Melanie Stetson Freeman/The Christian Science Monitor

Youth vote decides presidential election – again. Is this the new normal?

6:18 pm ET -

The youth vote proved decisive in Tuesday's presidential election, just as it did in 2008. But this year, it was a far greater surprise.

Election 2012 results: Women to reach landmark – 20 percent of senators

4:37 pm ET - The female newcomers to the Senate include four Democrats and one Republican. While the economy was a top voter issue, other issues important to women such as abortion also factored in.

Vox News
Surprise at Obama’s victory illustrates growing partisan divide in US media

4:01 pm ET - Conservatives' shock that Mitt Romney did not win big is further evidence, analysts say, that the public is consuming media that reinforce personal views rather than give actual information about the world.

Malawi suspends anti-gay laws

3:44 pm ET - Malawi's moratorium has attracted a lot of attention in Africa, where two-thirds of countries criminalize homosexuality.

As 'fiscal cliff' looms, stock markets shudder at economic 'uncertainty'

3:27 pm ET - Tuesday's election has stirred stock markets' concerns about the economy, with the Dow Jones falling 2 percent Wednesday. The reason: Washington appears poised for gridlock – again.

Terrorism & Security
Rebel hopes rise that reelected Obama will act on Syria as blasts hit Damascus

11:04 am ET - Three explosions in the capital, including an attack on the presidential palace, could mark a new phase in the rebels' campaign against the Assad regime.

Virginia Senate: how Tim Kaine survived a record barrage of attack ads

8:44 am ET - No candidate for the US Senate has ever had more money spent against him than Virginia's Tim Kaine. But he triumphed because he was seen as the more bipartisan choice, experts say.

Election 2012: why status quo result could mean more Washington gridlock

3:49 am ET - Serious business awaits the nation's lawmakers, the 'fiscal cliff' foremost. But the results of Election 2012 could give Washington's main players cause to dig in their heels.

Legalized marijuana (Amendment 64), same-sex marriage make gains (+video)

3:28 am ET - Some 176 ballot measures in 38 states included historic wins for gay marriage and legalized marijuana (Amendment 64 in Colorado), as well as votes in four red states to rein in 'Obamacare.'

Claire McCaskill: 'most endangered Democrat' wins Missouri Senate race (+video)

3:17 am ET - Rep. Todd Akin's comments on rape played big at the polls among both women and men voters, helping Senator McCaskill win by nearly 15 percentage points a race she had been expected to lose.

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Decoder Wire
In passionate speech, Obama says 'You have made me a better president' (+video)

3:11 am ET - President Obama said he had never been more hopeful after winning a hard-fought election over Mitt Romney. He cobbled together a winning coalition, but it might not be enough to give him a mandate.

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