United States President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris speak in Wilmington, Delaware, on Nov. 7, 2020, after being declared the winners of the presidential election by several major television networks and news organizations. Both wear masks to help limit the spread of COVID-19.
Credit: © Andrew Harnik, AFP/Getty Images

The 2020 United States presidential election entered its final phases on November 7. On that day, several major television networks and press organizations called the election in favor of former Vice President Joe Biden and his running mate, Senator Kamala Harris. In a victory speech in Wilmington, Delaware, Biden made a plea for national unity following the bitterly fought election. Biden’s opponent, President Donald Trump, refused to concede the election, however, and vowed to fight the results in court.

In-person voting took place on November 3, but the race was so tight that no definitive result was available for days. Trump, who had encouraged his supporters to vote in person, took several early leads on election night. In the early hours of November 4, he addressed his supporters from the White House, declaring victory and making widespread accusations of voter fraud. However, several key races were still undecided, and many Biden supporters had voted by mail. As the Trump campaign filed lawsuits in an attempt to stop the counting of remaining votes—many of them mail-in ballots—the battleground states of Michigan and Wisconsin were called for Biden. Biden then overcame an early Trump lead to tip Pennsylvania, giving him the electoral votes to take the race. Georgia was also soon called for Biden, although the slim vote margin will likely lead to a recount.

Biden served as vice president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. In 2008, Biden and Senator Barack Obama, who was elected president, defeated their Republican opponents, Senator John McCain of Arizona and Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. In 2012, Obama and Biden were reelected. They defeated former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and former U.S. Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin. Before becoming vice president, Biden had represented Delaware in the United States Senate since 1973.

Senator Kamala Harris became the first woman vice president-elect. She was already the first Black woman and the first person of Indian descent to be placed on the presidential ticket of a major political party. Before becoming a member of the United States Senate in 2017, Harris served as attorney general of California. Attorney general is the state’s chief law officer.

May 9, 2017

On Sunday, May 7, voters in France elected Emmanuel Macron, a former economy minster, as the European nation’s new president. Macron, founder and leader of the centrist En Marche! (Forward!) party, easily defeated his opponent, the recent leader of France’s far-right National Front, Marine Le Pen. The presidential vote—66 percent to 34 percent in favor of Macron—was a strong rejection of the extremist economic and political nationalism supported by Le Pen. On May 14, Macron will replace President François Hollande, who opted not to run for a second five-year term. At 39 years old, Macron is the youngest ever president of France. The second youngest was Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, who was 40 when elected president in 1848 (Bonaparte later declared himself emperor Napoleon III).

Emmanuel Macron delivers a presidential election victory speech at the Carousel du Louvre in Paris, France, on May 7, 2017. Credit: © Frederic Legrand, COMEO/Shutterstock

Sunday’s election followed the first round of France’s presidential election on April 23, 2017, in which Macron and Le Pen were the top 2 vote getters among 11 candidates. The April results excluded France’s long-dominant Socialist and Republican parties from the final poll. After the first round, the old rival parties both threw their support behind Macron.

Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron was born on Dec. 21, 1977, in Amiens, in northern France. He studied philosophy at the Université Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense. Macron later earned a master’s degree in public affairs and trained for a civil service career at the National School of Administration (École nationale d’administration, or ENA). The ENA prepares students for government careers.

Macron worked as an inspector of finances in the French Ministry of Economy from 2004 to 2008, during which time he joined France’s Socialist Party. He worked as an investment banker before joining the staff of President Hollande in 2012 and the cabinet of Prime Minister Manuel Valls in 2014. In 2015, Macron left the Socialist Party and founded En Marche! the following year. In late August 2016, he resigned from his government post to run for president.

November 9, 2016

In a shocking result, voters in the United States elected Republican businessman Donald Trump to be the nation’s next president. Trump upended Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, who had been widely expected to win the election.

President-elect Donald Trump speaks during an election night rally in New York City on Nov. 8, 2016. Trump and vice president-elect Mike Pence, right, pulled off a surprise victory over Democratic candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton and her running mate, Tim Kaine. Credit: © Evan Vucci, AP Photo

Polls had given Clinton a 90 percent chance of winning the presidency, but Trump claimed narrow victories in each of the so-called swing states (states that do not vote predictably Democratic or Republican) en route to a slim electoral victory. With 270 electoral votes needed to win, Trump claimed 289.

Trump’s surprise win came at the end of a long and bitter campaign that left much of the United States deeply divided politically.

As voting results came in last night, Trump’s path to reaching the 270 electoral vote threshold widened after he captured the closely contested swing states of Florida, North Carolina, and Ohio. The New York City real estate developer and reality television personality proved popular in such regularly “blue” (Democratic) states as Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, increasing the turnout in conservative suburbs and rural areas. Voter turnout was up nearly 5 percent nationwide.

In a small consolation to Clinton, she appeared to win the popular vote after running up large margins on the West Coast. (There were votes still to be counted as of early November 9.) It was the first time since 2000 that a candidate captured the Electoral College while losing the national popular vote. In that election, Republican George W. Bush edged out Democrat Al Gore, who had won the popular vote, after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling ended weeks of contested recounts in Florida.

Clinton had been seeking to succeed popular outgoing President Barack Obama and largely continue his policies. Healthy economic indicators, three strong debate performances, and polls showing a small-but-steady lead appeared to make Clinton poised to become the nation’s first woman president. She had garnered the endorsements of the editorial boards of countless newspapers, and numerous former Republican officeholders supported her over an opponent they called dangerous for what they labeled his ill-considered pronouncements on foreign policy.

The surfacing, late in the campaign, of a 2005 recording of Trump seemingly promoting aggressive sexual behavior toward women also seemed to have discredited his candidacy. But conventional wisdom did not sway the Trump voter. Pollsters suggested that potential voters, aware of the labeling of the Republican as racist and sexist, understated their support of the populist businessman. Political observers failed to gauge the thirst of the electorate to change business-as-usual in Washington, D.C.

In Trump, many saw a champion who would challenge the status quo. His statements about curbing Muslim immigration spoke to some voters’ fears about terrorist threats. Trump’s lambasting of international trade deals gave supporters hope of overcoming the challenges of a global economy that had “left American workers behind.” Furthermore, right-wing news sources popularized the notion that Clinton was an untrustworthy and corrupt—even evil—opportunist who heeded no limits in her pursuit of political power and personal enrichment.

During his speech accepting the Republican nomination, Trump said, “I alone can fix” the nation’s apparent dysfunction. In his victory speech late on election night, he struck a conciliatory tone:

“Now it’s time for America to bind the wounds of division; [we] have to get together. To all Republicans and Democrats and independents across this nation, I say it is time for us to come together as one united people.

“It’s time. I pledge to every citizen of our land that I will be president for all Americans, and this is so important to me. For those who have chosen not to support me in the past, of which there were a few people … I’m reaching out to you for your guidance and your help so that we can work together and unify our great country.”

July 29, 2016

National political conventions became the talk of their respective towns—Cleveland for the Republicans and Philadelphia for the Democrats—in late July 2016, as Republican businessman Donald Trump and Democratic former Secretary of State, Senator, and First Lady Hillary Clinton accepted their party’s respective nominations for president. Both conventions featured dissent from backers of unsuccessful candidates for the nomination. And both featured passionate speeches by politicians, celebrities, and ordinary people struck by extraordinary events. The tone of each convention, however, could hardly have been more dissimilar.

Republican nominee Donald Trump (left) accepts applause beside his running mate Mike Pence at the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, on July 21, 2016.
Credit: Ida Mae Astute, ABC (licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0)

The Republicans opened their convention on July 18 with a stern message of law and order, delivered in the wake of shootings that targeted police officers in Texas and Louisiana, social unrest surrounding the killings of African Americans by police, and a horrific terror attack in Nice, France. The theme of the first night was “Make America Safe Again,” and it featured such speakers as actors Scott Baio and Antonio Sabato, Jr., retired Army Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who railed against Hillary Clinton and expressed support for law enforcement officers. To America’s enemies, he promised, “You know who you are and we’re coming to get you!”

Prospective First Lady Melania Trump then delivered a speech that was well received by the Cleveland attendees. The warm feelings were short-lived, however, after news reports showed that some sections of the speech had been copied, nearly verbatim, from First Lady Michelle Obama’s 2008 Democratic convention address.

Political observers noted that the Republicans’ Cleveland gathering lacked some of the star power of prior conventions, in part because of a bruising primary in which Trump regularly insulted his rivals and made controversial statements about Muslims and Mexican immigrants. Prominent Republicans refusing to attend the convention included members of the Bush family—former Presidents George H. W. and George W. Bush and former Florida governor Jeb Bush—former Republican presidential nominees Mitt Romney and John McCain, and Ohio Governor John Kasich, who—though the convention took place in his home state—pointedly refused to endorse the 2016 Republican nominee.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie provided the fireworks for the convention’s second night. With a prosecutor’s zeal, he accused Hillary Clinton of a list of crimes. Conventioneers responded, “Lock her up!” On the convention’s third night, Texas Senator Ted Cruz—who finished second to Trump in the race for delegates—delivered a well-crafted speech championing conservative values. As the speech unwound toward its conclusion, convention goers sensed that an endorsement of Trump by Cruz was not forthcoming. Shouts of “Endorse Trump” were not heeded, and folks booed as Cruz, smiling enigmatically, strode off the stage. Vice presidential nominee Mike Pence of Indiana spoke later, showcasing his self-effacing humor and criticizing Hillary Clinton’s judgment.

Donald Trump spoke on the convention’s fourth night, following a humanizing introduction by his daughter Ivanka. “We will be a country of generosity and warmth,” Trump promised, “but we will also be a country of law and order!” He spoke out about bad trade deals and the “egregious crimes” of his presidential rival. “Nobody knows the system better than me,” said Trump, playfully acknowledging how his businesses have taken advantage of laws and loopholes. “Which is why I alone can fix it.” To such promises, the crowd responded, “Yes you will!”

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and her vice presidential running mate Tim Kaine wave to the crowd at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 28, 2016.
Credit: Ida Mae Astute, ABC (licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0)

On day one of the Democratic National Convention, raucous supporters of the Senator from Vermont, runner-up Bernie Sanders, loudly interrupted early speakers with chants of “Bernie! Bernie!” During liberal firebrand Elizabeth Warren’s speech endorsing Clinton, some of them taunted Warren with a chant of “We trusted you!” Sanders later endorsed Clinton onstage as some of his supporters wept.

The Democrats featured plenty of star power from both politics and entertainment. Comedian Sarah Silverman encouraged Bernie fans to unite against Trump, and actresses Elizabeth Banks, Meryl Streep, Lena Dunham, and America Ferrera poked fun at the New York businessman while praising the Democratic nominee. Michelle Obama delivered a ringing endorsement of Clinton. “She never buckles under pressure, never takes the easy way out,” said Mrs. Obama. “Hillary Clinton has never quit on anything in her life.”

Other nights saw former President Bill Clinton, campaigning to be “First Gentleman,” live up to his reputation as “Explainer in Chief” as he touted his wife’s lifelong drive to be a “change maker” for children and families. Former Arizona Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who survived an assassination attempt in 2011 and still struggles with its aftereffects, inspired the crowd. “Speaking is difficult for me,” she said. “But come January, I want to say these two words: Madam President!”

One of the convention’s surprise speakers was Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire independent former mayor of New York City. “Let’s elect a sane, competent person,” said Bloomberg of Clinton. He later added, of Trump, “I’m a New Yorker, and New Yorkers know a con when we see one!” His endorsement preceded speeches by Vice President Joe Biden; Clinton’s cheerful vice presidential running mate Tim Kaine; and President Barack Obama, whose calls to unity among Americans and Democrats brought down the house and made longtime supporters wistful in the closing months of his eight-year presidency. Challenging the crowd’s audible response to his mentions of Donald Trump, Obama playfully admonished, “Don’t boo, vote.”

On the convention’s final night, Hillary Clinton took the Philadelphia stage following a warm introduction by her daughter, Chelsea. Clinton spoke glowingly of the country’s founders and the spirit of compromise that brought the disjointed American colonies to unite against Britain’s king in 1776. She spoke in detail of her plans as president: investing in infrastructure, raising the federal minimum wage, defending the rights of workers and minorities, protecting the environment, passing immigration reform and repairing a flawed criminal justice system.

She also spoke of her historic achievement—becoming the first female nominee for president from a major political party in the United States. “Standing here as my mother’s daughter, and my daughter’s mother, I’m so happy this day has come,” Mrs. Clinton said. “Happy for grandmothers and little girls and everyone in between. Happy for boys and men, too—because when any barrier falls in America, for anyone, it clears the way for everyone. When there are no ceilings, the sky’s the limit.”

May 24, 2016

Last Friday, May 20, Tsai Ing-wen became the first woman president of Taiwan, an island nation in the South China Sea. Tsai, of the Democratic Progressive Party, won election back in January, easily defeating Eric Chu of Taiwan’s incumbent—and long dominant—Kuomintang party. In the few months between election and inauguration, Tsai assembled a new Cabinet and appointed people to senior government positions, leaning on professional capacity over partisan politics. She announced green energy and biotechnology initiatives aimed at improving Taiwan’s faltering economy. She also vowed to keep Taiwan in the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade agreement and maintain strong investment in national defense.

Taiwan’s Tsai Ing-wen gestures to supporters after her election victory in January 2016. She took office as Taiwan’s first woman president in May. Credit: © Damir Sagolj, Reuters

Taiwan’s most pressing issue, however, is its often-rocky relationship with its giant neighbor across the Taiwan Strait, the People’s Republic of China. China sees Taiwan as a breakaway province, but Taiwan considers itself an independent nation. Tsai has vowed to protect Taiwan’s democracy and freedom. She has also taken a pragmatic and diplomatic tone when dealing with China, and hopes to maintain the existing status quo. Under current conditions, Taiwan largely acts independently but refrains from provoking China by not openly proclaiming its independence.

Tsai Ing-wen was born on Aug. 31, 1956, in Fangshan Township, located in Pingtung County in southern Taiwan. By the time Tsai was a teenager, her family had moved to Taipei. Tsai studied law in Taiwan, the United States, and in the United Kingdom, and taught law in Taipei before entering politics.

Tsai—affectionately called “Little Ing” by her supporters—boasts a few other “firsts” besides being Taiwan’s first woman president. She is also the nation’s first unmarried president with no children (but she proudly exhibited her two cats on the campaign trail). She is the first president of Hō-ló, Hakka, and aboriginal Taiwanese descent. Tsai is also the first Taiwanese president who was not previously mayor of Taipei. In fact, she is the first president to have never before held an elected post.

May 10, 2016

Yesterday, May 9, voters in the Philippines elected Rodrigo “Digong” Duterte, the seven-term mayor of Davao (a city in southern Mindanao), to the presidency. Early results indicate that Duterte won nearly 39 percent of the vote, far more than any of the four candidates running against him. Duterte will succeed the current president, Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino, at the end of June. Presidents of the Philippines—often popularly called by their nicknames—are limited to a single 6-year term in office.

Longtime Davao Mayor Rodrigo Duterte won the Philippines presidential election on May 9, 2016.
Credit: Keith Bacongco (licensed under CC BY 2.0)

As mayor of Davao, Duterte gained popularity by cracking down on crime, which once ran rampant in the city. However, critics accuse him of doing so by encouraging vigilante groups to track down and kill criminals. During his presidential election campaign, Duterte promised to fight a “bloody war” on drugs and threatened to kill tens of thousands of criminals. He also made a number of controversial statements on a variety of subjects.

During the campaign, Duterte announced his intention to change the country’s constitution. Among other things, he wants to change the form of government from a central republic to a federal parliamentary system. He has also expressed his desire to spread the power now centralized in “imperial” Manila among the nation’s far-flung regions and provinces. Duterte further pledged to reduce or eradicate the corruption, pollution, poverty, and unemployment that have long plagued his nation. Duterte has yet to give details on how all this might be done.

Filipino voters separately elect the vice president. In that much closer race, Leni Robredo, a social activist, is slightly ahead of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, the son of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

February 10, 2016

In New Hampshire on February 9, the first of many primary elections was held in the process that will eventually choose candidates for the 2016 U.S. presidential election. (A caucus was held in Iowa before New Hampshire’s vote, but by state law, New Hampshire is obligated to hold the nation’s first primary.)

Bernie Sanders (center)
Credit: © Bernie 2016

For the Democrats, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders registered a big win over his rival, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Sanders raked in 60 percent of the vote, earning an estimated 15 of the state’s 24 delegates. Sanders is considered an “outsider” for his staunchly progressive (favoring improvement and reform) views and for shunning corporate money for his campaign. Traditionally, Sanders has also been independent of party, although he has generally sided and caucused (met to discuss leadership or policy votes) with the Democrats. Clinton’s political history and collection of corporate donations has labeled her the establishment candidate, despite the fact that she is attempting to become the first woman president of the United States.

On the Republican side, New York businessman Donald Trump was the winner with 35 percent of the vote, earning an estimated 11 delegates. Ohio governor John Kasich came in a surprise second, with 16 percent and 4 delegates. Former governor Jeb Bush and senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio rounded out the field at about 11 percent, probably earning 3 delegates each. Trump has never held political office, so the primary result could be seen as a rebuke to the candidates of the Republican establishment.

Donald Trump
Credit: Marc Nozell (licensed under CC BY 2.0)

Both Sanders and Trump were seen as long-shot “outsiders” to win their party nominations when they first announced their campaigns. Both candidates, however, have gained tremendous momentum as they preach a shared disdain for the way things are run in Washington, D.C. That is where the comparisons end, however, as Sanders and Trump represent opposite ends of the political spectrum.

November 24, 2015

On Nov. 22, 2015, Argentines voted for significant change. In a presidential runoff contest, voters elected opposition candidate Mauricio Macri of the center-right Cambiemos coalition. Cambiemos is Spanish for let’s change. It was the first presidential run-off in Argentina’s history. Macri defeated Daniel Scioli, the candidate of the governing Peronists, with about 51 percent of the vote. Scioli beat Macri in the first round of voting on October 25, but not with enough votes to be declared president. Scioli is a former vice president of Argentina who belongs to the Front for Victory.

Opposition candidate Mauricio Macri celebrates after winning a runoff presidential election in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015. Macri won Argentina’s historic runoff election against ruling party candidate Daniel Scioli. Credit: © Ricardo Mazalan, AP Photo

Macri’s election ended more than a decade of government by the Peronists, led by former President Néstor Kirchner, then his wife, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, since 2003. Fernández de Kirchner, who has served two terms as president, was constitutionally barred from seeking a third term. Historically, the Peronists have supported populist policies aimed at helping ordinary people. However, under Fernández de Kirchner, Argentina also has experienced high inflation, weak economic growth, and a large deficit. In addition, Fernández de Kirchner has created conflict with her public attacks on critics of the government and her confrontational stance regarding the Falkland Islands, claimed by both Argentina and the United Kingdom.

Macri, a wealthy businessman of Italian ancestry, is the mayor of Buenos Aires and a former president of the popular Boca Juniors soccer team. He ran on campaign promises to reduce the state’s control over the economy; bring new investment to Argentina; fight narcotics trafficking and political corruption; and change foreign policy, for example by strengthening ties with the United States. Although Macri has said that he will not reverse all the government’s leftist policies, his critics fear he will end social welfare programs. Scioli warned voters that Macri would introduce “savage capitalism” in government. However, Sunday’s election indicated that for many voters, Macri represented hope, a fresh start, and a chance for real change in a country with some real problems. Macri is expected to take office on December 10.

Other World Book article

      Perón, Juan Domingo

May 27, 2014

Pro-European candidate Petro Poroshenko was officially declared the winner yesterday in the first presidential elections held in Ukraine since Viktor Yanukovych was ousted in February in a popular uprising. Poroshenko took 54 percent of the vote, compared with former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko’s 13.1 percent. Claiming victory, Poroshenko vowed that he would not allow eastern Ukraine to be turned into Somalia–that is, a lawless state overrun by terrorists and pirates: “The antiterrorist operation [in eastern Ukraine] cannot and should not last two or three months. It should and will last hours.” A 48-year-old billionaire, Poroshenko declared after Sunday’s election that the majority of Ukrainians had given him a mandate to continue a course of integration with Europe. However, his first priority was to travel to eastern Ukraine to tackle the “war and chaos caused by pro-Russian separatist rebels.”

This morning, Ukraine’s interior ministry reported that the army was once again in full control of the airport in the eastern city of Donetsk. An attempt yesterday by pro-Russian separatists to take over the airport was met with army air strikes and an assault by heavily armed troops. A series of bloody clashes left at least 30 rebels dead. A BBC correspondent in Ukraine suggested that the attempt to seize the airport may have been intended to prevent Poroshenko from landing there after he declared his intention of personally going to eastern Ukraine to deal with the uprising.

Pro-Rusian separatists yesterday unsuccessfully attempted to gain control of the airport in Donetsk, the largest city in eastern Ukraine. The attack may have been an effort to keep Ukraine's new president, Petro Poroshenko, from landing there in his attempt to unify the nation. (World Book map; map data © MapQuest.com, Inc.)

International affairs experts noted that the election, which was billed at the most important since Ukraine separated from Russia 23 years ago, went off with a minimum of violence and disturbances at polling places.

For additional information on the Ukrainian crisis, search Ukraine articles under Archived Stories.

Additional World Book article:

• Russia in the Post-Soviet World (a special report)
• Ukraine 2013 (a Back in Time article)

November 7, 2012

Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States and the first African American elected to that office, secured a second term in the White House on November 6 after a costly, closely fought battle against challenger Mitt Romney. In winning both the popular vote and the Electoral College, President Obama, a Democrat, overcame charges by his Republican opponent that his policies were unlikely to restore economic prosperity after the severe economic crisis of 2008-2009. President Obama won a preliminary total of at least 59,600,000 popular votes and 303 electoral votes, 33 more than the 270 needed to capture the presidency. Florida remained too close to call as of Wednesday morning.

President Barack Obama was reelected president of the United States on November 6, 2012. (The White House)

Shortly taking office in January 2009, President Obama signed a bill allocating $787 billion for stimulus programs and tax cuts to revive the economy. President Obama also took steps to bail out troubled American automakers and to strengthen the financial industry. In addition, he promoted and signed legislation that boosted government support for pay equality for women. His signature achievement was the passage of a historic health care reform bill, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which included provisions extending health care coverage to about 30 million uninsured Americans. In December 2010, Congress passed, and President Obama signed, a law ending the ban on openly homosexual soldiers in the armed forces.

In 2009, President Obama filled a campaign pledge and withdrew all U.S. combat troops from Iraqi cities. The Iraq War was declared officially over on December 15, 2011. He also set a timetable of 2014 for the withdrawal of all U.S. combat forces from Afghanistan. In May 2011, President Obama announced that a team of Navy SEALs had shot and killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qa`ida, the group responsible for the terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11, 2001.

In November 2010, voters gave Republicans control of the House of Representatives. For the remainder of President Obama’s first term, passing legislation became exceedingly difficult. The president also came under significant criticism by a loose collection of conservative political activist groups called the Tea party movement.

Barack Hussein Obama, Jr., was born on August 4, 1961, in Honolulu, Hawaii. His father was Kenyan and his mother was American. He graduated from Columbia University in New York City in 1983. In 1985, he worked in Chicago for a church group that helped poor neighborhoods in the city. He graduated from Harvard Law School in 1991. While there, he became the first African American to serve as president of the Harvard Law Review, an important monthly law journal (magazine). Obama then practiced law in Chicago. He worked especially on civil rights issues. He also taught law at the University of Chicago.

Beginning in 1997, Obama served in the Illinois Senate. In 2004, he was elected to the U.S. Senate. That election and his stirring keynote address to the Democratic National Convention earlier that year gave him significant national exposure. Obama declared his intention to run for president in February 2007. He won the Democratic nomination against a wide field of competitors, including Senator Joe Biden and Hillary Rodham Clinton, the wife of former President Bill Clinton. Obama then chose Biden as his vice-presidential running mate and, after taking office as president, tapped Mrs. Clinton to be his secretary of state.

Additional World Book articles:

• Economic Crisis: The Banking Meltdown (a special report)
• Economic Crises, Then and Now (a special report)
• Economic Crisis: The Government Jumps In (a special report)
• Economics, United States (2011) (a Back in Time article)
• Economics, United States (2010) (a Back in Time article)
• Economics, United States (2009) (a Back in Time article)
• Economics, United States (2008) (a Back in Time article)