FINAL ELECTION RESULTS: Pennsylvania Re-elects President Barack Obama

THE CAMPAIGN IS OVER! Barack Obama and Bob Casey win in Pennsylvania. At 11:23PM polls are reporting that Barack Obama will be re-elected for his second term as president. Hit the refresh button or follow @dantebarry for the up-to-the-minute results as more precincts report. Scroll to the bottom for recent updates.

The state of Pennsylvania has been in quite some controversy over the course of the 2012 election cycle. According to some conservatives, voter fraud has become a rampant problem, enabling state legislatures to pass laws to require voters to show state-issued identification before casting a ballot. 

This guy doesn't seem to agree:

All eyes were on Pennsylvania and its voter ID laws, until Commonwealth Court Judge Robert E. Simpson Jr. declared that voters without a government-issued photo identification can be allowed to cast their vote. This case is allowing thousands of communities of color, young people, the poor, and the elderly to get out the vote in this year's election.

Pennsylvania is a key swing state in election 2012, so the result of Obama vs Romney could hold major implications nationwide for the two candidates as they seek to win the 270 electoral college votes needed to win the White House. Outside of the presidential race, however, arguably the most contested race this year is Bob Casey (D) and Tom Smith (R) for U.S. Senate. Casey is the namesake son of the former elected official, and he comes from a background in labor organizing.Smith is a Tea Party conservative supported with millions of dollars that he's made in the mining industry.

With polls showing favorably towards Bob Casey with a 5 point lead, it would seem that Pennyslvania folk are too kind on campaign ads and money in politics.

UPDATE: 1:15PM There are reports of people being turned away from the polls for not having a photo identification in Pennsylvania. If you are a first time voter in PA, then you must show proper ID. If you are not a first time voter, then you do not have to show ID at the polls. You should not be turned away; if you are, then immediately call Election Protection at 1-866-OUR-VOTE.

With voting ending at 8pm EST today for Pennsylvania, polls are showing that Barack Obama will be re-elected with 303 votes; Romney, 235 and the Democrats maintaining control of the Senate, 53-47. Not sure how that fairs just yet with the Bob Casey and Tom Smith race. We shall find out. 

UPDATE: 4:21PM 

Voting machines are altering votes in PA.

UPDATE: 4:27PM

What pollsters are saying right now about the presidential:

Karl Rove: "Without twelve toss up states (MN, NV, CO, IA, WI, MI, OH, PA, NH, VA, NC, AND FL), Mitt Romney and Barack Obama are tied at 191 each.  I predict Mr. Romney will win FL (29), NC (15), VA (13), NH (4), OH (18), IA (6), CO (9) and Mr. Obama will get MN (10), NV (6), WI (10), MI (16), PA (20). This brings Mr. Romney to 285 Electoral College votes and Mr. Obama to 253.  These are just my base predictions and I still think several of these states are too close to call.  For example, while I put them in Mr. Obama's column, I still believe NV, WI, and PA are in play and very winnable for Mr. Romney.  If crowds at his recent stops in these states are any indication of his supporters' enthusiasm, Mr. Romney will likely be able to claim victory in these states as well."

Nate Silver: "Among 12 national polls published on Monday, Mr. Obama led by an average of 1.6 percentage points. Perhaps more important is the trend in the surveys. On average, Mr. Obama gained 1.5 percentage points from the prior edition of the same polls, improving his standing in nine of the surveys while losing ground in just one...All of this leaves Mr. Romney drawing to an inside straight. ... [I]n poker, making an inside straight requires you to catch one of 4 cards out of 48 remaining in the deck, the chances of which are about 8 percent. Those are now about Mr. Romney’s chances of winning the Electoral College."

UPDATE: 7:03PM In just in one hour the Pennsylvania polls will close. We have strong voter turnout and more reports are coming in with faulty voting machines. Turnout is expected at 70 percent of Pennsylvania's nearly 8.5 million voters. The fight for 20 electoral votes is as close as ever.  On Google's new tool: Politics & Elections, Romney has a 4+ lead over Obama, with 8-3 electoral votes respectively.

UPDATE: 7:40PM Pennsylvania exit poll has the economy as the biggest issue.

Chart from Real Clear Politics on poll averages:

Prediction: Obama will win Pennsylvania, with a 3.8+ lead, taking the state's 20 electoral votes in a Real Clear Politics poll.

UPDATE: 8:06PM

While we wait final projections - let's recall a campaign highlight:

UPDATE: 8:33PM With 1 percent reporting Governor Romney holds almost 62 percent of the votes, with President Obama closing in on 36 percent.

UPDATE: 8:421PM Oh, wait. The president is now leading.

UPDATE: 8:47PM With 1 percent reporting, Republican candidate Tom Smith takes the lead with 51.5 percent over incumbent Democrat Bob Casey, 46.1 percent.

Here are some leads for the House of Representatives: 

UPDATE: 9:17PM With three percent reporting, Huffington Post calls Pennsylvania for Barack Obama, with 68 percent of the vote. While incumbent Senator Bob Casey is re-elected for another term, beating candidate Tom Smith: 69.3% - 29.1% respectively.

UPDATE: 9:35PM

UPDATE: 11:23PM Pennsylvania led the way to the re-election of President Barack Obama.

PolicyMic will be covering the 2012 election from the state of Pennsylvania live. For live updates, bookmark and refresh this page.