ROUGH CUT - NO REPORTER NARRATION

U.S. President Barack Obama congratulated Republican rival Mitt Romney on Tuesday (November 06) for running a hard-fought race for the White House and expressed confidence he would win re-election during a stop at a local campaign office to thank volunteers.

"We feel confident we've got the votes to win, but its going to depend ultimately whether those votes turn out and so I would encourage everybody on all sides to make sure you exercise this precious right that we have and that people fought so hard for us to have. I'm looking forward to the results and I expect we'll have a good night, but no matter what happens I just want to say how much I appreciate everybody who has supported me, everybody who has worked so hard on my behalf. And, again, I want to congratulate Governor Romney and his team for a hard fought race as well," Obama said as volunteers made phone calls encouraging supporters to get to the polls.

Opinion polls show Obama and Romney in a virtual dead heat, although the Democratic incumbent has a slight advantage in several vital swing states that could give him the 270 electoral votes needed to win the state-by-state contest.