Virginia and Montana

Two great states that taste great together? Perhaps not, but the fate of the US Senate is in their hands.

First, Virginia. I don't see how Webb can lose. According to the official count, Webb is up just over 7,000 votes with 4 precincts outstanding. Virginia counts absentee ballots with the other votes, so all that is outstanding are the 4 precincts and provisional ballots, i.e., from those who showed up at the wrong polling place or weren't registered for some erroneous reason.

As for Montana, while Meagher County is still out, so too are (at least some) absentee votes. The Burns' people are claiming there are 22,000 absentee votes. If this is true, he could win as absentee votes tend to skew towards the GOP, and he would only need to win 55% of them to take the lead. If, however, there are a much smaller number of uncounted absentee votes, then Tester will win and the Democrats in Montana appear confident that he will.

Update: According to the Great Falls Tribune, there are also votes still being counted in Silver Bow County which is strong Tester country. If this is accurate, once these votes come in, I imagine Tester will be called the winner.

Further update: In case you were worried, plans to renovate three aging pools in Great Falls, MT, were approved by voters. Like you care about Tester-Burns.

And more: Tester has declared victory as his margin increased to over 3,000. Congratulations, Sen-elect Tester.

We should know much more by the end of the day.