of americans are taking part and turnout is said to be very high in key states, after one of the most venomous campaigns in history. hillary clinton voted at home in new york. the latest nationwide polls suggest the democratic nominee has a modest lead. 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 i'll do the very best i can if i'm fortunate enough to win today. also voting at home in new york was donald trump. his republican team says the result will depend on turnout in some of their target states. today is our independence day.

cheering. today, the american working class is going to strike back. and i'm here, by our virtual washington monument, watching all the results from the individual states come in, as we find out who is going to be the 45th president of the usa. also on tonight's programme. scotland yard is severely criticised for its investigation into a vip paedophile ring. an exclusive report as iraqi forces close in on the centre of mosul and so-called is fighters. we've just moved five kilometres from the east, right inside mosul city centre. and prince harry tells the media, stop the abuse and harassment of my new girlfriend. and in sport, there'll be a familiar foe for the home nations at euro 2017, as the women

of england and scotland are grouped together along with spain and portugal. good evening from washington, dc, where the polling stations will close in three hours' time, in what's being seen as the most significant presidential contest of the past 50 years. there have been long queues to vote in many of the key states, as tens of millions of voters choose between the democratic nominee hillary clinton and the republican candidate donald trump. as well as choosing a new president, americans are also voting in elections to congress, where the balance of power will affect the new president's ability to govern. our first report tonight is from our north america editor jon sopel, on the day america votes.

when the sun rises over this place tomorrow, we should know who the occupant will be for the next four years, who will have the keys to the nuclear codes, who will be the most powerful politician in the world. but before that, there's the small matter of voting. millions of people across 50 states and multiple time zones choosing between two of the most polarising and unpopular candidates ever to run for the highest office in the land. it is not about, this year, who you're voting for, it is almost about who you are voting against. i'm just tired of all the mudslinging, basically. so i'm very relieved it is over. they started in new hampshire at the stroke of midnight, hampshire at the stroke of midnight, in the charmingly named dixville in virginia, they waited patiently in the late autumn sunshine to vote. it was a similar story in florida,

a must win state for both campaigns, where there were long lines. and in colorado, and perhaps only in america, there was a drive-through polling station. hillary clinton was the first to vote just outside new york. the former first lady, joined by her former president husband. ji former first lady, joined by her former president husband. it is the most humbling feeling, dan. you know, 1 most humbling feeling, dan. you know, i know how much responsibility goes with this. so many people are counting on the outcome of this election, what it means for our country. i'll do the very best i can if i'm fortunate enough to win today. in new york, and again, it could only happen in this extraordinary election, one of the voting venues was branded with the name of one of the candidates. but the women lining up were sensing history for a different reason, as they took their daughters along, too. l they took their daughters along, too. i was prepared to cry and i was going to dress or white, suffragette white but you know, working mother!

donald trump voted a little later and the family came along, too. he said he was feeling good about everything and claimed he would do very well but the polls are not with him. he has not lost his sense of humour, though. tough decision! he spent the final day of the campaign hurtling across key swing states, ending up last night in grand rapids, michigan. today is our independence day. cheering today, the american working class is going to strike back, finally. hillary clinton's big set piece was hillary clinton's big set piece was in philadelphia, the city of america's founding fathers, now contemplating an american mother as she had brought along star power like the balladeer of the working class, bruce springsteen. # sit around getting older. # president obama

was the warm up. i'm betting america will reject the politics of resentment, the politics of blame, and choose a politics that says we are stronger together. and then there was more celebrity endorsement later on in north carolina. it is a choice between division or unity, between strong, steady leadership or a loose cannon who could risk everything. and then come after her 11th hour dash, who could risk everything. and then come after her 1ith hour dash, this on the plane home. no, this isn't a ball on the plane home. no, this isn't a still photo, this is her staff and journalists and the would-be future president and jon bon jovi playing statues, or the manikin challenge, perhaps the only occasion time has stood still on this pantic, frenetic campaign. and we're good! in nevada, like everywhere else, this is a election that has divided races, young and

old, men and women, even families, like these two. she does not like the way trump speaks or conducts himself. know, if he would have spoke better, maybe he would have had a better chance but he talks a lot about people, so, no. have had a better chance but he talks a lot about people, so, no. ” like his ideas. democratic elections are meant to be the way we resolve our differences peacefully but not this election and not for this couple in florida. jon sopel, bbc news, new york. so with voting still going on across the usa, let's get a sense of how it's progressing with our correspondents in three key states, florida, ohio and pennsylvania. and we start in miami, florida, with my colleague rajini vaidyanathan. if donald trump once the keys to the white house, then he really needs to win this key state of florida. the polls at the moment put him virtually neck and neck with hillary clinton here. more than 6 million people have cast early votes in ballots here

and in early voting, initial indications suggest there has been a record turnout amongst hispanic voters which is a key demographic in this election. last sunday i was at a polling station in tampa and saw long queues of black voters waiting to vote. minorities tend to favour the democratic party. that could play to hillary clinton's advantage but florida is a state that donald trump calls his second home. he, too, has a huge base of support here, which is why, right now, the state of florida is still too close to call. i'm in cleveland, in the manufacturing hub of northern ohio. this is a democratic stronghold and ej this is a democratic stronghold and a long-time union support. but those manufacturing jobs have been leaving ohio like they have elsewhere in the rust belt and that means that mr trump's promise to bring them back with

protectionist trade deals has a lot of appeal to working-class voters, including those blue-collar democrats and that might give him the edge he needs to take the state. he is ahead in the polls. this is one to watch because ohio as voted for the winner in every presidential election since 1964 and because mr trump as to take ohio, along with florida, if he wants to up after the white house. -- to get a path. i'm in philadelphia where there's quite a festive atmosphere. the bar behind me will be holding an election party later and many people here are still really pumped up by hillary clinton's star-studded campaign rally last night. the cities and the suburbs are her stronghold but donald trump is making inroads to the raw role and manufacturing areas. pennsylvania is ej manufacturing areas. pennsylvania is a state that he must win, he has to flip from democrat to republican if he's going to get to the white house. the reason both candidates have been here right up in the final hours of

the campaign is because there's no early voting. it is or nothing. and so there is a relatively small window for both candidates to crucially get out the vote. -- it is today or nothing. jane o'brien in the latest in philadelphia and bicske barbara plett usher usher and rudy niue an arson. just a sense from most polls opened at zam here on the east coast, and the first state polls to close will be indiana and kentucky in under an hour's time. but we'll have to wait for some of the big states like florida before we know who the 45th president of the united states is likely to be. here's jeremy vine with a look at some of the key states and how the night might unfold. well, it is a very big election in the usa because it also includes 435 seats in congress and 34 senate seats but let's concentrate on the race seats but let's concentrate on the [elokide

seats but let's concentrate on the race for the 45th presidency. here we are with a map of the usa and the two candidates. it might help us to explain the system to go back to the last election where mitt romney, the republican, republican votes in red, lost to barack obama. it looks as though because the map is covered in red, mitt romney won but he didn't which is because of the so-called electoral college. each state has a certain, fixed number of electoral college vote and if you win the state, you get all the electoral college votes from the state. that means that obama won by concentrating, maximising his vote concentrating, maximising his vote in places like this, in the midwest, and down here, in the western states, like let's look at the battle ground states, the ones we will be focusing on the night goes on. here we have them on the wall, mostly blue because of barack obama's victory last time and trump needs to take a lot of these, florida with 29, michigan with 16, ohio and pennsylvania, we

have just been talking about, wisconsin and so on. a lot of states here, in the rust belt, where blue is dominant, these flashing areas are where we will be concentrating. a lot of questions about the chronology of the night. let me take you to the washington monument to see what the timings are likely to be as we go through the night together. looking at the resort last time, we will see how the results came in. by tam, four years ago, we were getting quite a flood of results, particularly on the east coast, blue one is going to obama in 2012 but they were the obvious ones, no surprises. on the republican side as well, you can see mitt romney was winning very much the obvious places. at this point, if this happens for trump and clinton, we won't really know who the winner is. we will take the electoral college moh we will take the electoral college votes from those piles and put them beside the monument. remember, they have to reach 270. scroll forward into have to reach 270. scroll forward nckus have to reach 270. scroll forward into the evening, to 2am.

croll forward into the evening, to 2am. obama took new york and new mexico and michigan, which is the kind of state trump needs and if it goes blue at 2am tonight, it is bad for him. at that time in the evening, the republicans were still just posting victories in the obvious states, the red ones. i will take them and eem red ones. i will take them and again, put the numbers beside the washington monument. don't be put off by the fact the red line is higher. they did not win. going forward another two hours and now it became decisive for obama. have a look at the states, particularly at the bottom, new hampshire, wisconsin, pennsylvania going blue. trump must get some or all of those td trump must get some or all of those to have a chance of victory. if they go blue again, by just after 4am, he may know it is over. by this stage, the republicans were only getting obvious states, last time, four years ago. again, putting them in the columns by the washington monument, you can see how close obama

was by this stage in the evening to the crucial figure of 270. what took him over? have a look will stop three minutes later, the state of ohio comes in. there it is with it it -- with its 18 votes and over obama went in 2012. will that happen tonight? we may have a steer as to the result by 2am, saying. by 4am, we may know. by gam, we should be certain, unless it is very close. jeremy vine, there. we shall see on the timings. so there's a long night ahead for the candidates and their supporters. our north america editor jon sopel is at hillary clinton's campaign headquarters in new york. our chief correspondent gavin hewitt is also in new york with the trump campaign. gavin, i will start with you and ask you, as we head towards the close of polls, what is the sense you are getting off the mood in the trump

camp? sometime during this long night, donald trump is expected to come here to the ballroom in central manhattan. if he wins, if he wins, then it will shake up america and fie then it will shake up america and also shake-up the international community. donald trump's lawyers have been on red alert for any kind of regularity. they have already filed suit in nevada. donald trump has been talking about, you know, suspicious moments that might be happening in certain polling areas. earlier today, he made this rather interesting comment, saying, "hopefully we will win but let's see how things play out. i want everything honest". what they are not prepared to do is commit to accepting the outcome of the election. if he loses, he says, then he will conclude that everything he has done has been a waste of time, money and energy. as regards the mood, well, they continue to talk about

brexit. they have been encouraged by the strong turnout in some of those key battle ground states and, they say, some of those supporters who donald trump has infused, they believe they have turned out in great numbers at the polls. -- has enthused. they are encouraged but let's see how things turn out during the evening. jon is also at new york at the clinton headquarters. jon, given we have been reporting a modest lead for hillary clinton in some of these polls, the latest polls over the last couple of days, how is that feeding into the mood there in the clinton camp? well, i'd love to use the word "confidence" on the day of an election it's all about nervous anxiety, stress, chewing your fingernails, chewing the rim of the coffee cup. are you doing everything you could? when hillary clinton gets here tonight she will be on the rostrum that is being erected behind me. she has two speeches prepared.

one is the one she dreads having to give if she's lost and the one is the one she hopes to deliver. the democratic party organisation has been impressive. between saturday and monday i understand they rang 13 million different people, knocked on 8 million doors. that shows a party machine that is pretty well organised. whether that convinces people to go and vote is another question. what they are trying to do now is make sure that every car that's meant to go and pick up an elderly or disabled person is on its way. there they have all their lists way. there they have all their lists in order, they are doing everything they can, maybe then they will feel ej they can, maybe then they will feel a little more confident. all right, jon, thank you very much again. jon sopel there at the clinton campaign headquarters. gavin hewitt at the trump headquarters. both in new york tonight. uk/us2016 and following the links. we'll be back in washington before the end of the programme, but

for now, it's back to fiona in london. thanks, huw. let's take a look at the rest of the day's news. scotland yard has been heavily criticised for its handling of operation midland, an investigation into an alleged vip paedophile ring. an independent review found the force made dozens of errors and should have abandoned the inquiry far sooner. the man who made the original allegations is himself now being investigated for perverting the course of justice. our home affairs correspondent, tom symonds, reports. they were horrifying accusations about establishment paedophiles, but this report doesn't hold back. it says they were false. the former judge, sir richard henriques, found field marshal lord bramall and the former home secretary, lord brittan, and the former conservative mp harvey proctor had their reputations shattered by the word of a single accuser and a failed police

investigation. the metropolitan police, commissioner sir bernard hogan-howe, has now apologised to all three. we believe the complainant for too long, we believed them as credible for too long and we did not test that credibility enough. we had to start this investigation. at that stage, we had a credible complaint, we had to investigate some serious allegations. they happened to be against important people and that makes no difference to us, we had to investigate this. this report highlighted the treatment of harvey proctor in particular, wrongly accused of child rape and murder. these are the worst things that can be said of a human being. i think they regarded me... to be...

disposable. isposable. the accuser, known as nick, he can't be identified for legal reasons, is now himself being investigated for attempting to pervert the course of justice. but sir richard's report found 43 failures in operation in midland, saying officers didn't properly assess the credibility of the accuser, inaccuracies in search warrants misled a judge and the investigation went on too long. police interviewers lacked key information and a principal failure was one of poor judgment and, in a direct challenge to national police policy, he said officers were too willing to believe accusers in the early stages of investigations. our concern, at the nspcc, is that this litany of errors in operation midland is going to result in inhibiting victims and survivors coming forward and talking about things that have happened to them. the claim in this enquiry was of an elite paedophile group active prestigious london locations, a highly newsworthy

with that in mind, sir richard recommended those accused be granted anonymity until they are arrested. the jimmy savile case showed that victims weren't believed. this report concludes the pendulum has swung too far the other way with police too willing to believe those who accuse. somehow, and it may require a change in the law, a middle position must now be found. tom symonds, bbc news, south london. prince harry has issued a strongly worded statement criticising the media for their treatment of his girlfriend, the american actress, meghan markle. confirming they are a couple, he said the media had subjected her to a "wave of abuse and harrassment", some of which had racial undertones. our royal correspondent, nicholas witchell, has more. this report has some flashing images. he is a 32-year-old bachelor, grandson of britain's queen and the source of considerable international interest, particularly when it comes to his romantic life. so, we're going to look at privacy and harassment law. she is meghan markle, an american actress who

stars in a us television drama about lawyers. i am proud to be a woman and a feminist. she's also a un women's advocate, so someone with a not inconsiderable public profile of her own. they met in toronto earlier this year, rumours of their relationship surfaced a few weeks ago, some of the stories since have angered harry. the piece on the left, in last friday's sun, is understood to be one of them. the one on the right, from this morning's sun and its website, is another. so in what kensington palace acknowledges is an unusual step, a statement was issued on harry's behalf. the reference to 'racial undertones' arises because ms markle's mother is

an african-american. harry evidently now feels duty-bound to try to shield her. the statement says... harry's ambivalence towards the media is rooted in his childhood. his late mother made use of journalists on occasions, but she was scarred by repeated intrusion. in his adult life, harry's hostility towards some photographers has sometimes been all too obvious. during his relationship with cressida bonas, the paparazzis constant attention was an unwanted complication. harry believes it's unfair. that line between public and private life is almost non-existent any more. many who are sympathetic to the royals believe harry is justified. it is a very clear message to the british press, back off. but others who've known harry say he

needs to be more philosophical. the story isn't going to go away and i do think that issuing such statements just encourages those that knew nothing about it to find out about it. there's nothing new about a member of the royal family seeking some privacy or a tabloid media determined to grant as little as possible. "this isn't a game", said harry today, the problem for him is that some editors appear to believe that it is. nicholas witchell, bbc news, at buckingham palace. iraqi forces say they have retaken the first neighbourhood close to the centre of the city of mosul as they continue to fight so-called islamic state street by street. fierce fighting is continuing there with heavy artillery and airstrikes supporting the offensive. the united nations says 34,000 people have now fled the city. our middle east correspondent, quentin sommerville, producer joan sole and cameraman nik millard are the first broadcasters to reach the

newly recaptured saddam district on the north-eastern side of mosul. they sent this exclusive report. with heavy armour and steady caution, mosul city was breached tonight. explosion. iraqi special forces pushed forward in the dark and under-fire. we've just moved about five kilometers from the east, right inside mosul city centre. we're about three kilometers from the nineveh ruins, which really is the heart of this city. as you can hear, this is still a very active area, it's far more dangerous than where we were before. islamic state were here this morning. gunfire. so-called islamic state named this neighbourhood zargawi, after their founder, before it was saddam district, but now it belongs to mayor salam of iraqi's golden division. why is this neighbourhood so important?

this neighbourhood is so important because we will be in control of this area and we will keep this area safe and i'm moving my headquarters to be with my guys in the front-lines. the day began with a push forward. gunfire. these howitzers targeted is positions in the city's north-east and ground forces went in. who could endure this? gunfire. saddam mohammed stuck it out for as long as he could. mosul has been his life, his home and his livelihood, but now he's taking his eight children and escaping. everything they had here, everything they'd hoped for, is gone. "what future do we have", he says? his neighbour agrees,

"there's nothing left. we have no future, we've lost everything. lost our homes, our cars, it's all gone. " saddam mohammed climbs aboard an army truck heading to a temporary camp. old and young, 35,000 people have now fled. these people are leaving tha assama neighbourhood but 2,000 in total are leaving every single day. it's the islamic state car bombs they can't handle any more, the fighting is just that fierce. so after two-and-a-half years, they're saying goodbye to mosul. but nearby nearly a million remain here, trapped in mosul's maelstrom, the fight to free their city is far from over, but it could risk engulfing those who've endured here. quentin sommerville, bbc news, mosul. that's it from me, now more on the

us election and huw in washington. thanks, fiona. welcome back to washington where the polls close at 8. 00pm local time, so less than three hours to go before the counting begins, it will be later on the west coast. all 50 states and washington dc are voting across six different time zones. the first exit polls are expected shortly after midnight, british time. so as polling day draws to a close, a final word with our north america editor, jon sopel, at the clinton campaign headquarters in new york. lg as we await the outcome, it's important to underline why so many people think this contest is the most significant for 50 years, if not more? historic, too, huw. either way we get the first woman president ig way we get the first woman president or the first president who has never held any elected office or been in the armed force. both a first for the united states witch have an anti-establishment candidate who wants to tear down the

walls, who wants to drain the swamp. we have, wants to drain the swamp. we have, in hillary clinton, the establishment candidate who wants to build on the foundations of what barack obama has done. this is an election about how america sees itself, at home, and how america sees itself in the world. there is always intense interest in a us presidential election, but this one, it's off the scale. jon, we will els it's off the scale. jon, we will talk again later and tomorrow of course. thank you very much. jon sopel there, our north america editor. in a moment, here on bbc one, time for the news where you are. before we go, a reminder of how america got to polling day with this special edit of the main events and words of the campaign. release the hounds. they're rapists.

you've called women you don't like "fat pigs. " only rosie o'donnell, blood coming out of her where ever. referred to my hands, if they're small, something else must be small. i'm sick and tired of hearing about your damn emails! you know... excuse me, i'm talking. a total and complete shut down of muslims. and what

is aleppo? i have a winning temperament. whoa, ok! he can do anything, grab them by the (bleep}... laughter. because you'd be in jail. ok, donald. security trust fund... you're the puppet.

such a nasty woman. that was my colleague david botti's version of the campaign that's rocked the foundations of american politics. don't forget you can follow all of the drama overnight with andrew neil and katty kay, live in times square, new york. the coverage starts at 11. 15pm on bbc one, but now it's time for the news where you are. hello. this is bbc news. we'll be joining katty kay live in new york in just a couple a minutes for continuing coverage of the us election. first we've heard how hillary clinton appears to have a slender lead in the polls. how much should we rely on the numbers? tonight we've heard from three pollsters who've shared their wisdom. first frank luntz, who told us hispanic voters could be pivotal. when all the ballots are counted

tonight, 1 think the republicans will do even worse amongst latinos this time than with mitt romney in 2012. it is such an essential vote in florida, which is the key swing state. it matters is the key swing state. it matters in arizona, which is now a swing state and it puts a state like texas into play at some point in the near future. the important thing to remember here is that it's possible for polls to have a systematic ie for polls to have a systematic error. for every pollster, despite these people being very smart and dog a good job at their work, every pollster makes the same mistake or makes a few mistakes and misestimate it slightly. it's possible that the election result differs from where the polls are. the problem is it's impossible to forecast ahead of time. this is the moment when all pollsters suddenly realise whether of pollsters suddenly realise whether or not they've got it right or wrong. the truth is in election, like many us presidential elections, is pretty close.

though actually, hillary clinton's lead in the opinion polls around three to four polls is larger than the lead that the polls were pointing to in the eb the polls were pointing to in the last three, four elections. any poll that is close is a nightmare for any pollster. if you look at the record of uk polls you discover that typically they're often around about two points out in estimating their lead. hillary clinton three or four points ahead, that does mean therefore that although she is the favourite, given the potential for error and given some of the uncertainties you've just heard about, she doesn't necessarily have it in the bag. certainly, unless things go really wrong for her and the polls really are wrong, she's probably got almost 250 electoral votes in the bag, but she needs 270 to win. that was john curtice. most polling organisations believe hillary clinton has it as things

stand. let's cross to new york and join my colleague katty kay. what can we expect on this election night? i'm joined by clinton supporter michelle bernard and ron christie, who served former president george bush. how confident is the clinton campaign feeling? don't think they're taking anything for granted. the clinton campaign is hopeful that she has been able to put together the obama coalition from 2008 and 2012, latino support looks good for the campaign. she's got to be absolutely excited but not taking anything for granted. ron, i'm putting the same question to you. how confident is the trump campaign? they're cautiously optimistic. they're looking at returns from florida that indicate a lot of voting. north carolina, my brother in law stood in line for three hours to vote.

strong turnout. what donald trump has to do is get an early victory on the board, perhaps in florida and see if he can beat a state that obama won in the eb beat a state that obama won in the last election. if he does, that the confidence will go up. the trump campaign's manager told me that she believes that the campaign has six different paths to the white house and to the magic number of 270 electoral votes. are they right? no, i don't see six. honestly if donald trump can't win in florida, his path, it's almost a mathematical impossibility. so he's got to find a way to get in colorado, lowa, win in new hampshire, one of the states that people don't think he has a chance. to pull that off, he has won win one of those states. as a clinton supporter, what are you worrying about tonight? i am worrying about the lack of support for hillary clinton, you know - this which particular groups? frankly, with white male was a high school degree or less.

there seems to be antipathy and hatred for hillary clinton that frankly, is very difficult to explain. we have a segment of the american population that is either antiwoman or is so unhappy with bill clinton or so unhappy with the economic plight that they find themselves in an hillary clinton has become a target for all of that anger. so hillary clinton not only needs the obama coalition, but what we have seen is that donald trump has given voice to ej that donald trump has given voice to a segment of the american population that has felt unheard for a very long time and 1 that has felt unheard for a very long time and i believe that we have seen an untick of white voters who have not voted in the past. they're voting in this election. they're voting for donald trump. let's be clear, you are a republican. you voted republican as an adult your whole life but you are not a supporter of donald trump. what position has that put you in today on election day? it's been a very interesting last couple of weeks. one of the saddest aspects of this election is that you

find that a lot of people who have been friends for ej of people who have been friends for a long time, republicans, friendships have been strained. friendships have been ruined of either, i will never vote for donald trump or what kind of republican are you if you won't support the nominee? it's been a difficult process for many of us, myself in particular. i'll say this - 1 process for many of us, myself in particular. i'll say this - i think the republican party as we knew it is dead no matter whether trump wins tonight. how do republicans regroup and rebuild after this terrible year? did you vote today? i vote aid couple days ago. and... i'm going to keep the sankity of the ball -- sanctity of the ballot box pristine. luldes sanctity of the ballot box pristine. more seriously, what has this election told us about the changing nature of america, thinking particularly of the changing nature of american demographics? what you've seen now is the two political parties have changed from their base. you heard michelle say this. what you find now is that there are ej what you find now is that there are pg what you find now is that there are a lot more white vokes in the republican

party. they're not attracting as many people of colour. they're not attracting as many young millennials. to grow as a party, the republicans need to find a way to broaden their base and expand their tent folt for broaden their base and expand their tent flt for trump broaden their base and expand their tent folt for trump to win tonight he has to get 59%, which matches what mitt romney got of the white vote. we are not as ethnically diverse as we should be. expecting an early or late night tonight? i'm expecting to be here all night.. hope so. you're here with us. same thing, we're here with you! you stay with me and we'll get a result during the night. thanks very much for joining me. tonight, there are key states that everyone's watching closely. two of the most hotly contested are pennsylvania and ohio. we have correspondents in both places. we start in philadelphia. we saw that enormous rally that hillary clinton had there in philadelphia last night.

how confident are both sides feeling about the critical state of pennsylvania? the festivities are continuing as you can probably tell. there is an election party going on here tonight. so the confidence is pretty high for hillary clinton. he confidence is pretty high for hillary clinton. so the confidence is pretty high for hillary clinton. whether or not that's actually going translate into actual votes we don't know. because in pennsylvania there is no early voting. that's why we saw hillary clinton here last night, with that star-studded rally that she held. people still really pumped up by that. that's why we've seen donald trump here so often, especially in the last few hours of this campaign. it's because today is the day. this is the only chance people actually have to get out and vote. people actually have to get out and mo call (ol people actually have to get out and vote. in relative terms of course, that's a smaller window than other areas around the state. so everyone really hoping that there's going to be high voter turnout.

that's critical for hillary clinton because philadelphia, the cities, suburbs, are the bedrock of her support. if they don't turn out, she could well lose voters to donald trump, who's really making inroads to the manufacturing areas and the rural areas, particularly western pennsylvania. tonight, for both candidates , pennsylvania. tonight, for both candidates, it's all about turnout. ok. jane in a bar there, in philadelphia, thanks very much. a bar there, in philadelphia, thanks very much. let's go to cleveland, ohio. a very different state in many ways from florida that we've looked at, also from pennsylvania. how's it looking from pennsylvania. how's it looking in ohio in from pennsylvania. how's it looking oo chu cgi from pennsylvania. how's it looking in ohio in terms of what we can learn from early voting? donald trump has been ahead in the polls here consistently over the past couple of weeks and months. he still seems to have that edge going into the election day.

it's interesting here because the traditional demographics have shifted. normally the democrats would be really solidifying their base in the big cities, the blue collar, working areas and the republicans would be solidifying their bases in the suburb ban and rural areas. in this case, because of mr trump's appeal with protectionist trade policy message, which appealings to the working class, he's trying to win offer the blue collar workers. the republicans in the affluent suburbs are not so happy with him and dismayed by many aspects of him, mrs clinton is trying to win them over. you're seeing both candidates trying td you're seeing both candidates trying to appeal to the others' -- other's constituency in a way they haven't before. that makes this election very interesting. the early voting, we saw another aspect of the demographics here and that is the african-americans who are very important for the democratic vote. there, they came out for

the vote but had very, very long lines, critics said because of republican-led law reforms, which reduced the number of sites and hours for these early voting stations, which are important for the black community. there's been criticism there. it's important to see how they come out in the end, because they did turn the calculus for president obama when he ran in 2008 and 2012 because of their enthusiasm for him. not quite as enthusiastic for mrs clinton. she's hoping to draw them out with the concerts here with jay z and beyonce and other celebrities as well. the bar is quieter there in cleveland. does that tell us anything at all? thanks very much both of you for joining us. y much both of you for joining us. thanks very much both of you for joining us. whoever becomes the next president of the united states, the fight against islamic state will be one of their strongest challenges. on that front, iraqi forces have retaken their first neighbourhood

inside mosul. it comes in the saddam district of the north-eastern side of the city. fighting in other areas is continuing. the bbc's quentin sommerville has the latest for us. tin sommerville has the latest for us. ( sommerville has the latest for us. with sommerville has the latest for us. with heavy armour and a state of precaution, mosul city was breached tonight. iraqi special forces pushed forward in the dark and underfire. we've just moved five kilometres from the east right inside mosul city centre. we're about three kilometers from the nineveh ruins, which really is the heart of this city. as you can hear, this is still a very active area, it's far more dangerous than where we were before. islamic state were here this morning. gunfire. so-called islamic state named this neighbourhood zargawi, after their founder, before it was saddam district, but now it belongs to mayor salam of iraqi's golden division. why is this

neighbourhood so important? this neighbourhood is so important because we will be in control of this area and we will keep this area safe and i'm moving my headquarters to be with my guys in the front-lines. the day began with a push forward. gunfire. these howitzers targeted is positions in the city's north-east and ground forces went in. who could endure this? gunfire. saddam mohammed stuck it out for as long as he could. mosul has been his life, his home and his livelihood, but now he's taking his eight children and escaping. everything they had here, everything they'd hoped for, is gone.

"what future do we have", he says? his neighbour agrees, "there's nothing left. we have no future, we've lost everything. lost our homes, our cars, it's all gone. " saddam mohammed climbs aboard an army truck heading to a temporary camp. old and young, 35,000 people have now fled. these people are leaving tha assama neighbourhood but 2,000 in total are leaving every single day. it's the islamic state car bombs they can't handle any more, the fighting is just that fierce. so after two-and-a-half years, they're saying goodbye to mosul. but nearby nearly a million remain here, trapped in mosul's maelstrom, the fight to free their city is far from over, but it could risk engulfing those who've endured here. quentin sommerville, bbc news, mosul. it was to be expected, but as those iraqi forces get closer

to the centre of mosul, the fighting is getting fiercer and this battle is getting harder every day. let's get more now on the american presidential election and who is going to win or lose tonight. we will be watching it all here on the bbc. i'm joined now by the strategist and political scientist who can make sense of everything that's been happening to us. 1 who can make sense of everything that's been happening to us. i want td that's been happening to us. i want to look at what we've learned so far because there has been an awful lot of what we call early voting, millions of americans who went to the polls early to cast their ballots. what does it tell you about the state of the country and what america wants? the early voting is, america wants? the early voting is, in part, because voting in america is a difficult thing to do. if you vote on election day, lines are long. sometimes you're going to get challenged. a lot of people are trying to find convenient ways to do it. we're also seeing a mobilisation

of people, this time around, because of the sharp polarisation in the electorate. we've got the candidates and hillary clinton's been particularly sophisticated, who love td particularly sophisticated, who love to get people out early. you can pin point those who you know will vote for you and get them in the bank. (tm for you and get them in the bank. you won't have to worry about them on election day. we also have groups like hispanic americans who are charged up in this election. we've seen historic numbers coming out. it complicates matters at one level. at another level, it gives you an early clue about where states might go - no sure thing. we're going to have 30% to 40% of all the votes cast, cast before election day. of course, the other phenomena is that you have ej the other phenomena is that you have elle the other phenomena is that you have ellas the other phenomena is that you have a lot of people who vote before the last events occur and things that could change people's minds. let's els could change people's minds. let's talk about women voters. if hillary clinton wins tonight, it's an historic moment for the united states. yet, her support amongst women voters hasn't been

consistently high. no, but we have had, for a very long time in this country, a gender gap. women vote more for democrats. women tend to decide american elections. there are more women than men. women are turning out at higher rates. it used td turning out at higher rates. it used to be a very different phenomenon. used to be a very different phenomenon. (tm to be a very different phenomenon. you have partisan differences and regional differences. just as we have the split between rural and urban voters, more generally, the urban ones tend to be more democratic. the urban ones more republican. that's true for men and women as well. this time we have an education gap. educated white women are moving towards hillary. the less educated ones more towards trump. your point about this being historic needs to be emphasised. we've had a number of women run for president before. the first one, an african-american from new shirley chisholme. we had pat

schroder who ran. this time carley fiorina on the republican side. to win a nomination and be on the verge of becoming president, it's huge for the united states. thanks very much for joining me. as we anticipate those results, they'll start coming in in a few hours' time. let's pause to look back at what has been an extraordinary campaign. the adventure started in the deep lowa winter. that seems like a very long time ago. release the hounds. they're rapists. you've called women you don't

like "fat pigs". only rosie o'donnell. wherever. that's what washington, dc does, the drive-by shot at the beginning. .. referred to my hands, if they are small, something else must be small. i'm sick and tired about hearing about your damn e-mails! excuse me, i'm talking. please clap... a total and complete shutdown of muslims. and what

is aleppo? i have a winning temperament. ok! you can do anything... because you'd be in jail. ok, donald. you're the puppet.

trust fund. such a nasty woman. i need that video to remind me what an extraordinary campaign this has been. there have been remarkable moments, amazing personalities, controversial proposals and counterproposals and a lot of bitterness along the way. after tonight there will be a new president chosen here in the united states. their job will be to unite this country and bring the country and americans behind them. remember td and americans behind them. remember to stay with bbc news on television and of course online for all the latest, as the night unfolds. i will be here throughout the evening with the bbc's andrew neil, bringing you all the results as they come in and getting reaction from the united states

and from around the world. do make sure to join us for that. i'm katty kay. from all of us here at bbc world news america, thanks so much for watching us on this election day in the united states. we will be back with katty kay in a few moments. she was saying, she and andrew neil will have full coverage as the results come in. it's a bbc one and bbc news special programme. election night in america, from 11. 15pm. looking further ahead, we're bringing you all the reaction live from washington throughout the day tomorrow. let's catch up on the weather forecast. good

evening. not a very nice evening it is either with rain and bus evening it is either with rain and snow in the mix, pushing its way west to east. you can see for the vast majority, it's just plain old wet. for some, we've seen snow into the heart of scotland. the snowfalls mostly over high ground. falling to lower levels at times into the night. increasing chance of significant snowfall over the pennines as well. into the early hours, we could see snow down to lower levels, for example across the north midlands, north-east wales. don't take the position of these blobs too literally. there is uncertainty. the risk is there of significant snowfall and given that it's the first snowfall of the season for most of us, the impact will be somewhat higher than it would be. there could be disruption first thing in the morning across parts of the north midlands. check out bbc local radio station.

a esej a raw night out there. temperatures hovering just a few degrees above freezing in most places. chilly and damp across many central and eastern areas first thing. still a bit of bus areas first thing. still a bit of snow mixed in. eastern most areas will stay rather damp all the way through the day. brighter skies further west. even here, there will be some sharp showers. double figures across the south-west. for most of us another chilly feeling day. and the weather system responsible never really leaves the east coast. trailing weather front will be the focus for heavier and prolonged showers. showers pushing into areas on the breeze too. many of us will have a better day on thursday, welcome sunshine. it won't be as chilly as it has been. temperatures still not really all that good for the time of year. again the highest values across parts of the south-west. then we turn to the atlantic for the next weather system coming in from

the west. again, that's going to be pushing into relatively cold air. the air won't be as cold, though. i think it will be rain which extends initially into western parts of the uk, as we end the week. heavy rain and strong winds too. the the rate at which it pushes eastwards is uncertain. a chilly day again in the east. welcome to washington. this is a bbc news us election special. s us election special. this is a bbc news us election special. what casting in the uk and around the world. our headlines. polls begin to close in some us states where millions are voting for their next president after one of the most bitter campaigns in history. hillary clinton has voted home in new york, the latest poll suggests the democratic candidate has a slim lead. and 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 i will do the very best, eem country and i will do the very best, again, if i am fortunate enough to win today. also voting at home in new york was donald trump. his republican team led will repeat -- depend on turnout and that target states. today is our independence day. cheering. today the american working class is going to strike. also coming up, we will explain how the election actually works and why not all votes are the same. (tm you can see a map in front of me all 50 states. it is all about the electoral college. stay with us on bbc news for all the results as they come in. our election night special programme begins live from times square in new york in less than 15 minutes. good evening from

washington, dc where the polling stations will close in two hours time in what has been seen the most significant presidential confit -- contest of the last 50 years. they have been long queues in many of the key states as tens of millions of voters choose between hillary clinton and donald trump. as well as choosing a new president, they are also collecting to congress. the balance of power will affect the president's ability to govern. when the sun rises over this place tomorrow, we should know who the occupant will be for the next four years, who will have the keys to the nuclear codes,

who will be the most powerful politician in the world. but before that, there's the small matter of voting. millions of people across 50 states and multiple time zones choosing between two of the most polarising and unpopular candidates ever to run for the highest office in the land. it's not about, this year, who you're voting for, it's almost about who you're voting against. i'm just tired of all the mudslinging, basically. so i'm very relieved it's over. they started in new hampshire at the stroke of midnight, in the charmingly named dixville notch. in virginia, they waited patiently in the late autumn sunshine to vote. it was a similar story in florida, a must-win state for both campaigns, where there were long lines. and in colorado, and perhaps only in america, there was a drive-through polling station. hillary clinton was the first to vote just outside new york. the former first lady, joined by her former president husband. it's the most humbling feeling,

dan. you know, i know how much responsibility goes with this. so many people are counting on the outcome of this election, what it means for our country. i'll do the very best i can, if i'm fortunate enough to win today. in new york, and again, it could only happen in this extraordinary election, one of the voting venues was branded with the name of one of the candidates. but the women lining up were sensing history for a different reason, as they took their daughters along, too. i was prepared to cry and i was going to dress all white, suffragette white, but, you know, working mom! donald trump voted a little later and the family came along, too. he said he was feeling good about everything and claimed he would do very well but the polls are not with him. he has not lost his sense of humour, though. who did you vote for? tough decision! he spent the final day of the campaign hurtling across key swing

states, ending up last night in grand rapids, michigan. today is our independence day. cheering. today, the american working class is going to strike back, finally. hillary clinton's big set piece was in philadelphia, the city of america's founding fathers, now contemplating an american mother as leader. she had brought along star power like the balladeer of the working class, bruce springsteen. # sit around getting older. president obama was the warm up. i'm betting america will reject the politics of resentment, the politics of blame, and choose a politics that says we are stronger together. and then there was more celebrity endorsement later on in north carolina. it's a choice between division or unity, between strong, steady leadership or

a loose cannon who could risk everything. and then, after her 1ith-hour dash, this on the plane home. no, this isn't a still photo, this is her staff and journalists and the would-be future president and jon bon jovi playing statues, or the mannequin challenge, perhaps the only occasion time has stood still on this frenetic campaign. and we're good! laughter. in nevada, like everywhere else, this a election that has divided races, young and old, men and women, even families, like these two. she does not like the way trump speaks or conducts himself. no, if he would have spoke better, maybe he would have had a better chance but he talks a lot about people, so, no. i like his ideas. democratic elections are meant to be the way we resolve our differences peacefully but not this election and

not for this couple in florida. jon sopel, bbc news, new york. with with voting under way, so much of the focus is on turnout. one of the battleground is virginia which voted democrat in 2012 and this time could go either way. our correspondence paul wood is at a polling station where he has been watching those cmensnt where he has been watching those queueing to place the ballots. this long lines at this polling station in arlington since gam this long lines at this polling station in arlington since 6am when the polls opened. this particular ward, this precinct, is heavily democratic. people were saying on the way in but they took great pride the way in but they took great pride in not only for their candidates had also they thought underlining the legitimacy of the system. that is important, 1 underlining the legitimacy of the system. that is important, i think, because if

there wasn't enough drama already in this race, donald trump has a game today been raising the question of whether he would accept the results. in three different places in a polling station and on fox news and in a press release, he would question whether the system was rigged if he didn't win. there was rigged if he didn't win. there in mind, this is an overwhelmingly democratic supporting ward, that kind of language is offensive. i was in virginia on the weekend and the polls were putting clinton ahead but i got the sense that people think that this entire race, not just in virginia, but the entire country, is too close to call. 1 just in virginia, but the entire country, is too close to call. i got the sense of nervousness from people. what was the mood in the crowd today? it may well be too close to call. the private assessment from the clinton campaign people is that she could get a comfortable electoral college victory, 315 votes

was the figure they were bandying around. they were hoping for 340. this doesn't take into account the phenomena of shy trump of voters. this is a swing state on paper. one democratic official here told me privately that he thought for the percentage points could go back to donald trump on the basis that people just don't want to say, is in brexit, who they are voting for. on that basis, things could be too close to call. everybody will be watching for those only result in florida. it is on the east coast, it is a swing state, if mrs clinton wins, 1 east coast, it is a swing state, if mrs clinton wins, i think it 02:03:41,1000 --> 02:03:42,804 will be all over. it is a state that mr trump has to win to stay in the game. all eyes will be on florida, i think. paul wood in virginia. we have corresponded all across the us keeping us up-to-date with the latest as people continue to continue to head to polling stations. let's get to

florida, ohio and pennsylvania. first to miami. if donald trump wants to win the white house, he really needs to win here in florida. right now, polls put him and clinton met and neck in this state. more than 6 million people have already cast their ballots here. in initial indications, record ternate has been amongst hispanic voters, a key demographic in this election. -- turnouts. i also saw long queues of black voters waiting to vote as well. minorities tend to favour the democratic party and that could play td democratic party and that could play to hillary clinton's advantage but florida is a state that donald trump called his second home. he, too, has ej called his second home. he, too, has a huge base of support here which is why right now, the state of florida is still too close to call. ohio is also one to watch because it fie ohio is also one to

watch because it also has a good record of picking present and -- presidents. since 1964. donald trump could win you because these ahead in the polls but he has to win a higher as well as florida to have passed to the white house. -- ohio. they like his message that he will bring back lost manufacturing jobs. mr trump is trying to win over blue collar workers especially in the stronghold of cleveland. we have been hearing about the early vote here in pennsylvania. there is none here. today is the only day people can actually get out to vote. that is why we have these youngsters harassing drivers and passers-by to get out and cast their ballot. there is a party atmosphere here in philadelphia, especially after hillary clinton's rally last night. e hillary clinton's rally last night. it is one of her strongholds, she has left support in the rural areas

and this is a state that donald trump has to sleep blue to red if he has any chance of reaching the white house. how do the boat and ballot translate into victory for either donald trump ig into victory for either donald trump or hillary clinton? jeremy vine has been taking a close look at some of the key states and how the night might unfold. it is a huge election in the usa because it includes 45 seats in congress and 45 congress house seats. to explain the system, it is to go back to the last system when mitt romney, the republican votes in red, lost to barack obama. it looks as if the map is covered in red, that mitt romney won. he did not. that is because of the electoral college. each state has a certain fixed number of electoral college vote. if you win in the state, you win

all the electoral college votes from that state. that means that obama won by concentrating, maximising, his vote in places like this in the midwest and down here in the western states, states like colorado. let's look at the battleground states. the ones we will be focusing on is the night goes on. here we have them on the wall. mostly blue because of obama's victory. companies to take these. michigan has 16, but higher and pennsylvania, we have just been talking about, wisconsin and so on. a lot of these rustbelt states whether blue is dominant, these clashing areas are where we will be concentrating. a lot of questions about the chronology of the night and let me take you now to the washington one -- monument to say what the timing is likely to be as we go through the night together. we look at the result last time and see how the results came in, shall we? by tam and four years ago, we were getting quite a lot

of results particularly in these blue posts. they went to obama in 2012 but they went the obvious ones. on the republican side as well, you can see mitt romney was winning the obvious state. at this point, if this happens for trump and clinton, we won't know really who the winner is. we will take the electoral college moh we will take the electoral college votes from those two piles and put them beside a monument. remember, they have to reach 270. 2am now. obama took new york and new mexico and michigan. michigan is the kind of state trump needs. if that goes loot at 2am, that is bad news for him. at that time in the evening four years ago, the republicans were ball four years ago, the republicans were still posting victories in their ugliest states, their red states. 1 will take them and put them again, the numbers. -- the red states. the obvious states. now it became decisive for obama.

have a look at these states, particularly the bottom. new hampshire, wisconsin, pennsylvania going blue. for donald trump, he must get some or all of those states to get a chance of victory. if they go blue again, he may know it is over. by this stage, that republicans were only getting their obvious states by this time four years ago. we put them in the columns by the washington monument and you can see how close obama was by this stage in the evening to the crucial figure of 270. what took over? let's have a look. three minutes later, the state of ohio comes in. there it is with its 18 electoral college votes. watch line now. it is over and obama wins in 2012. will that happen tonight? we may have steer as to the result by say 2am. m. , we may know. may know. , we may know. by six, we should be certain -- format. unless it is very

close. buyer of first-tier as gavin hewitt.