Trump, Clinton wage tight battles in Ohio, Florida and elsewhere

REUTERS Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton waged a tight battle in several crucial battleground states on Tuesday in their bitter race for the White House, although opinion polls showed Clinton had an edge in the closing hours of the campaign.

With voting completed in more than half of the 50 U.S. states, the race was too close to call in Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and Virginia, states that could be vital to deciding which contender wins the presidency.

Both candidates scored early victories in states where they were expected to win. Trump captured conservative states in the South and Midwest, while Clinton swept several states on the East Coast and Illinois in the Midwest.

Those victories were long predicted and not especially significant in the national race, which is likely to turn on a half-dozen toss-up states that will be crucial in the state-by-state fight for 270 Electoral College votes needed to win.

Clinton had more options to reach 270, with Trump needing a virtual sweep of about six toss-up states to win. A Clinton win in either Ohio or Florida would likely slam the door on Trump's chances. With 88 percent of the vote counted in Florida, Trump led Clinton by about 8,000 votes out of 8 million cast.

As of 8 p.m. EST (0100 GMT on Wednesday), Clinton had 68 electoral votes to Trump’s 57, with U.S. television networks projecting the winner in 15 of the 50 states.

Going into Election Day, Clinton led Trump, 44 percent to 39 percent in the last Reuters/Ipsos national tracking poll. A Reuters/Ipsos States of the Nation poll gave her a 90 percent chance of defeating Trump and becoming the first woman elected U.S. president.

Also at stake on Tuesday was control of Congress, with Republicans defending a slight four-seat majority in the 100-member Senate. The House of Representatives, where all 435 seats were up for grabs, was expected to remain in Republican hands.

Democrats scored their first breakthrough in Illinois, where Republican Senator Mark Kirk lost re-election. But Republicans Rob Portman in Ohio and Marco Rubio in Florida won high-profile Senate re-election fights.