Merrimack Valley

President-elect Obama: 'Change has come to America'

By Crystal Bozek
cbozek@eagletribune.com
Published: November 5, 2008

Sen. Barack Obama's had three simple yet profound words to sum up one of the most exhausting and exhilarating presidential campaigns in American history.

"Yes we can."

Obama will be sworn in as the nation's first black president on Jan. 20, fulfilling the dream Martin Luther King Jr. so eloquently spoke of in August 1963. Equality, it seems, has taken a step forward.

"It's been a long time coming, but tonight SEmD because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment SEmD change has come to America," Obama said.

Obama, the son of a Kenyan father and a white mother from Kansas, defeated Sen. John McCain in a landslide election that drew a record number of voters out to the polls.

The Democratic senator from Illinois sealed his victory by defeating McCain in the prime battleground states, many of them typical Republican strongholds — Ohio, Florida, New Hampshire, Virginia and Iowa. He won every Merrimack Valley community — and Massachusetts for that matter — averaging between 50 to 80 percent of the vote in each of this area's cities and towns.

"The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there," Obama told a crowd of 125,000 screaming supporters at Grant Park in Chicago. "I promise you — we as a people will get there."

The crowd danced, and several people cried, as they chanted a mix of "Yes, we can," and "Yes, we did."

Many local residents interviewed said they were ready for a change after eight years of George W. Bush, who entered yesterday's election day with a mere 20 percent approval rating.

"I feel that he's going to provide change," said 19-year-old Trent Gallant, a first-time voter from Andover. "I believe the president is nothing more than a spokesperson for the country and I believe that he is a more inspirational speaker and something this country needs."

Obama was expected to carry more than half of the 50 states. The popular vote was close but not the count in the Electoral College, where it mattered most. Obama had secured 338 electoral points to McCain's 156 at midnight. A candidate needs 270 points to win the presidency.

At a rally in Phoenix, McCain urged his supporters to join him in congratulating Obama, which drew a mix of cheers and boos, saying the American people have spoken.

"I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face," McCain said. "Today, I was a candidate for the highest office in the country I love so much, and tonight, I remain her servant."

McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, was standing with him, but did not speak.

"I don't know - I don't know what more we could have done to try to win this election. I'll leave that to others to determine," McCain said. "Every candidate makes mistakes, and I'm sure I made my share of them. But I won't spend a moment of the future regretting what might have been."

Obama, and his running mate, Sen. Joseph Biden of Delaware, will take their oaths of office as 44th president and vice president on Jan. 20, 2009.

Obama will move into the Oval Office as leader of a country that is almost certainly in a recession, and fighting two long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Iraq had been the big issue when the race began two years ago, but Obama and McCain ended up talking more about the economy as legislators signed a $700 billion bailout plan that would buy bad mortgages being held by banks and investment giants like Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, AIG and quasi-government agencies like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Obama has said his first task as commander in chief will be tackling the economy.

"For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime - two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century," Obama said during his victory speech. "There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how they'll make the mortgage, or pay their doctors bills, or save enough for college."

The 47-year-old Hawaii native was just a barely known state senator in Chicago four years ago. A widely praised speech at the Democratic National Convention changed that.

Overnight he became a rising star in the Democratic party, and he had scarcely settled into his Senate seat when he began preparing for his run for the White House. He went on to defeat New York Sen. Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination in February.

Voters fell hard for the senator's oratory skills, and comparisons were even drawn to Robert Kennedy.

"I have more faith in his word than McCain," said Denise Matos, a 33-year-old mother of four from Lawrence. "He gives me a good vibe."

It's a race that has seen many twists and turns.

As the candidates left their conventions this summer, the race was considered a toss-up. McCain picked up steam after announcing Palin as a running mate, but the hype slowly fizzled out, with poll numbers showing a significant Obama lead heading into the election.

While McCain's camp tried to portray Obama as inexperienced and quick to raise taxes. They pointed to his associations with former Weather Underground leader William Ayers and radical preacher Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

Obama said McCain was in step with President Bush and would keep the country in an expensive, unnecessary war.

Many of the Valley voters said it was more about Obama's style than his issues that drew them to the Illinois senator.

The race has brought the issue of racial divisions to the nation's forefront, with many people questioning whether the nation would elect a Black president four decades after the Civil Rights Movement took hold.

A record number of young and first-time voters also came out to the polls for Obama, where in the past they have failed to show for their candidates after extensive voter drives.

This was the most expensive presidential race in history.

Between the primary and general election campaigns, Obama and McCain have combined to raise more than $1 billion, shattering all previous records. It was a race that played out not only in the newspapers, but on entertainment magazines and popular shows like Saturday Night Live, as candidates tried to show voters their personal sides.

It was also the longest campaign in history — 21 months.

Obama soaked up most of the votes from the nation's women, blacks and Hispanics and siphoned off enough white support to leave McCain with a thin majority among this group essential to a Republican victory, Associated Press exit polls suggested.

Retired software engineer Michael Levin, 68, of North Andover voted for Obama-Biden. He said the clincher for him was the decision by McCain to pick Palin as his running mate.

"I donated to a campaign for the first time in my life," he said, referring to money he sent to the Obama-Biden effort. "I realized I had to try to prevent this country from turning to four more years of stupidity and corruption. ... I want my grandchildren to be able to live in this country."

Former police officer Clifton Flavius said he went into the polls needing a change.

"Eight years of the Republican party," said Flavius, an Army veteran from Andover. "I can't deal with that again."

Andover resident Robert Abisi, 57, the owner of a marketing and advertising company, also voted for Obama.

"I love his ideas," said Abisi. "I love where he wants to bring this country. I'm not concerned with the taxes. I haven't had a tax break in eight years."

But not everyone wanted to see an Obama-Biden ticket enter the White House next year.

"I just felt (McCain's) interests are more American and patriotic," said Frances Herron, 80, an Andover retiree. "After all, he was a prisoner of war."

Brian Lessard, 51, an insurance salesman from North Andover, voted for the McCain-Palin ticket because he doesn't trust Obama.

"I don't have a lot of faith in Barack," he said. "I don't know if he's a true-blue American."

Rachel Moffat, 39, a nurse from North Andover, questioned whether Obama was ready to lead.

"I'm a staunch Democrat and have never voted Republican," said Moffat. "Obama is not experienced enough to lead us out of this hole. ... This country is in a mess. We're in big trouble."

Most local voters polled said they were concerned about the economy and war, and felt the next president, whoever it was, would have a big mess to clean up come Jan. 20.

Daniel Carmody, a 55-year-old member of the Teamsters Union, voted for Obama, but admits he has his work cut out for him.

"It's not an easy job for anybody," he said. "A new guy just can't come in and turn everything around."

Staff writers Brian Messenger, Bill Kirk, Jill Harmacinski and Annesha Bhattacharya contributed to this report. Material from The Associated Press was used in this report.