High turnout seen in Massachusetts Senate race ( Wall Street watching )

Marketwatch ^ | Jan. 19, 2010, 5:40 p.m. EST | Robert Schroeder, MarketWatch

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Democrats' majority at stake in close election for seat vacated by Ted Kennedy

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Throngs of voters reportedly turned out in Massachusetts on Tuesday in that state's special election to fill the late Edward Kennedy's Senate seat, in a closely watched race that has Democrats fearful of losing their 60-vote majority in the upper chamber of Congress.

Scott Brown, a Republican state senator, was leading the Democratic candidate, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, in many polls going into the contest -- putting at risk the Democrats' supermajority and with it President Barack Obama's health-care overhaul and other priorities.

Republican Underdog Rises in Mass. Race

The Republican candidate for Ted Kennedy's Senate seat has risen in the polls, by borrowing a page out of the Obama playbook, Doug Luzader reports. Video courtesy of Fox News.

Brown, once a little-known lawmaker, has surprised observers by pulling ahead of Coakley in most polls, turning the election into a nail-biter. Polls close in Massachusetts at 8 p.m. Eastern.

A party needs 60 Senate seats to overcome filibusters and thus easily pass legislation.

As voters cast their ballots, the White House-backed overhaul for health care hung in the balance. Legislation has passed the House and Senate, but a compromise bill has yet to make it through either chamber. Read more MarketWatch coverage on health-care reform.

Aetna and other large insurance company stocks rose along with the broader market on Tuesday as investors weighed the special Senate race.

[OmegaMan]

I hope he wins in a landslide. I wonder why there haven’t been any exit polls yet?

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

See this thread:

No Exit Polls [in Massachusetts]