‘It’s so amazing. I’m so ecstatic’

Tuesday’s historic election sent crowds pouring into streets on the Westside and in South and East Los Angeles.

Thousands -- men in suits and women in dresses -- spilled onto thoroughfares in Century City, police said. Authorities blocked Pico, Olympic and Santa Monica boulevards around the Century Plaza Hotel & Spa, the location of election night celebrations for the California Democratic Party.

The hotel, where Democrats held an Obama election night party, was a madhouse. As early as 7:30 p.m., hundreds had lined up for blocks.

Hotel telephone operator Rosemary Aguayo said the cheering began after TV networks called the election for Sen. Barack Obama at 8 p.m.

The main floor of the hotel was packed with people, and security guards were at the escalators blocking the way down to the ballrooms where the L.A. Obama Democratic party and other political events were being held.

Some tried name-dropping to get in. “People were saying, ‘I’m the deputy mayor, let me in,’ ” said one security guard.

At East L.A. campaign headquarters for Latinos for Obama, revelers jumped up and down and screamed at traffic passing by on Cesar Chavez Boulevard.

“It’s so amazing. I’m so ecstatic. It’s totally surreal, but life-affirming,” said Alma Marquez, who was inside the storefront office watching the excitement outside. She had been there since 5 a.m., working on a phone bank where volunteers made about 50,000 calls to Latino voters across the country.

Wanda Evans, 54, of South Los Angeles was in the lobby, pressing her phone to her ear.

“He won! He won! I can’t believe it!” she said, holding her hand to her mouth and looking around in disbelief.

The scene was just as jubilant in South Los Angeles. Along Crenshaw Boulevard at West 30th Street, drivers honked their horns as passengers cheered, raised fists and threw thumbs up. On the sidewalks, onlookers waved Obama signs and cheered.

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Contributing to this report were Times staff writers Ron-Gong Lin II, Tami Abdollah, Alicia Lozano, Raja Abdulrahim, Catherine Ho, Corina Knoll and Paloma Esquivel.