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eyes on the U.S.

Obama Wins Historic Second Term With 300-Plus Electoral Votes

Worldcrunch

Four more years. Barack Obama has been re-elected President of the United States, defeating Republican challenger Mitt Romney and defying odds for an incumbent candidate running in the face of persistent economic problems.

Winning at least 303 electoral votes, he swept the battleground states of Colorado, Iowa, New Hampshire, Ohio, Wisconsin and Virginia Tuesday night. Florida's 29 electoral vote were still undecided early Wednesday.

Obama was also set to triumph in the nationwide popular vote, although far short of the 8.5 million ballot margin against John McCain in 2008.

“Tonight in this election, you, the American people, reminded us that while our road has been hard, while our journey has been long, we have picked ourselves up, we have fought our way back,” he told his supporters in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

“We know in our hearts that for the United States of America, the best is yet to come.”

It was an emotional and dramatic evening, as Romney held off conceding defeat 90 minutes after television networks began projecting Obama as the winner at 11.30 P.M.

Posting a photo of himself hugging his wife Michelle after his victory was announced, the message was retweeted 549,091 times as of Wednesday morning, making it the most retweeted message in the history of Twitter:

Four more years. twitter.com/BarackObama/st…

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) November 7, 2012

In 2012, political leaders from around the globe have also taken to Twitter to congratulate the President:

Warm congratulations to my friend @barackobama. Look forward to continuing to work together.

— David Cameron (@David_Cameron) November 7, 2012

PM Netanyahu Congratulates US President Barack Obama on his Election Victorybit.ly/SSG53R twitter.com/netanyahu/stat…

— Benjamin Netanyahu (@netanyahu) November 7, 2012

And in Barack Obama's small ancestral home, Kogelo in Kenya, jubilant crowds took to the streets to celebrate:

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FOCUS: Russia-Ukraine War

Black Sea Survivor: Tale Of A Ukrainian Special Agent Thrown Overboard In Enemy Waters

This is a tale of a Ukrainian special forces operator who wound up surviving 14 hours at sea, staying afloat and dodging Russian air and sea patrols.

Black Sea Survivor: Tale Of A Ukrainian Special Agent Thrown Overboard In Enemy Waters

Looking at the Black Sea in Odessa, Ukraine.

Rustem Khalilov and Roksana Kasumova

KYIV — During a covert operation in the Black Sea, a Ukrainian special agent was thrown overboard and spent the next 14 hours alone at sea, surrounded by enemy forces.

Stay up-to-date with the latest on the Russia-Ukraine war, with our exclusive international coverage.

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The agent, who uses the call-sign "Conan," agreed to speak to Ukrainska Pravda, to share the details of nearly being lost forever at sea. He also shared some background on how he arrived in the Ukrainian special forces. Having grown up in a village in a rural territory of Ukraine, Conan describes himself as "a simple guy."

He'd worked in law enforcement, personal security and had a job as a fitness trainer when Russia launched its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022. That's when he signed up with the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Main Directorate of Intelligence "Artan" battalion. It was nearly 18 months into his service, when Conan faced the most harrowing experience of the war. Here's his first-hand account:

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