No matter how America voted, history would have been made. On November 4, 2008, the United States elected the first African-American president in Barack Obama. All Americans should be proud of this historical moment in American history. President-Elect Obama won a landslide victory with 365 electoral votes. In a race that was fought in battleground states, many of which voted for Bush in 2004, Obama rose to the top turning Ohio, Virginia, Florida, Iowa, Indiana, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, North Carolina, and Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional district from red to blue. The fact that Virginia and Indiana have been Republican strongholds for decades and now voted Democratic astounds many political scientists, myself included. The Red-Blue map is shifting with new demographics forming in booming states like Virginia and North Carolina.

Last week, Barack Obama was elected President of the United States and brought “change” to America. Immediately noticeable when the election was called at 11pm was the new election map. In 2000 and 2004, the election map was mostly red with blue in the Northeast, Pacific coast, and some Midwestern states. Last Tuesday night, the Democratic Party made inroads into red America and turned nine states that Bush won in 2004—Ohio, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina, Indiana, Iowa, New Mexico, Colorado, and Nevada. This shift in voting trends is most likely due to Howard Dean’s “50-state strategy” and the Democratic National Committee’s attempt to be viable throughout the country. While it appeared as though the South and Southwest would forever be a Republican playground, the Democrats saw it a different way. During the presidential campaign, Senator Barack Obama campaigned vigorously in key swing states and even red states. States like Virginia, North Carolina, and Indiana which have mostly voted Republican for thirty or more years became swing states and eventually voted for Obama. Now is the reason behind the shift only due to Obama’s strong campaigning? Of course not.

President Clinton advisor James Carville said it best when he said, “it’s the economy, stupid.” In early September, the 2008 presidential election was practically tied but favoring Senator John McCain who just came off the Republican National Convention and the boost his campaign received from his vice presidential pick of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. Then the senator uttered the words that sank his campaign, “the fundamentals of our economy are strong.” Meanwhile, stocks plunged, financial firm Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, and other insurance companies and banks were on the verge of failure. Ultimately, Congress passed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, commonly known as “the bailout.” During the crisis, Senator McCain looked to take the high road and suspend his campaign to go back to Washington to find a way to help the economic situation. However, the campaign did not suspend as campaign commercials and attack ads on Obama continued and McCain surrogates remained to campaign. It was at this time that McCain cancelled his appearance on David Letterman because he had to rush back to Washington, when in fact, he appeared on CBS Evening News. These factors added to some skepticism regarding the McCain campaign. On the other side, Senator Obama presented himself in a calm and cool manner that received positive responses from the general public.

Regardless of how you may have voted last week, America will have a new president on January 20, 2009 and he will have some difficult problems to solve for all Americans. President-elect Barack Obama, who received 52% of the vote, will not be the president of only the blue states; he will be President of the United States. This country is long overdue for some healing and uniting. So regardless of how we voted, we must hope for the best as America is steered through these rough seas and wish President-elect Obama the best.