How Did Barack Obama Become a Senator?
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Obama's Preparation
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Barack Obama was born to a Kenyan father and a mother who was native to the state of Kansas. As a child he lived in Indonesia and the state of Hawai'i. Obama attended Occidental University in Los Angeles and graduated from Harvard University, where he edited the Harvard Law Review, with a degree in law. While working as a community organizer, Obama taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago. In his thirties, he ran successfully for a seat in the Illinois Senate to represent the district that includes the city of Chicago. After his keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in 2004, which received national attention and wide media coverage, Obama was invited to speak at Democratic fundraisers across the county. This gave Obama the political capital he was able to use in seeking national office.
Primary Senatorial Election
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Jack Ryan, running against seven other candidates, captured the Republican ballot in the primaries with 36 percent of the vote, but withdrew his candidacy after successful efforts by opponents to open formerly sealed divorce court records. The documents enumerated alleged actions that were counter to the Republican "family values" platform, and Ryan was asked to leave the campaign. The party then encouraged Alan Keyes, a resident of Maryland, to establish Illinois residency and represent the Republicans in the race. Keyes, who was a former U.S. ambassador, candidate for the U.S. Senate from Maryland and Republican candidate for the presidency, agreed to run. Barack Obama, running against six Democratic primary challengers, captured 53 percent of the vote. The Associated Press noted a 2 to 1 Democratic voter advantage over Republicans in the primaries.
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General Senatorial Election
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National newspaper reporters, including the "New York Times," touted the significance of Obama's potential election to the Senate. He would be only the third African-American to win a seat there since the Civil War Reconstruction. This fact polarized all parties of non-registered voters in the state of Illinois to register, many for the first time. Republican opponent Keyes, also African-American, came out early on specific issues but Obama took the lead early in the campaign in the heavily Democratic state.
The Platforms
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Alan Keyes developed a platform that was anti-abortion and pro-war and that advocated a limited role for government in social programs. Obama's campaign focused on a positive platform that sparked new voters, stressing unity and reform of government programs to assist state residents. He made public statements against the war in the Middle East and vowed that he would expand the federal role in supplying social programs. This position drew charges of socialism from Keyes.
The Final Vote
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Obama had raised significant funds from local backers and also had financial support from the National Democratic Party. Illinois voter registration has a historic Democratic base that Keyes was not able to counterbalance. When the votes were counted, Barack Obama garnered 73 percent of the vote (2,515,350) to Keyes' 24 percent (844,108), according to Associated Press tabulations. Interviews with state residents by Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International found that 90 percent of black voters and 70 percent of white voters supported Obama. The key to the high percentage point win rested on the swing Republican and independent voters. Obama took 40 percent of registered Republicans and 75 percent of the voters who classified themselves as independents. (The polling had a 4 percent error rate.) Obama would serve in the U.S. Senate from 2005 until his election as U.S. President in 2008.
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