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Domke: All Signs Point To Obama

All signs point to an Electoral College victory for Obama.

As nominee of the "out party," Obama benefited from the financial crisis and economic downturn.  He benefited by being the anti-Bush — opposite of the unpopular president in nearly every way.

Any Democrat would probably have won, but Obama waged a great campaign and has set a new standard for oratory, organizing, fundraising, and staying on message.

We can expect to see unprecedented euphoria and celebration by Obama supporters here in the United States as well as in other countries.

We'll see the opposite in the GOP. I predict that misery on the Republican side will quickly turn to recriminations and soul-searching. The question is: Will the GOP realize that it needs to reinvent itself?

The GOP must become a true reform party by offering not just opposition to the Obama-Reid-Pelosi agenda, but also by presenting clear and constructive alternatives.

The party needs to reach out to young, African-American, Hispanic and female voters. If we are seen as the party of grumpy, old men — rural and small town or, more precisely, affluent white men — we'll continue to decline.

McCain wasn't the greatest candidate, but he had the lead for a while; he was seen as independent-minded.  Will the GOP recognize that its future depends on attracting more of the independent-minded?

Todd Domke is a WBUR political analyst and a columnist for the Boston Globe. He'll be live blogging throughout the evening.

This program aired on November 4, 2008. The audio for this program is not available.

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