Barack Obama

Barack Obama is the 44th president of the United States.

Despite starting off with far less name recognition and backing, the junior senator from Illinois managed to defeat Senator Hillary Clinton in one of the longest and toughest primary contests in recent history. His campaign's unprecedented use of the Internet to break fundraising records and help generate support from young voters ultimately proved too much for Clinton, who conceded in June. He then went on to defeat the Republican presidential nominee, John McCain.

Obama was born in Hawaii in 1961. His mother was from Kansas and his father, whom he barely knew, was a visiting student from Kenya (he died 1982 in a car crash). His mother eventually re-married, and the family moved to Indonesia, where Obama attended both Catholic and Muslim schools before eventually returning to Hawaii at the age of 10.

After graduating from Columbia University, Obama cut his political teeth as a community organizer in Chicago. He then attended Harvard Law School and served in the Illinois State Senate before getting elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004, where he has compiled a fairly liberal voting record.

Obama is married to Michelle Obama, who was formerly the vice president for community and external affairs at the University of Chicago Hospitals. They have two small daughters, Malia and Sasha.

—Sarah N. Lynch