Obama's campaign for president

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Obama's campaign for president

Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill, said he was a candidate for change. Here's how his campaign progressed through the primary elections, nomination, debates and on the campaign trail.

Presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., speaks at a campaign rally in Denver in late October 2008. Obama, 47, graduated from Columbia University in New York before entering law school at Harvard and graduating magna cum laude. He was first elected to political office in 1996. Follow Obama as the Democrat campaigns to become the country's 44th president.

In 2004, Obama defeated opponent Alan Keyes to become senator-elect for Illinois. Obama holds his daughter Malia and his wife Michelle holds their daughter Sasha after Obama's acceptance speech in Chicago.

It was a crowded field in July 2007 when Democratic presidential hopefuls (left to right) Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y.; Obama; New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson; Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del.; and Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio; participated in the debate sponsored by CNN, YouTube and Google at The Citadel military college in Charleston, S.C.

Back in November 2007, Obama listens to Sen. Clinton speak at the Jefferson Jackson Dinner in Des Moines, Iowa. Obama turned up the heat with a passionate appeal and even took an indirect swipe at then-front-runner Clinton.

In February, Obama and Clinton respond to a question during a Democratic presidential debate in Austin, Texas. During the debate, Clinton accused Obama of borrowing words from an advisor - a claim that Obama dismissed as "silly."

Behind the scenes in January, David Axelrod, chief strategist for Obama, continues to work while underway to a rally in Rochester, N.H. "He's not just a client, he's a very good friend of mine," Axelrod said of Obama.

In April, the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., Obama's former pastor, addressed a breakfast at the National Press Club in Washington. Obama left Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ after a widely publicized speech by Wright that criticized America.

In June, Obama is greeted by his supporters at a primary night rally in St. Paul, Minn., where he claimed the Democratic presidential nomination with a victory speech.

Obama and rapper Ludacris leave the senator's Chicago offices after a meeting in late 2006. Obama's campaign came under fire in July for a rhyme by Ludacris which was described as being offensive to several in political office.

In August, Obama and Democratic vice presidential candidate, Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., wave at Democratic National Convention delegates in Denver.

Obama adjusts a flower behind the ear of his eldest daughter Malia in August as they walk on Kailua Beach during their vacation in Hawaii. Obama was raised in Hawaii by his grandmother and was very close to her.

Obama and his vice presidential running mate Biden are all smiles as they campaign together in Springfield, Ill., in August. Biden was 29 when he was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1972. A car wreck claimed the lives of Biden's first wife Neilia and infant daughter Naomi, also injuring his two sons, who eventually recovered.

In September, Obama smiles with his wife Michelle at the University of Mississippi in Oxford after the first presidential debate. Michelle is a lawyer in Chicago and sits on several boards. The Obama's married in 1992.

In October, Obama waves as he arrives at a large rally in St. Louis.

In early October, Obama speaks during the Town Hall Presidential Debate in Nashville, Tenn., the second of three presidential debates. CNN reported that Obama won the debate - viewed by many as more contentious than the first.

With the American flag as a backdrop, Obama leaves a Sarasota, Fla., campaign rally in late October. He was the first African-American editor of the Harvard Law Review and won a Grammy for the audio version of his book, "Dreams From my Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance."

Obama makes a point during a campaign rally in a very rainy Chester, Pa., one of the key swing states, in late October.

Sharing the stage together for the first time, Obama and former President Bill Clinton wave at a late October rally in Kissimmee, Fla. Squabbles between the two earlier in the campaign gave way to this joint appearance as the election entered its final week.

As multimedia plays a more integral role in the election, Obama is shown on multiple television screens during the final presidential debate with Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y.

Obama acknowledges the cheers of his supporters during an October campaign rally in Fort Collins, Colo., as the junior U.S. Senator from Illinois eyes the White House. "I ask you to believe - not just in my ability to bring about change, but in yours. I know this change is possible. Because I have seen it over the last twenty-one months. Because in this campaign, I have had the privilege to witness what is best in America," Obama said at an October 2008 rally in Ohio.

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Presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., speaks at a campaign rally in Denver in late October 2008. Obama, 47, graduated from Columbia University in New York before entering law school at Harvard and graduating magna cum laude. He was first elected to political office in 1996. Follow Obama as the Democrat campaigns to become the country's 44th president.

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