Voters in Dixville Notch favoured Barack Obama over his Republican rival, John McCain, 15 to 6, in the first ballots cast in the 2008 Presidential election early today.
The town's 21 registered voters came out in cold weather to carry on the tradition of casting the nation's first votes just after midnight.
When the results were announced, the ballot room at Balsams hotel was resounding with thunderous applause.
Dixville Notch, in northern New Hampshire, incorporated just for voting purposes and has been casting the first ballots since 1960.
Andrew Bergh, a student of the University of Franklin Pierce, said today's election result at Dixville Notch is unexpected because this place is Republicans' area. The result may be an indicator for Obama's victory.
Dixville Notch, a small village located in the far north of New Hampshire, is well known for its longstanding middle-of-the-night vote in the U.S. presidential elections, a symbolic event which marks the casting of the first ballots and the elections' initial results.
Hart's Location, a small town in New Hampshire, also shares Dixville Notch's enviable status of being one of the first places to cast votes in the elections.
There, Obama got 17 votes, McCain got 10, and write-in Ron Paul two votes.
Before the voting, Tillotson Thomas, the moderator of the polling told Xinhua that according to media reports and Gallop polls, Obama is likely to win nationally, but it is still hard to say, because anything could happen till the last minute.
When asked about the racial issue, Thomas said, the problem is still there, racial prejudice sometime could impact the democratic process in the United States.
Uwe Roggenthien, General manager of Balsams Hotel, told Xinhua that the election situation seems in favour of Democrats because of the economic recession. He said, some people believe that the Republicans brought the recession and therefore want change.
But he said, "people will vote for what is right, what is best for the country, and what is best for the future."
Lucy, a clerk at the hotel said that she is going to vote for Obama, because she backs Obama's values and believes he can bring changes to America, especially for economy.
On Tuesday, the registered voters all over the United States begin to elect their next president and vice president for the next four-year term.
The presidential election this year is unique in the sense that for the first time in the American history an African-American is a presidential candidate. Besides, for the first time, two sitting senators will be contesting against each other.
Whosoever finally wins the presidential race, history will be made in the United States. If Obama wins, he will be the first African-American to become the U.S. president and his vice-presidential running mate Joe Biden would be the first Roman Catholic vice president.
On the other hand, if McCain wins he will be having for the first time a female vice president, also the first one in American history. Moreover, McCain would be the oldest president.
As per the U.S. constitution, the president is the head of both the state and the government, and the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the United States. The presidency in the U.S. is the highest political office due to its influence and prestige.
For millions of other eligible voters, polling stations will not open until at least hours later. A few voting districts in neighbouring Vermont are scheduled to open at 5:00 a.m. EST (1000 GMT), followed by the remainder of eastern states where polling stations open at 6:00 a.m. (1100 GMT) or 7:00 a.m. (1200 GMT).
Voting across the continental United States will begin between 8:00 and 11:00 a.m. EST (1300 and 1600 GMT). Alaska and Hawaii will be the last two states to join in, with voting to begin at 1600 GMT and 1700 GMT respectively.
Obama has been enjoying a comfortable leading margin of some 7 per cent for a month in national polls. More importantly, he is poised to win most key states that could decide the outcome of the election.
The latest polls show in the eight key states of Virginia, Florida Ohio, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Nevada, North Carolina and Indiana, Obama and McCain each leads 5 and 2, with a tie in Missouri.
According to the estimate of RealclearPolitics.com, if the poll numbers were the election results, Obama will easily beat McCain in the electoral votes.
However, as goes the saying, "It's not done until it has been done", there are still some variable factors which could affect the outcome of the election, analysts said.
Whosoever finally wins the presidential race, history will be made in the United States. If Obama wins, he will be the first African American to become the U.S. president and his vice-presidential running mate Joe Biden would be the first Roman Catholic vice president.
On the other hand, if McCain wins he will be having for the first time a female vice president, also the first one in American history. Moreover, McCain would be the oldest president.