Tonight on Close Up ` it's the most powerful job on the planet. It's about who can get the middle class in this country a bright and prosperous future. We haven't heard from the governor any specifics in terms of how he pays for that. Only the Americans vote, but who they choose will influence all of our lives. And speaking of powerful jobs, the Archbishop of Canterbury on women bishops, gay marriage and the ChristChurch Cathedral. Due to the live nature of Close Up, captions for some items may be incomplete. ONE News captions by John Ling and June Yeow. Close Up captions by Virginia Philp and Hugo Snell. Four more years was the call, and it's exactly what Barack Obama's got. WE'VE JUST SEEN A GRACIOUS SPEECH FROM MITT ROMNEY. IT IS AFTER MIDNIGHT IN CHICAGO. WE'RE WAITING FOR THE PRESIDENT TO COME AND SPEAK TO US. We've got a packed show for you tonight on the USA election result. We cross live to to the States in just a few moments, but first to the Chicago Bar. In Wellington is Ryan Malone, an expert on US elections. THANKS FOR JOINING US. FOR A START, A SURPIRSE? WHAT DID IT FOR BARACK OBAMA? PRETTY AMAZING RESULT, REALLY, I'M AMAZED BY IT BECAUSE MITT ROMNEY HAS DONE QUITE POORLY. I HESITATE TO USE THE WORD DISASTER. HE NEEDED TO WIN THOSE SWING STATES, BUT HE'S LOST COLORADO, WISCONSIN,... COLORADO AND MAY EVEN LOSE VIRGINIA. IT'S BEEN A VERY BAD NIGHT FOR ROMNEY. ARE YOU SAYING MITT ROMNEY WAS A WEAKER CANDITATE, OR THAT PEOPLE WANTED TO GIVE OBAMA ANOTHER CHANCE? BARACK OBAMA IS A ROCKSTAR IN MANY SENSES. HE'S GOT HIGH APPROVAL RATINGS. HE WAS ALWAYS GOING TO BE TOUGH TO BEAT, BUT ROMNEY WAS A COMPROMISED CANDIDATE. HE NEEDED TO REACH OUT TO THE FAR RIGHT. HE HAD TO FLIP-FLOP ON A NUMBER OF ISSUES SUCH AS ABORTION. AND SO PEOPLE I THINK VIEWED HIM AS A COMPRIMISED CANDIDATE. THE ROMNEY TRAIN LEFT TOO LATE. IT WASN'T UNTIL THE FIRST DEBATE WHERE OBAMA WAS A BIT OFF GUARD. IT WAS TOO LITTLE TOO LATE FROM ROMNEY. HOW MUCH WAS HE DAMAMGED ON THE 47% ON GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE OF SOME SORT? THAT FAMOUS VIDEO, YOU CAN SEE IT ON YOUTUBE. SOME PARTS WERE TAKEN OUT OF CONTEXT, BUT IT WAS PORTRAYED THAT ` THE IDEA WAS THAT OBAMA WAS A MAN OF THE PEOPLE, AND SO THE VIDEO WENT AGAINST ROMNEY. I THINK IT HURT HIM. LOOK AT THE POPULAR VOTE. IT'S ALMOST 50/50 THE COMMENT YOU KEEP HEARING NOW IS THERE ARE TWO AMERICAS. WHENEVER YOU LOOK AT THE ELECTORAL MAP, THE MIDDLE IS RED AND THE COASTS ARE BLUE. AMERICA IS A COUNTRY OF DIVERSITY. IT'S A COUNTRY OF DIVERSITY. THERE ARE EXTREMEMLY DIFFERENT VIEWS, AND IN THAT SENSE IT'S AN EXTREMELY DIVIDED COUNTRY. AND WE'LL SEE THAT FLOW THROUHG INTO OBAMA'S CHALLENGES THIS TIME. WE KNOW THAT BARACK OBAMA IS GOING TO HAVE TO DEAL WITH A CONGRESS GOVERENED BY REPUBLICANS. THE CONGRESS WILL BE MOSTLY REPUBLICAN. HOW IMPORTANT IS BARACK OBAMA'S SPEECH TONIGHT? BRIDGING THE GAP ` DOES IT START THIS EVENING? OF COURSE HE DOES. IT'S WHETHER THIS RHETORIC CAN MATCH THE REALITY. ANYBODY IN AMERICA KNOWS THE COLLISION COURSE THEY ARE ON. WHETHER THEY CAN AVOID THE MASSIVE DEPT PROBLEM THEY HAVE. THEY'RE GOING TO GO HEADLONG INTO FACING THAT DEBT. OBAMA HAS A CHALLGENE ON HIS HANDS. WE APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. THIS IS A LIVE SHOT IN CHICAGO. IT IS JUST AFTER MIDNIGHT. THEY'VE BEEN WAITING FOR SEVERAL HOURS. NO SIGN OF THE MAIN ATTRACTION AS YET. THE BUILDING IS LOCKED DOWN BY SECURITY. Americans are having a party in Auckland to mark the election, We can cross live now to American Club President Beth Coleman with club members Kim Daly and Charles Naslund. I VOTED OBAMA, AND I'M SO HAPPY. IT'S BEEN A WONDERFUL AFTERNOON. WE ARE SO EXCITED. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR HAVING US. CHARLES, HAS IT BEEN A GOOD NIGHT FOR YOU? NO, UNFORTUNATELY IT HASN'T. I'M A MITT ROMNEY SUPPORTER. I'M HAPPY OUR COUNTRY HAS LET US VOTE. I SUPPORT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE'S CHOICE, THOUGH. TELL ME, CHARLES, WERE YOU A ROMNEY SUPPORTER OR A REPUBLICAN SUPPORTER? THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION. I'M PRIMARILY A REPUBLICAN SUPPORTER. ROMNEY WAS THE CHOICE BECAUSE HE WAS THE LEADER. KIM, WHY DID YOU VOTE FOR OBAMA? WHERE DO I START? HE ELIMINATED WAGE DISCRIMINATION FOR WOMEN. HE SUPPORTED WOMEN'S RIGHTS, WOMEN'S EDUCATION. AND WAS A GREAT PERSON FOR EQUALITY. CAN WE JUST POP BACK TO BETH, THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF TALK ABOUT THE SPLIT IN YOUR COUNTRY. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE DIVISION? I THINK IT'S QUITE AN INTERESTING ELECTION BECAUSE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE HAVE COME OUT IN FORCE. THEY NEED TO WORK TOGETHER. IF THEY DON'T WORK TOGETHER, THEY WILL HAVE PROBLEMS. WHETHER THE EPISODE AROUND HURRICANE SANDY, OR WHATEVER HAPPENED. BARACK OBAMA WAS A VERY GOOD LEADER THROUGH ALL OF THAT. PEOPLE ARE CONFIDENT HE CAN LEAD THROUGH THE DIFFICULTIES. I KNOW YOU'RE WAITING TO SEE IF THE PRESIDENT IS COMING UP. COMING UP ` LIVE TO ILLINOIS. Joining me now live from Obama headquarters in Illinois is political editor Corin Dann. CORIN DANN, WHAT IS THE MOOD LIKE THERE? VERY VERY EXCITED, INDEED. HE'S KEEPING THEM WAITING A BIT. NOW THAT ROMNEY HAS CONCEDED, OBAMA WILL BE HERE SOON. CERTAINLY, THE CROWD IS IN PARTY MODE. THEY DROPPED A BIG CURTAIN BEHIND ME. THEY'RE READY TO GO, AND THEY'LL SALUTE HIM IN BIG STYLE. TELL ME, CORIN DANN, WHAT WAS THE MOOD YOU PICKED UP OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS? COULD YOU SENSE AN OBAMA VICTORY, OR WAS IT TOO TIGHT? THERE WAS A LOT OF NERVES IN THE BARACK OBAMA CAMP. POLLS DRIVE PEOPLE CRAZY HERE, ONE SAYING ONE THING, ANOTHER ANOTHER THING. IF YOU LOOKED AT A COUPLE OF STATISTICIANS, ONE OF THEM IN THE NEW YORK TIMES SAID OBAMA WOULD WIN BY 90% BECAUSE HE TARGETED THE SWING STATES AND THAT'S HOW IT TURNED OUT. HE GOT THOSE SWING STATES. THE REASON I ASK YOU THAT IS BECAUSE WHEN YOU COME IN FROM THE OUTSIDE, YOU HAVE A FRESH PERSPECTIVE. LOOKING AT IT FOR YOURSELF, WHAT WERE YOU FEELING? WELL, I HAVE TO ADMIT I THOUGHT THAT BARACK OBAMA WAS GOING TO WIN, BUT I STARTED TO THINK 'HANG ON A SEC.' ROMNEY'S CAMP DID THINK THEY HAD SOME MOMENTUM, AND YOU STARTED TO HAVE DOUBTS. MAYBE THE POLLS WILL BE WRONG? SO SOME RELIEF AMONGST THE CROWD HERE THAT THAT WASN'T THE CASE. BUT I THINK TINGED WITH RELIEF IS ACTUAL EXCITEMENT. THERE IS ANOTHER FOUR MORE YEARS. THEY ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO DRIVING THEIR CHANGE, AND IN PARTICULAR, TRY AND TURN AROUND THE ECONOMY. THAT'S HIS BIGGEST JOB. THERE IS ALREADY AN EXISTING RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BARACK OBAMA AND JOHN KEY. SO YOU DON'T HAVE THE PROBLEM OF OUR GOVERNMENT GETTING TO KNOW A NEW ONE, BUT ANYTHING SPECIAL FOR US? WE'LL NO LONGER HAVE HILLARY CLINTON WORKING WITH US. SHE'S STEPPED DOWN. THERE WILL BE SLOWING OF TALKS WITH THE TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP. THEY WILL PROCEED, THOUGH. BARACK OBAMA HAS REALIGNED HIS INTERESTS IN THE PACIFIC. THAT REALIGNMENT WILL STAY AND WILL ENGAGE NZ. THE RELATIONSHIP WITH CHINA IS INTERESTING. ROMNEY REALLY WENT AFTER CHINA. THAT COULD HAVE CAUSED PROBLEMS FOR LITTLE OLD NZ WHEN WE ARE FRIENDS WITH BOTH OF THEM. SO THAT'S BEEN REMOVED A BIT FROM THE PICTURE ` MORE SOFTLY SOFTLY FROM OBAMA THAN ROMNEY TO CHINA. MR AMBASSADOR, YOU'RE HAPPY? I'M HAPPY THAT DEMOCRACY WORKED. IT'S A NON-PARTISAN OFFICE THAT I HOLD. I DON'T HAVE AN OPINION ON THE WINNER OR LOSER. IN TERMS OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY, WAS IT PARTICULARLY WELL FOLLOWED COMPARED TO OTHERS? I FOUND THE LEVEL OF INTEREST THE SAME AS IT WAS FOUR YEARS AGO. THE LAST TWO HAVE BEEN VERY EXUBERANTLY FOUGHT. SO IT'S THE SAME FEELING THAT MY COLLEAUGUES FELT FOUR YEARS AGO. WHAT ABOUT NZ'S KNOWLEDGE OF THIS SYSTEM? DO PEOPLE IN THE COUNTRY UNDERSTAND HOW US POLITICS WORK? ABSOLUTELY. I FIND THAT KS KNOW MORE ABOUT OUR SYSTEM THAN SOME AMERICANS, INCLUDING ON TECHNICALITIES. MANY KNOW HOW MANY ELECTORAL VOTES THERE ARE PER STATE, FOR EXAMPLE. WHAT THOSE EVERYDAY KS IS WHAT THIS VICTORY MEANS TO THEM. WITH THE CONTINUATION OF THE BARACK OBAMA ADMINISTRATION, WHAT CAN NZ EXPECT FROM THIS? I THINK MY ANSWER WOULD BE THE SAME EVEN IN MITT ROMNEY WON. IT'S A BI-PARTISAN ISSUE. MOST OF THE PEOPLE FROM THE CONGRESS ARE REPUBLICAN. SO I WOULD SAY, WE'LL SEE MORE OF THE STATUS QUO. THERE'S BEEN TALK AS WELL THAT THE PRESIDENT NOW HAS A MANDATE IN THE US. IS THAT HOW IT'S SEEN? I CAN'T SPEAK TO WHAT THE PEOPLE SEE THE US RESULTS AS MEANING. IT'S IMPORTANT WHO WINS THE ELECTION. THAT GIVES HIM THE MANDATE TO LEAD. WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE EXPECTATIONS, ABOUT DEMOCRACY WORKING. WERE YOU NERVOUS WE COULD HAVE HAD NO RESULT TONIGHT? NO, THAT DOESN'T WORRY ME AT ALL. THE FACT THAT THE RACE IS TIGHT ` A TIGHT RACE IS NOT AN INDICTMENT AGAINST DEMOCRACY. SOMETIMES IT PRODUCES TIGHT RESULTS. IT ACTUALLY SHOWS DEMOCRACY WORKS. WE APPRECIATE YOU JOINING US TONIGHT. CONRGATS ON IT WORKING. THANKS, MARK. USUALLY IF THERE IS A CHANGE OF ADMINISTRATION, EVERYTHING CAN GET THROWN OUT. 20,000 JOBS COULD HAVE GONE. THIS WON'T HAPPEN NOW. LET'S HAVE A LOOK AT CHICAGO, ILLINOIS. THE PRESIDENT IS DUE SHORTLY. HE IS IN THE BUILDING. HE'LL BE COMING TO THE PODIUM SHORTLY. A JUBILANT CROWD. VERY DIFFERENT FROM WHAT WE SAW IN BOSTON. OUR APOLOGIES ` WE WOULD HAVE THE ARCHBISHOP TOMORROW. BE ASSURED, BARACK OBAMA IS IN THE BUILDING.