Barack Obama won the presidency of the United States Tuesday night, sweeping through a swath of swing states to cap his astronomical rise from junior senator of Illinois to the nation's first African American president.

"If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy – tonight is your answer," Obama told Chicago supporters in his acceptance speech shortly after midnight, an hour after the major news outlets declared him the winner.

To those who did not vote for him, the president-elect added: "I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices. I need your help, and I will be your president, too."

With 94 percent of precincts reporting - Obama has won 349 electoral votes to McCain's 147. To win the presidency, 270 electoral votes are needed.

Obama also won the popular vote tally – becoming the first Democrat to capture more than 50 percent of the popular vote since Jimmy Carter in 1976.

Upon hearing the news of Obama's win, crowds in Times Square erupted in applause and many hugged with tears of joy. On the Upper West Side, Fort Greene, and other neighborhoods across the city, traffic stopped and horns honked as people cheered and danced and hung from lamp posts.

At 105th Street and Amsterdam, a crowd erupted in a spontaneous singing of the national anthem.

"This is a night I will never forget," said one Brooklyn resident. "This is history being made and I'm a part of it. Hope is there. And change makes sense."

"I'm from the era where I had to sit in colored sections and drink out of colored water fountains," said a Queens native celebrating at the Presbyterian Church of St. Albans. "And I don't think I would be alive to see today."

"For too long, middle class families in this country have felt invisible, struggling alone as wages stagnate, jobs disappear, and the costs of daily life climb upward. In quiet, solitary acts of citizenship, American voters gave voice to their hopes and their values, voted for change, and refused to be invisible any longer," said New York Senator Hillary Clinton, a former Obama rival.

“This victory represents a new promise, a realization of the long-held dreams of generations of Americans who have fought and continue to fight against the ugliness of inequality in all its forms,” said New York Governor David Paterson, who himself made history by becoming the first African American governor in New York. “"This election has captivated our nation and the world for the last two years, and now we must set aside our differences and join together to support the new administration.”

Just before 11:30 p.m., GOP candidate John McCain conceded the race and called Obama to congratulate him on his victory.

Addressing a crowd in his home state of Arizona, McCain thanked his supporters and asked for an earnest effort to come together with the new president-elect.

"I urge all Americans who supported me in not just congratulating him but offering our next president our goodwill and earnest effort by finding ways to come together," he said.

McCain called participating in the hard-fought campaign the greatest honor of his life.

The day saw near-record turnouts in New York City and across the nation, with more than 200,000 new voters registered in New York State in the two weeks before Election Day.

Obama was declared the winner after major media outlets projected him the victor in Florida just before 11 p.m., giving him that state's critical 27 electoral votes.

In addition to New York, he won the battleground states of Ohio, Virginia, Florida, and Colorado, as well as Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, Wisconsin, and the entire northeast.

McCain's victories included Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.

In local races, City Councilman Michael McMahon defeated Republican Robert Straniere for the congressional seat being vacated by GOP Rep. Vito Fossella. His win puts New York's congressional delegation solely in the hands of Democrats for the first time in 35 years.

It was a banner night for Democrats from coast to coast as the party scored big gains in both Congress and State Houses across the country.

Democrats picked up five seats in the U.S. Senate. They now hold a 54 to 40 advantage, with two seats held by independents.

Four races are still too close to call.

In the House of Representatives, Democrats now hold a 251 to 173 advantage with 11 seats still undecided.

Local exit polls showed that the economy played the largest roll in voters' choices. Sixty percent of voters picked it as the most important issue facing the nation.

Another prominent issue was the Iraq War, with 52 percent of New Yorkers saying they strongly disapprove of the war and 22 percent saying they somewhat disapprove.