Politics of Illinois Illinois resident, Barack Obama facing off against US Senator John McCain. Barack Obama carried Illinois by a much bigger margin than Kerry did in 2004. Obama won Illinois with 62% of the vote. In addition to carrying major urban centers, Obama won a number of rural counties as well, a trend reflected across the country and especially the Midwest. Prior to his election to President, he represented the state in the US Senate since January 2005. Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry carried Illinois with 54% of the vote. His victory in Illinois was largely determined by a wide margin of
United States Senate career of Barack Obama Hampshire University (2007), Howard University (2007), and Wesleyan University (2008). The audiobook edition of "Dreams from My Father" earned Obama the Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album in 2006. He won the award a second time in 2008 for the spoken word edition of "The Audacity of Hope". A school in Obama's father's hometown, which the senator visited on his 2006 Kenya trip, was renamed the Senator Barack Obama Primary School. United States Senate career of Barack Obama The United States Senate career of Barack Obama began on January 3, 2005 and ended on November 16, 2008. He resigned