The latest news on the Election, Campaign Sea Change, Election Projections, Congo, Iraq-U.S., Vatican-Muslim Summit, Missile Defense, and Select Op-eds.

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Election. The Final Push "It took nearly two years, many ups and downs, countless smart moves, missed chances and lucky breaks. But finally Barack Obama could say the words: 'One more day.'" McCain Makes Seven-State Swing In Bid for a Come-From-Behind Win "Sen. John McCain closed out the last full day of his more-than-10-year quest for the presidency with eight rallies in seven states, hoping to produce the kind of comeback that has pulled his candidacy from the ashes before." Long lines mark Election Day, but problems appear minor "Waits of more than an hour to vote were the order of the day, but there were few reports of problems amid praise for the impact of early voting which allowed as many as 40 percent of voters in battleground states such as Florida and North Carolina to make their selections early and avoid a crush at the polls today." Sense of history drives voters to polls "The 2008 presidential campaign races to a close Tuesday with voters more active, engaged and enthusiastic than at any time since at least the social ferment of the 1960s, sparking enormous excitement but also presenting the risk that polling places will be overwhelmed." Early voting hits record high "That may represent the beginning of a tidal wave of voting participation that could match or break a record set a century ago, when two-thirds of eligible voters went to the polls for the 1908 presidential election."

Campaign sea change. The '08 Campaign: Sea Change for Politics as We Know It "The 2008 race for the White House that comes to an end on Tuesday fundamentally upended the way presidential campaigns are fought in this country, a legacy that has almost been lost with all the attention being paid to the battle between Senators John McCain and Barack Obama."

Election projections. Election Night Guide (Popcorn Included) "Pundits and pollsters may be trying to take all the fun out of Election Day. So many have predicted a lopsided victory for Senator Barack Obama over Senator John McCain that you might wonder why even to bother watching the returns on Tuesday night. The fact is, there is plenty of mystery - and there is only one poll that counts." Networks vow to be patient, to a point, in projecting presidential winner "But officials at the broadcast and cable networks as well as the Associated Press said Monday that they would not project a president-elect until one nominee has at least 270 electoral votes in his column. And they won't award any electoral votes from a state until after all the polls in that state are scheduled to close."

Congo. U.N. chief to visit 'catastrophic' Congo "Ban Ki-moon, the U.N. secretary-general, is to travel to Congo in the coming days to press for an end to the 'catastrophic' conflict in the east of the country as the Tutsi rebel leader, Laurent Nkunda, threatened to attack Goma and then march across the country after the government rejected direct peace negotiations." In Congo, a March Behind Rebel Lines "On Saturday morning, Congolese rebels drove through the muddy streets of this provincial town in eastern Congo, telling war-weary residents it was time they showed appreciation for their new leaders, the National Congress for the Defense of the People."

Iraq-U.S. Poll proposed for Iraq-U.S. pact "One of Iraq's vice-presidents has said a draft security pact being negotiated with the United States should be put to a nationwide referendum."

Vatican-Muslim summit. Rome hosts Vatican-Muslim summit "Muslim and Vatican officials are holding historic talks in Rome to establish a better inter-faith dialogue and defuse any future tensions."

Missile defense. MPs demand debate on U.S. missile defense "More than 50 Labor MPs have issued a statement calling for a public debate on U.S. plans to push ahead with a missile defense system using bases in the U.K. and Europe."

Commentary. Op-Ed Columnist: A Date With Scarcity (David Brooks, New York Times) "In the next few years, the nation's wealth will either stagnate or shrink. The fiscal squeeze will grow severe. There will be fiercer struggles over scarce resources, starker divisions along factional lines. The challenge for the next president will be to cushion the pain of the current recession while at the same time trying to build a solid fiscal foundation so the country can thrive at some point in the future." A New Kind of Pride (Eugene Robinson, Washington Post) "For African Americans, at least those of us old enough to have lived through the civil rights movement, this is nothing short of mind-blowing. It's disorienting, and it makes me see this nation in a different light."