imagine what a little time can do for your family. ah, ha! take that! missed me! uhh! making news in america this morning. >> gop sweep. blue states turn red with two big victories for republicans on election day. results from the all-important races. tragic end. the bodies of three college students have been found after a search. but still many questions about what happened. >> and consumer alert. a chemical linked to a long list of health problems could be lurking in canned foods. >> it's wednesday, november 4th, 2009. good morning, thanks for being with us on this wednesday. well, republicans are celebrating victories in two key races this morning. voters in new jersey and virginia have chosen the gop candidate as their next governor. >> president obama had campaigned for the democrats in both races. viviana hurtado is joining us from washington for what those results might mean for the white house. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, vinita and jeremy. political analysts say the results are not a referendum on the president but on the state of the economy. republicans will be moving into the governor's office in both new jersey and virginia. >> tonight you have hired me. thank you. >> reporter: bob mcdonnell beat creigh deeds in virginia. chris christie ousted incumbent jon corzine in new jersey. >> we know the challenges we face and over the next four years we'll have our work cut out for us. >> reporter: these states helped the president take the white house last year. the gop says the defeat of democratic candidates is a referendum on mr. obama, but exit polls suggest otherwise. in virginia and new jersey about half of voters approved of the president's handling of his job and most say he was not a factor in their votes. the fault line was the weak economy. according to abc's george stephanopoulos -- >> here's what's got to be worrisome to the white house, what the voters were saying about the economy. 89% of the voters in new jersey worried about the economy. 85% in virginia, that is just a primal scream from the voters. >> reporter: upstate new york's 23rd congressional district race upended the claim that voters are calling out for a more conservative agenda. bill owens beat doug hoffman after the republican party candidate dropped out and backed her democratic rival. >> they put aside partisanship and declared they're ready to move forward, not back. >> reporter: democrats insist the real referendum will come next year in the 2010 midterm congressional elections. and apparently the president didn't watch the election results. nor did the first family. first tween sasha and malia attended a miley cyrus concert. >> viviana hurtado live in washington. thank you. a few high-profile mayoral races are headed toward runoffs. in atlanta a councilwoman who could become the first white mayor in a generation will face off against a black state senator. mary norwood got 36% -- the runoff held next month. the mayor's race in houston is still undecided. annise parker faces gene locke after neither candidate got 50% of the volt. a victory for parker would have made houston the nation's largest city to be led by an openly gay mayor. opponents of same-sex marriage faced a victory in maine. it would have allowed them to marry. it has lost in every single state. the five states which have legalized same-sex marriage did so through legislation or court rulings. abc's george stephanopoulos will have complete analysis of all the results coming up later on "good morning america." well, in iran there were huge rallies outside the site of the former u.s. embassy to mark the 30th anniversary of its takeover by militants. the official pro-government demonstrations drew thousands of people. some chanting "down with america" and "down with israel." meanwhile, elsewhere protesters clashed with police. it now appears a vote on health care reform will not come until next year. just last week president obama said he was absolutely confident he'd have a bill to sign before the end of the year, but top democrats in congress tell abc news that is now highly unlikely. in north dakota a sad end to the search for three missing college students. police found their car at the bottom of a pond. inside they discovered the three women's bodies. ctv's joe macashon reports. >> reporter: 20-year-old afton williamson and kyrstin gemar and ashley neufeld from brandon, manitoba played together on the state university softball team and late sunday night police believe they died together. >> they were following northwest dickinson. >> reporter: a friend was the last person to hear from them near midnight sunday. the call lasted seconds. the search for the girls started monday. rescue teams focusing near the south tower where the last signal was received and police believe it finally led them to the scene. >> tracks lead up to the pond going to the pond and, you know, it's too early to determine what else happened. >> reporter: with few leads and now few answers, students at the university have turned to faith. for two nights people have gathered in prayer. foul play is not suspected but police say it hasn't been ruled out. in dickinson, i'm jill macyshon. the grim search for more bodies near the home of a convicted rapist resumes in cleveland. anthony sowell will face murder charges. yesterday searchers found four more bodies buried in his backyard and skull in his basement. the body count is at least ten. neighbors complained about it for years. they're questioning why it took so long for police to investigate especially given his records. a cluster of brush fires is being blamed on a puckup truck spitting out hot metal. the fire scorched 50 acres of the dime bar community and threatened homes along the highway there. took 300 firefighters to bring this under control. now for a look at this morning's weather from around the nation. light rain and snow showers from the ohio valley down to the appalachians. by this evening it'll be much of the same from new york to washington, d.c. a dusting of snow in northern michigan and wisconsin today. showers in the southern half of florida and hotter than normal in the southwest. >> a near record 93 in phoenix. 72 in sacramento and 70 in albuquerque. highs in the 60s for seattle, portland and boise. 40s from fargo to detroit and 57 in kansas city. 49 in boston. 53 in new york and 85 in miami. when we come back on "america this morning," more election results including a surprise in the big apple. >> plus, book battle. plummeting prices on new releases from two retail giants. and a missing luggage mystery softed as police pull hundreds of pieces out of one house. the kodak zi8 pocket video camera shoots and uploads in full hd so the whole world an watch you do your thing, whether you want them to or not. kodak, it's time to smile. that's why i use covergirl's simply ageless makeup with olay regenerist serum. a department store brand can glob up in lines and actually make you look older. simply ageless makes you look amazing. from olay and easy, breezy, beautiful covergirl. i have a note from the previous owner. just show me the carfax. a carfax report can help you choose a great used car. it's free at thousands of reputable dealers. just say, "show me the carfax!" the federal reserve has set interest rates at record low levels to help the economy recover and that is not likely to change today. the central bank widely expected to keep a key rate near zero. that would encourage consumers and businesses to spend more money. the real question for investors is how much longer rates will stay this low. they will be listening for clues from the bank today. well, the auto industry is providing evidence that the economy is on the road to recovery. auto sales bounced back in october after a dismal september. general motors led the way with sales climbing almost 5%. it was gm's first year-over-year gain in almost two years. ford saw an increase of more than 3% but chrysler's sales tumbled 30%. well, stocks are posting solid gains overseas this morning ahead of the fed's announcement. tokyo's nikkei average climbed 0.4%. hong kong's hang seng is higher. in london the ftse opened higher. wall street starts the day with the dow at 9,771 after falling 17 yesterday. the nasdaq added 8 points to close at 2057. america's most celebrated investor says he is betting on america. warren buffett will pay $34 billion to buy all of burlington northern. he says freight traffic will grow as the economy prime of the and it's a business that can't be shipped overseas. amazon and walmart appear to be extending price wars over new books beyond just preorders. some of the books originally discounted for $9 went on sale tuesday. both retailers were selling the titles for as much as 50% off the suggested price. although not as low as $9. t-mobile is experiencing a nationwide outage. more than a million subscribers are having problems making or receiving calls and sending text messages. the problems began early tuesday afternoon. this is the second black eye for t-mobile in less than a month and lost data for some customers a few weeks ago. >> kind of hard to complain if your phone doesn't work. >> read more about these stories online at abcnews.com. next on this wednesday, a dangerous chemical found in popular brands of canned foods, so should you be worried? >> an oscar announcement. something different at next year's show. ♪ when you're trying to lose weight, the more options you have, the more likely you are o stay on track. ♪ that's why there's 8 delicious kinds of special k cereal. ♪ because every girl could use a little variety. ♪ special k -- now in 8 delicious flavors. big nighttime breathing relief... introt,ces-- drum roll please-- new breathe right extra. the only strip with an extra spring-like band, it's 50% stronger for congested noses that need extra help in opening nasal passages... so you breathe even 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( cluck, cluck, cluck ) oh, wowww ! that's fun ! you didn't say i could have a real one. well, you didn't ask. even kids know when it's wrong to hold out on somebody. why don't banks ? we're ally, a new bank that alerts you when your money could be working harder and earning more. it's just the right thing to do. we continue now with a look at your road conditions for this wednesday. pretty dry for much of the country but wet in the ohio valley along i-75 and those rain-slick roads stretch down to the appalachians today. showers could also affect the commute on i-95 in south florida. and it is a good day to fly. there are no major weather-related airport delays. recapping this morning's top story, republicans win two high-profile governors' races. >> chris christie has beaten the incumbent jon corzine, 49-45%. christie told supporters it's time to take new jersey back for those who don't want the government to fix every problem. and in virginia, former state attorney general bob mcdonnell easily defeated creigh deeds to become the first republican governor in eight years. in both states independents who had been key to president obama's victory last year went with the republicans this time around. new york's mayor is one of several big city leaders looking ahead to a new term but it was a bit of a narrow win. billionaire michael bloomberg spent $90 million of his own money to defeat challenger bill thompson. in the end closer than expected, though, with bloomberg winning by just 5 percentage points. in the motor city successful businessman and former nba star dave bing keeps the mayor's job serving out the remainder of the former may your's second term there. no nonsense bing made national headlines for his efforts to turn detroit around. he refused to debate his challenger saying he didn't have time to play politics. and in boston, thomas menino continues his streak as the city's longest serving mayor. last night he won an unprecedented fifth term in office. 16 years there. one lawmaker introduced a spread that could slow the spread of swine flu and other illnesses. the legislation will require businesses to provide five paid sick days to protect workers and others from these contagious illnesses. about 50 million americans don't have paid sick leave. many of them work in food, service and hospitality. an arizona couple is under arrest accused of stealing more than a thousand pieces of luggage from the airport. the thefts happened at phoenix sky harbor airport. yesterday police pulled bag after bag from the home of keith king and stacey king. investigators do not know how long they have been happening. all the luggage tags that would have helped identify the bags' owners were removed. "consumer reports" is sounding the alarm about a chemical in canned foods. tests show a synthetic hormone called bpa were found in all 19 products studied and they say the government should step in. here's lisa stark. >> reporter: "consumer reports" says the results of its bpa tests offer a snapshot of what consumers will find in the grocery store. and they say it is not a pretty picture. >> consumer cannot tell how much bpa may have gotten into the food in any canned food item that they pick up, and the story here is, you don't know, and you can't know. >> reporter: bpa is a chemical that has long been used in everything from baby bottles to the lining of canned goods. some studies have linked bpa exposure to reproductive problems and increased risk of cancer and diabetes. consumers union found the highest levels in canned goods, del monte green beans and progresso vegetable soup. >> one serving for a small child of those green beans cld cause that child to ingest a dose close to the level that already causes harm in animal studies. >> reporter: the test even found the chemical in vital choice canned tuna, marketed as bpa free. the company says it is dismayed and is determined to find the source of the problem. it was a different story in paper products. no bpa in similac powdered infant formula or in nestle's juicy juice. reacting to the report, the grocery industry insists there's no cause for consumer alarm. >> we would hate for them to be scared away by one report when the vast majority of the regulatory agencies globally have assured its safety. >> reporter: government scientists have studied bpa, and there is disagreement about whether or not low levels of exposure are dangerous. but there's been so much consumer concern that the leading baby bottle manufacturers will now make bottles without the chemical. the food and drug administration is doing its safety review of bpa with results expected by the end of this month. for many consumers, answers cannot come soon enough. lisa stark, abc news, washington. well, with the baseball season almost over it is time for basketball. here's j.w. stewart at espnews. thanks and good morning. turns out the best college basketball team in syracuse is not the syracuse orange. syracuse, number 25 in the espn/"usa today" preseason coaches poll hosting lemoyne a coup couple -- they put the orange up by one. they got their hands full with the division 2 lemoyne dolphins, next possession, christopher johnson, the go-ahead three and lemoyne is up by 2. syracuse has one last chance. wesley johnson gets a good look at the three. no good. division 2 lemoyne stuns syracuse on its home floor, 82-79 in this exhibition contest. now to the nba where the games are counting. jazz and mavs. utah led by 60 with eight minutes left before nowitzki rallied the troops. dirk did damage inside. he did damage outside. the mavs are down by three after that. dirk getting into the lane, and one. the mavs outscored the jazz in the fourth. dirk was 7 of 8 from the field in the fourth quarter and hit 14 foul shots, as well. he scored 29 in the fourth. finished with 40. mavs come back to win 96-85. jeremy and vinita, back to you. >> well, the producers of the oscars say they found the perfect pair to emcee next year's ceremony. >> steve martin and alec baldwin will share it at the 82nd academy awards next year hoping to continue a boost started by hugh jackman last year. it will be martin's third time as host and a first for baldwin who called it an opportunity of a lifetime. >> apparently they're in a movie too. wouldn't it be something if they were nominated and the hosts? >> a good pairing, though. >> we'll see. should be. coming up a look at the stories we'll be following. what is shaping up to be a tense day in iran's capital city. major commuter headaches in philadelphia. we'll be right back. what's our favorite part of honey bunches of oats? the sparkly flakes. the honey-baked bunches! the magic's in the mix. my favorite part? eating it. honey bunches of oats. taste the joy we put in every spoonful. honey bunches of oats. we call the bunches in honey bunches of oats the prize in the box. well, now there's a prize inside the prize. pecans! pecans! baked into crunchy oat bunches. taste the delicious surprise in every spoonful. new honey bunches of oats with pecan bunches. beautiful. and when my symptoms-the coughing, wheezing, tightness in my chest came back- i knew i had to see my doctor. he told me i had choices in controller medicines. we chose symbicort. symbicort starts to improve my lung function within 15 minutes. that's important to me because i know the two medicines in symbicort are beginning to treat my symptoms and helping me take control of my asthma. and that makes symbicort a good choice for me. symbicort will not replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. and should not be taken more than twice a day. symbicort contains formoterol. medicines like formoterol may increase the chance of asthma-related death. so, it is not for people whose asthma is well controlled on other asthma medicines. see your doctor if your asthma does not improve or gets worse. i know symbicort won't replace a rescue inhaler. within 15 minutes symbicort starts to improve my lung function and begins to treat my symptoms. that makes symbicort a good choice for me. you have choices. ask your doctor if symbicort is right for you. 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( ding, cheering, ringing ) keeping you full and focused with more than double the fiber and whole grain... in every tasty bite -- frrrrrrosted mini-wheeeeats! didn't know i had it in me. a 15 month old is dead and the mother's boyfriend is charged. three softball players disappeared and they were found last night in a story of heartbreak. two students take a road trip to 1600 pennsylvania avenue to play a showment. >> i could listen to that all day. that and more coming up but it is wednesday. let's get some weather. good morning when you start off before you put your feet on the floor start rubbing your hands, it is chilly. we have a frost advisory. we have done one of these. look at these, 40 in edge mir and once you get inland 34 and bel air, 30 westminster and that's down in the old historic district. mid30s. baltimore, howard county, westbound. frost advisory. we come out of the 30s. 55 with a cloudy afternoon. let's check the roads. you may need to warm up the car. >> the beltway is looking good traffic is moving nicely. no incidents about out a couple of lane closures for construction projects. westbound span of the pay bridge is closed.