Polling in Ohio will end at 7:30 p.m., but results for what should be a close race are likely to be unknown until late Tuesday leading into Wednesday, according to Obama for America staff.

Rachel Racusen, deputy national communications director for OFA, said even today, Obama and his campaign workers are making attempts to pick up any last-minute votes they can.

“For us, it’s all about a ground operation,” Racusen said. “And that’s turning out voters. We’ve been making sure that we were hitting every door, making every phone call, doing every creative thing we could possibly do to make sure that voters know where to vote, know where their polling location is, that if they’ve already voted, that they’re getting their friends, their families their neighbors, their co-workers to the polls.”

Racusen said Obama has been personally reaching out to voters throughout the day.

“He’s also been doing calls with supporters and making sure that they understand the importance of this election,” she said.

Among other swing states, Racusen said she believes Ohio will be a crucial battleground state that could potentially determine the result of the election.

“[Between] the auto rescue, between sort of the recovery that we’re seeing there, I think it’s especially a place where he does feel like the signs of everything that he’s done over the past four years really are taking hold and that voters really do understand … the choice that they’re making in this election,” she said.

Racusen is hopeful Obama’s support from key demographics will sway results in his favor.

“I think for us it was all about turning out young voters who we actually believe are just as enthusiastic as they were in 2008 about the president, about taking part in this election,” Racusen said. “It’s about women, it’s about Latino voters, African American voters; it’s about the demographics that really make up America, that is, what America looks like. We believe that if the electorate that turns out today really reflects America and looks like America that we’re going to win.

Racusen said it’s not too late for voters to get to the polls. If voters are still in line when the polls close, she said they would still be allowed to vote. Although the official results won’t be in for several hours, Racusen remains confident the president will be reelected.

“We do believe that we’re in a very strong position going into tonight,” Racusen said. “We also know it’s going to be very, very close. We’ve been saying that all along despite the swings in the polls one way or the other. So we could be looking at a long night.”

Contact Leighann Mcgivern at [email protected].