Paul declared winner, as exit polls portend other victories on both sides

Fox News Channel and ABC News have projected Rand Paul as victor in Kentucky's open Senate race, where the son of Texas Republican Ron Paul will replace Sen. Jim Bunning (R-KY).

Of Paul, ABC News wrote: "The libertarian-leaning ophthamologist won on the back of strong anti-President Obama sentiment in the state. By a 23-point margin, voters there said they were casting their ballots in opposition to Obama, with 62 percent disapproving of Obama's job performance overall, according to ABC News exit polls. Turnout among Democrats, reflecting an enthusiasm gap prevalent in many parts of country, was low, while independents turned up in higher-than-usual numbers, the polls showed."

Other exit polls, as produced by The Huffington Post and The Drudge Report, both show several clear victors -- among them, Ron Johnson (R-WI), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Marco Rubio (R-FL). If victorious, Rubio defeats popular Independent Charlie Crist.

The exit poll produced by Huffington's Sam Stein reflects the following:

Dick Blumenthal +8,

Marco Rubio +21,

Roy Blunt +10,

Barbara Boxer +8,

Mark Kirk +6,

Rand Paul +11,

NV--EVEN,

Michael Bennet +2,

Pat Toomey +4,

Patty Murray +6,

Joe Manchin +7,

Ron Johnson +5

Stein adds, "A Democratic source sent over numbers that they’ve seen. But they were offered on condition that they wouldn’t be re-published. Needless to say, they generally reflect the numbers above, though with even more promising statistics for Democrats in tight races."