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Barack Obama addressing supporters after winning election, 2008

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Credits:

Reproduced courtesy of Getty Images. Photograph by Scott Olson.

Creator:

Scott Olson, photographer, 2008

TLF ID:

R9996

Source:

Getty Images http://www.gettyimages.com

Digital resource description:

This is a photograph of Senator Barack Obama, president-elect of the USA, addressing supporters at a victory celebration in Chicago's Grant Park, late on the evening of 4 November 2008. He stands at a podium equipped with a pair of microphones, in front of two US flags.

Educational value:

Senator Barack Obama (1961–) became the first African-American to be elected president of the USA on 4 November 2008 when he defeated Republican Senator John McCain (1936–) in the 2008 election. Obama's win was a significant victory for the Democratic Party, and was seen by many as a rejection of the foreign, economic and domestic policies of the previous Republican administration.
Obama's decisive victory is evident in the tally of the electoral college, the process by which US voters elect a president. Each of the 50 states has an allocated number of electoral college votes depending on its population size. A candidate must win the majority of votes within a state to gain that state's electoral votes, with a minimum of 270 electoral votes needed to win the election. Obama won 365–173 electoral votes, the largest victory for the Democratic Party in decades.
A crucial factor in Obama's victory was his messages of hope, inclusiveness and change, delivered throughout the campaign season and embodied in the slogans 'Change we can believe in' and 'Yes we can'. These slogans became catchcries along the campaign trail, chanted by supporters at rallies, incorporated into speeches and even featuring in popular music.
Obama gained widespread favour among US voters through his support for the withdrawal of US forces from Iraq, energy reforms to reduce US dependence on foreign oil and social programs that would assist those seeking to go on to tertiary education by providing them with financial assistance in exchange for community service.
Barack Hussein Obama Jr was born to a US mother and a Kenyan father who met at the University of Hawaii in the early 1960s. Following his university studies, Obama worked as a lawyer before entering politics in Chicago. He quickly rose to become an Illinois state senator before becoming a US senator in 2004. He declared that he would run for president in early February 2007.
Evident in this image is the prominent display of US flags. More so than in Australian elections, US presidential candidates seek to link themselves to this symbol of national pride. During the campaign Obama was criticised for an alleged lack of patriotism, a charge he rejected in a series of powerful speeches in which he expressed his pride in the potential of his country.

Keywords:

Barack Obama; Celebrations; Democratic party; Elections; Executive power; President elect; Presidents

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