REPUBLICANS AND OTHER SUPPORTERS OF JOHN MCCAIN WATCH THE FIRST ELECTION-NIGHT RETURNS IN A BALLROOM TUESDAY AT THE ARIZONA BILTMORE RESORT AND SPA. (Photo by Le Templar/Tribune)

A strong crowd already has turned out at the Arizona Biltmore resort to support John McCain in his bid for president. The Frank Lloyd Wright Ballroom has been transformed into election party central with giant television screens, a live band and four banks of television cameras and lights around the back of the room. Early cheers went up as CNN immediately called Kentucky for McCain and showed voting returns in other southern states with the Republican ahead. But only a trickle of actual votes have been counted, and everyone seems to be ready for a long night of waiting.

An empty press filing room this morning at the Arizona Biltmore Resort and Spa. This ballroom will be packed with media from around the world later as John McCain prepares to hear if he will be next the next U.S. president (Photo by Le Templar).

Today, I will get another taste of world history as I spend part of the day shadowing John McCain, the Republican candidate for president, here in Phoenix. McCain arrived at the Arizona Biltmore resort sometime after 2:30 a.m., after barnstorming more than seven states on Monday and finishing up with a midnight rally in Prescott, Ariz. 

It’s expected that McCain will vote here in Phoenix some time this morning and then he’s scheduled to take quick jaunts to Colorado and New Mexico in last-minute attempts to win over the remaining few undecided voters in those two election battleground states.

McCain will finish Election Day 2008 back here at the Biltmore, watching voting returns and speaking to the nation from a special stage on an outside lawn. Only a handful of people and TV cameras will be present in person for that speech. Most well-wishers and politicos will attend an indoors party in a decked out ballroom.

Sen. John McCain was thrilled to speak to an enthusiatic Arizona crowd after a successful run of the Super Tuesday primaries in February 2008 (Tribune file photo).

Arizona Sen. John McCain will be here in the Valley for the biggest night of his political career — after the polls have closed on the 2008 election. The McCain election night party will be at the Arizona Biltmore Resort and Spa, the same spot where McCain celebrated his big Super Tuesday win during the primaries in Feburary. The room was packed that night, and obviously there should be even more Arizonans who will want to see McCain as the general election returns come in.

But this Associated Press story says Arizona fans at the party will have to watch McCain give his election night speech on television like the rest of the world. In an odd departure from tradition, McCain is planning to speak from a spot on the Biltmore lawn outdoors, surrounded only by a few supporters and a limited number of media reporters.

One government college professor told AP that McCain might be forced into this as the Biltmore space isn’t all that big (which I can attest to) and an election night speech is for TV cameras anyway. However, the move also seems to fit the view offered by Libertarian candidate Bob Barr today that McCain now is expecting to lose to Sen. Barack Obama.

But I’m certainly not counting McCain out, not after seeing the new AP poll implying that the race might be tighter than other polls are showing.