Nation - A historic election culminated in record national voter turnouts Tuesday, when Americans voted Barack Obama as the next President of the United States. The landmark presidential victory will be the first for an African American. After over a year of tireless campaigning, Obama stood on a stage in front of half a million people in Chicago’s Grant Park Tuesday and reiterated his goals, saying, “change has come to America.” “I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face,” Republican John McCain said before his supporters in Phoenix, Arizona. Major exit polls indicated that the majority of Americans were most concerned with the economy, an issue for which the Democrat scored highly when compared to his Republican opponent and the unpopular Bush Administration. Exit polls also indicated that voters were more concerned with age than race. Obama's former rival for the Democratic nomination, Senator Hillary Clinton, said in a statement that “we are celebrating an historic victory for the American people.” Obama will be working with a heavily Democratic Congress. Democrats picked up Senate seats in New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina and Virginia, among others. Story by Alex Lane (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).