It’s Obama again: Four more years

Romney concedes defeat as Obama secures second term.

WASHINGTON:

It was a nail-biting start to the day for Democrats, but by 11pm on election night, it was near certain that President Barack Obama was about to be re-elected as president of the United States.

It was a historic achievement, ending months of a bitter and hard-fought campaign between both parties. Republican nominee Mitt Romney made his concession speech in Boston, Massachussetts, shortly after Obama secured 270 of the Electoral College to be re-elected.

Telling supporters that he had called Obama to congratulate him on his victory, he added: “His supporters and his campaign also deserve congratulations ... I wish all of them well but particularly the president, the first lady and their daughters.”

Even before the pundits announced that Obama had won Ohio, a key swing state, the crowds had gathered at the White House in Washington, DC.

Securing 303 seats of the electoral college, President Obama told supporters at a Chicago rally, “Tonight in the election, you, the American people reminded us that while our road has been hard, while our journey has been long, we have picked ourselves up, we have fought our way back and we know in our hearts that for the United States of America the best is yet to come.”

Speaking to supporters while accompanied by First Lady Michelle Obama and their daughters Sasha and Malia, the US president said, “I have never been more hopeful about America. And I ask you to sustain that hope.”

The president ran for re-election on a platform of offering a “fair shot” to the middle class, of fulfilling his pledge to end the war in Iraq, killing Osama bin Laden, and of building a clean energy economy.

In Washington DC, on a chilly night as temperatures dipped to eight degrees centigrade, the crowds shouted slogans of “four more years”, “Obama” and “USA”, waving banners, Obama signs and pamphlets.

“I think the president definitely brings more qualities, not just in the political realm but social realm, for women, for minorities, in healthcare, equal pay, abortions – that’s kind of what I was hoping for when I voted for Obama,” said a student.

Abdul Rehman and his wife Layla, who had come to the capital from Columbia, Maryland, said that they voted for Obama and were down at the White House to support the president. “He’s someone that can be trusted,” said Layla.

Gail Cutler said she was visiting from New Jersey with her son, and the poll results had restored faith in America.

George, from DC, said, “For the next four years, I want him to uphold what he had started to do –  fair pay for women, women’s reproductive rights, student loans. Giving people more of a chance to get where the politicians are and the upper class is.” The US elections also saw the Republican Party retaining control of the House of Representatives, while the Democrats retained control of the Senate.

And in things to watch next – the US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton had previously announced she would step down after the first Obama administration’s term ended. While her departure date has not been announced yet, many in DC have said that Senator John Kerry, currently chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is the front-runner to be appointed as the next secretary of state.

Meanwhile, the immediate focus for Obama and US lawmakers will be to confront the “fiscal cliff,” a mix of tax increases and spending cuts due to extract some $600 billion from the economy at the end of the year barring a deal with Congress.

(Read: Obama’s return)

(WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM REUTERS)

 

Published in The Express Tribune, November 8^th, 2012.