Obama wins the 2008 election

In light of this week’s election, the Voice has pulled out an article from another historic moment: the week that President Obama was elected in 2008. Printed on Nov. 7, 2008, this piece was written by Kate Vesper and Emily Ryan, who served as the News editors that year:

“Tonight is a particular honor for me because, let’s face it, my presence on this stage is pretty unlikely.” These words were spoken by President-elect Barack Hussein Obama II when he delivered the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in 2004, shortly after being sworn in to his position as Illinois Junior Senator.

Four years and one day after his election to the Senate, these humble words were echoed in Obama’s victory speech as he accepted the highest office in the United States. “I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn’t start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington – it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.”

The same themes of hope and change that were present in the 2004 keynote address continued on in his campaign for the presidency and through his win on Election Day.

In these times of economic crisis, this modest connection Obama was able to forge with everyday working Americans is what cinched his victory last Tuesday. Senator McCain’s campaign manager Steve Schmidt, along with many others, came to realize as the electoral votes were being counted that due to national disapproval of the Bush administration and the dire state of financial institutions in the United States, McCain was fighting an “unwinnable battle.”

As these truths became apparent, Senator McCain was gracious in his concession speech, expressing his support and admiration for President-elect Obama with genuine class, even as his supporters expressed disappointment.

Prevalent in the fight to see the ideals of the Obama campaign realized were college activists, across the nation and here at Wooster. Obama’s rationality and desire for restoration of prosperity were recognized by particularly the College Democrats at Wooster, led by former Hillary Clinton supporter Sarah Green-Golan ’09 and Jessica Schumacher ’11. This group was fierce in their efforts to spread Obama support — from canvassing and knocking on doors to helping secure Vice-President-elect Joe Biden as a speaker at the College last September. The group even helped register 700 voters in Wayne County, 200 of whom participated in early voting as of the week before the election.

Even Facebook, a largely youth-oriented Web network, launched an Election Day banner, tickers and endorsement statuses for a specific party or voting in general in order to boost turnout of young voters.

The efforts of many have paid off. Voters from the 18- to 30-year-old demographic, a traditionally low turnout group, showed up to the polls in record numbers this year and voiced their need for change and “rocking the vote.”

Efforts of younger voters across the nation helped determine the outcome of this election, along with despairing taxpayers. From actively convincing others to support Obama to driving others to the polls to just getting out and expressing themselves through voting, young people across the nation showed support for their candidate like never before in the U.S. election.