hello there and welcome to nhk "newsline" broadcasting from japan. it's election night in the united states and voters are choosing who should be the next president. we are following the race to the white house, the results. and how they might affect asia. the first projections have come in and more are on the way. things are moving more quickly at this point. as you can see, at the bottom of your screen, the projections give clinton, let's see those numbers. the projections give clinton three electoral votes and trump 24. can we see those numbers? yes, they are on the screen. each candidate is in a race to get across the finish line of

270 electoral votes. so far, hillary clinton has secured the eastern state of vermont. she's vying to become the country's first female president, while republican donald trump is projected to win in kentucky, indiana, and west virginia. now we go to our raja pradhan for a closer look at the results. how's it looking? >> here's a breakdown of the latest numbers state by state. the states in blue are for clinton and the ones in red for trump. the projections are from our partners at abc. at the moment, we see that clinton is now projected to win in three states, and the same for trump, with three states. they're both looking at the number of 270 once again. the projections give clinton 48 at the moment. just before this broadcast, we had west virginia, coming in for trump and some extra that will

be coming in for clinton as well. but at the moment, it's clinton, 48, and trump with 24. once again, the magic number is 270. so here at nhk "newsline," we are also looking at 12 states that we think will play a crucial role in this presidential election. but before that, let's look at illinois, the state of illinois, we have breaking news that they have a projected winner. if we can get that up for illinois. at the moment, we can see that we have more states having projected winners . at the moment, clinton with six and trump getting five states. let's go now on to illinois. we have a projected winner. it's clinton taking the 20 electoral votes, third highest in the vote bank, with clinton taking 20 of those electoral votes over trump. that's according to our partners at abc news.

and another state that we have just coming in information, is new jersey. let's get that on the map and see who the projected winner is there for new jersey. all right, coming in, new jersey with 14 electoral votes. and the projected winner here is hillary clinton, taking all 14 electoral votes in the winner takes all system for this state. and -- and another state that we're seeing is massachusetts. so all these projected winners coming in and here as well, it's clinton, 11 electoral votes taken there over trump. of course it's 0% voter count, but abc projects that clinton has taken the state of massachusetts. and also another state that clinton has taken is washington, d.c. let's take a look. washington, d.c. has three electoral votes and clinton has secured a victory in that state,

according to abc projections. now, so we have been looking at 12 states, highlighted here in yellow that wii bee've been foc on that we think play a key role in the u.s. presidential election. let's first focus on arizona. arizona has 11 electoral votes, and it's been a solid republican stronghold. bill clinton was the only democratic candidate to have won the state since 1952. while about 30% of the state's population is hispanic, conservative residents are calling for a tougher crackdown on illegal immigration. at the moment, vote counting is still going on, but trump is calling for building a wall on the border with mexico and deporting illegal immigrants. >> hillary clinton says illegal immigrants contribute to the u.s. economy and is calling for immigration system reform. we're also looking at cleaolora. colorado has nine electoral

votes, and we're still at the early stages of vote-counting and not seeing much at the moment. but colorado has traditionally been a republican state, but obama won in the last two elections, 2012 and 2008. the number of independents and democrats is on the rise, especially in urban areas. and hispanics now make up over 20% of the population. in recent years, these groups of voters have been seen as key in determining the outcome. of course we will be keeping you updated on these projections. for now, it's back to you. >> thank you very much, raja. once again, the projections give clinton 68 electoral votes and trump 37. each candidate is in a race to get across the finish line of 270 electoral votes. minori takao is in new york outside clinton's election venue. what are you seeing and hearing there? >> we are seeing much more activity now from inside the

javits convention center, which is hillary clinton's election night venue. the big screen i talked about hours before, well, that big screen in the middle of the venue is now showing different u.s. media. now, as the american media goes from station to station, on that screen, supporters are watching intently. whenever they hear any good news about clinton, we hear shouts of joy from even where we are out here. it has been an exciting day in new york. excitement is building because why? well, both presidential candidates are in new york. and it's been since 1944 that both presidential candidates have been in this city. as i was traveling from virginia into new york today, because i was at the polling station in virginia this morning, we have seen loads of people moving into new york because they want to catch the excitement here in the city. so you can imagine how the excitement is building over the day and into the night.

and there surely will be more to come in the hours of the night. so i'll have more for you later. for now, it's back to you. >> thank you very much, minori takao following all the action in new york. now, american voters are choosing which candidate will represent their values best. first, let's look back at clinton's life. >> first lady, senator, secretary of state. hillary clinton has worn many hats in washington, and she's spent decades carving out a path to run for president. >> every day americans need a champion and i want to be that champion. i'm running for president. >> reporter: hillary was born in 1947 to a middle class family in chicago. her mother's experience of being abandoned by her parents drove her to commit to issues of women and children. >> it really does take a village to raise a child.

[ cheers and applause ] and to build a stronger future. for us all. i learned this a long time ago from the biggest influence in my life, my mother. >> reporter: she first received national recognition as a college graduate. when a senator condemned the anti-war protests during the commencement ceremony, hillary criticized him in her ad libed speech. in 1975, she married her yale law school friend bill clinton. she continued working as a lawyer and teacher in arkansas where bill served as governor. when he became president in 1993, hillary took on more than the duties of first lady. >> now is our chance to be -- >> reporter: she chaired the task force at the white house to campaign for health care reform. >> on behalf of the president, i am looking forward to working

with them to come up with a piece of legislation that will respond to the very real needs that americans have. >> reporter: in 1995, she marked her political identity in promoting gender equality at a women's conference in beijing. >> if there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women's rights, and women's rights are human rights, once and for all. >> reporter: she won supporters and opponents when she defended her husband throughout his scandal with a white house intern. hillary became a senator for new york. in 2007, she ran against barack obama and lost, but joined his administration has secretary of state. >> all right, we have nhk's reporter on the phone, he is also in new york and has been speaking with trump supporters.

kazaky, what are you hearing over there? >> well, i'm standing in front of a hotel in new york city, where donald trump will be making a speech sometime soon. he hasn't arrived here yet, but he tweeted a couple of hours ago that he would be watching how the ballot counting would go in trump tower, where he resides. and that's only a couple of blocks from where i am. and at the entrance of this hotel, there's a security checkpoint, so the entry to the hotel is restricted to the guests and the media. and there are also a lot of media trucks parked out here along the street. we're standing by to hear what trump will have to say as soon as the election results becomes available. and i also see a lot of trump supporters out here, and i think as it gets late at night, here in new york, i think more trump supporters are coming out here. some of the supporters are carrying placards and banners and they're chanting. just about an hour ago, trump

supporters were having a little rally in front of this hotel. and they were escorted away by the police officers. and i definitely see heavy police presence here. some officers are carrying automatic weapons. so police officers are keeping an eye on everything to make sure that there's no disturbance here. >> thank you very much, kazuaki in new york. now this year's campaign has shown there's a deep political divide between americans. let's take a look back at trump's life. >> reporter: donald trump is doing what for years he was known for, putting his name on a big building. this one in washington, d.c. close to another building he'd like his name attached to. >> we turned a property that had been neglected for decades, and which was losing huge sums of

money for the federal government, into a major revenue producer and job creator. this is what i want to do for our country. >> reporter: he was born in 1946 into a wealthy family in new york. he studied business at the university of pennsylvania. after graduation, he took over his father's real estate company in 1971. and business expanded. trump became known as a flamboyant real estate tycoon. his name was plastered on skyscrapers, luxurious condominiums, hotels, and casinos. over the years, he's also bought golf courses and was either part or sole owner of a number of beauty pageants. the ride hasn't always been smooth. his companies have filed for bankruptcy four times. based on these experiences, he published many books on business and politics. including the part memoir, part

business book and bestseller, the art of the deal. it was also a peek into trump's inclination towards controversy. in the 2000s, trump became a reality tv star as the host of "the apprentice." >> well, we don't want to change too much. season two is a big deal already. >> reporter: then in 2011, he jumped into the political spotlight, giving new life to what's known as the birther movement. the long debunked idea that president barack obama was not born in the u.s. the white house eventually released an image of obama's long form birth certificate, showing he was born in hawaii. on the family side of things, trump's life has also been colorful. he's been married three times and has five children. swo divordl publicized inhe tabloids. >> joining us in the studio is a

representative from sumitomo corporation, the former general manager of their washington, d. office and has been watching u.s. politics for decades. also in the studio is our steen yor commentator tag ashi. first, you've been in the u.s. for several weeks, leading up to the elections. you were in philadelphia and washington, d.c. at was the atmosphere in the u.s. like? >> well, i just returned three days ago, and i must say that the atmosphere was filled with negative energy, anger, distrust, and frustration. this election was not much about policy. it was certainly not about hope, i'm sorry to say. the narrative was about how the other candidate could not be trusted and was not fit to be the next president of the united states. so, as i said, overall, it's

been a very negative election cycle. >> tell me about the candidates' challenges, expanding the support bases in the lead-up to today. >> i think there were multiple reasons why both candidates struggled to reach the finish line. let me touch upon a few. for starters, number one, because there was much frustration and anger as i just mentioned earlier, among the american people, toward the party establishment, regarding the rising inequality, negative effects of globalization, failing immigration policy, but neither candidate was able to deliver a clear, decisive, or positive message. and inspire his or her electorate beyond a certain level. and number two, because the media highlighted the negative aspect of each candidate so much, and mostly disregarded the policy debate, i think that made

it more difficult for the american people will to select one candidate over the other. but regardless of who wins, we need to keep a close eye on the congressional race, especially the senate, which will have a big impact on policy. >> and you mentioned that this has been a divisive campaign. how does it compare with previous elections? >> well, it's been -- i think it's been said in the media already, but it's been the ugliest, most contentious election cycle with little emphasis on what really matters most, which is policy. the media fueled and amplified the divisive nature of the presidential election process. this 2016 cycle may have changed the process for good. and may have deep repercussions on the future political discourse of this country. that's why many are saying that this was a very pivotal election cycle. >> so in your eyes, negative,

ugly, the key words for this election? >> i think so. >> all right, last question. what do you make of the results so far? >> yeah, so far, there's no surprise yet. clinton got the states where she was supposed to get, and in the meantime, trump got what he was supposed to get. so although the number of electoral votes, 68 for clinton and 57 for trump, but there's no surprise yet. but the important thing is how the outcome of the battleground states. and we are especially focusing on florida. the state of florida is a highly contested state. and as you can see now, it's about 59% of the vote is counted. 49 for clinton and 48 for trump. it's still neck and neck. the candidate who won this state of florida can be the president. so that means it's a very important state to watch. so in the coming hours, we'll

see the results of florida, which might decide the entire picture. >> 29 electoral votes allocated to florida. we'll keep our eyes on that state. now for a business angle, the u.s. election is the main event driving global financial markets today. investors seem to be a bit cautious in early asian trading hours. let's go to ai uchida from our business desk for the details. >> just a refresher. overnights, a lot of investors placed their bets, thinking that hillary clinton was going to win, and wall street did continue higher on tuesday. this is, of course, after clinton was cleared by the fbi in the latest e-mail probe. as for tokyo, share prices here did open higher this morning, but investors cautious. you can see right now we are back up, jumping rather 1.2% gain for the nikkei. 17,381 right now. the index is showing choppy trading in line with currency

moves. let's take a look at what is happening with the dollar and the yen. as the first poll results have trickled in, we've seen volatility in the dollar against the yen, the u.s. currency is now trading at 105.16 to .21. the dollar did drop as one poll showed trump was initially leading in florida, one of the crucial swing states, as you know. the republican candidate is seen as a wild card in terms of policies. analysts say currency fluctuations may persist as results continue to trickle in. let's see what's happening with other markets. we are seeing gains elsewhere too. seoul's kospi up more than a third of a percent. in australia, we're seeing gains of .7%. china markets will open in just under half an hour. in other business news, nhk has learned that suzuki motor and toshiba plan to team up to

build hybrid cars in india. they're in the final stage of talks to launch a joint venture. they'll produce lithium ion batteries in india for hybrid vehicles. suzuki was the first japanese automaker to do business in the country. its local unit is the market leader with a more than 40% share in terms of vehicles sold. the latest initiative is in response to tougher regulations that address worsening air lution in major cities. a court has ordered a ban on diesel cars more than ten years old in the capital, new delhi. now staying with india, the prime minister has announced that the country's large banknotes are being taken out of circulation. narendra modi says the move is to fight corruption and counterfeiting. he gave a speech on tuesday, saying the 500 rupee note was being replaced and the 1,000 rupee note abolished at midnight. 1,000 rupees are worth about

$15. modi asked people to exchange their notes for banks at thursday for a new edition of the rupee note and a newly issued 2,000 rupee note. people are flocking to atms to try to break down their cash in smaller banknotes. >> it's definitely a panicky situation. putting us into really trouble for two days. i don't have money today. >> modi said corruption and blackmony are spreading. he asked the public to help clean up the country. that is the latest in business for this hour. i'll leave you with the latest on the

♪ ♪ moving on to other stories we're following this hour, japan has completed procedures needed to ratify the paris agreement on climate change. and can now join international efforts to curb global warming from 2020. the deputy permanent representative of japan to the united nations submitted the required papers to the u.n. headquarters on tuesday. japan will become the 103rd member of the pact after 30 days. >> translator: japan will be able to hold more convincing negotiations. i've heard that the negotiations at kop 22, which is under way, are open and transparent to every country. >> the parties to the agreement are currently discussing detailed rules at the u.n.

climate change conference or kop 22 in morocco. japan was only able to take part as an observer because it was unable to ratify the pact before it went into effect last friday. this means the country can't file objections to decisions made at the conference. now experts are worried the country's presence at u.n. negotiations is too little too late. >> it's not like the u.s. and china have anything important in paris agreement. they got their own issues. but they set aside those things and they prioritized the pact, and japan didn't. so this is a huge difference. if you put yourself in their shoes, they wouldn't treat the japan as the same counterpart. >> he says japan could have played a great role especially when it comes to rule-making and he thinks japan can be a leader,

if it prepares a long-term strategy earlier than other countries. >> japan can hurry up and intensify the process and create an ambitious one before anybody does. so in that way, japan can show leadership in creating a way forward for the governizing society. >> lawyers in hong kong have held a silent protest march after china effectively banned two pro-independence legislators from taking office. about 2,000 people paraded between the half-court and the final appeals court on tuesday. they included lawyers and activists. the rally came one day after the national people's congress steering committee gave its interpretation of hong kong's basic law. the committee said leaders must pledge allegiance in accordance with the law. the two lawmakers displayed a

banner at their swearing-in ceremony and altered the wording of their oath. members of the hong kong bar association says the committee's interpretation gives the impression china is effectively legislating for the territory. they say this casts doubt on the one country-two systems principle. >> it just interferes with our own independence. >> pro democracy groups and legal professionals in hong kong are increasingly critical of china's intention to crack down on pro-independence activities in the territory. the developer of pokemon go says it's modified the app's settings so people can't use it while driving. fatal accidents have been caused in japan by drivers who were absorbed in the popular smartphone game. on monday, it disabled the function for collecting items if players are traveling above a

certain speed. the company did not disclose the speed at which the function stopped working. after a driver killed a 9-year-old boy last month in central japan, the city and the police urged them to ensure drivers can't play the game and that no virtual monsters appear on public roads. the developer told nhk that it sincerely accepts the various requests and will try to make sure the game doesn't cause safety issues. now let's check in with robert speta for the latest in world weather. >> well, let's talk about the weather out here across the u.s. because what we have been seeing is actually some fairly decent conditions for the most part across the country. this is actually a big factor as far as voter turn-out. especially undecided voters. we have seen in the past tend to stay in if there r any severe storms or foul weather. especially with long lines at a lot of the polls.

as far as the weather on tuesday afternoon, we saw scattered showers towards the north, pertaining to the cold front across central areas of the u.s. but none of this is severe and actually really no snowfall to be had across the u.s. on wednesday. overall, pretty decent weather heading into the latter part of this week. high pressure behind it, will be keeping things on the cool side. still a few scattered showers into parts of vancouver, extending into canada, some windy conditions up there as well. denver at 13. los angeles with a high of 33, the warm spot. i do want to mention across japan, fairly severe weather taking place today across the western seaboards. 113 kilometer per hour gusts in northern hokkaido with low pressure moving through and a high from the west really carrying the winds across the

sea of japan. 40 centimeters possible inxnóx

>> this week, global 3000 heads to ghana where we meet a man willing to move mountains to save frogs. in belize, conservation can be a dangerous activity. rangers there tell us why. but first, we take a look at the philippines where many people are in fear of their lives. 58 countries around the world still have the death penalty. the punishment was actually abolished 10 years ago in the philippines. but its new president is now determined to bring it back. as part of his anti-drugs campaign, rodrigo duterte has made public calls for dealers to be assassinated.