He chose the key States of Ohio and Virginia to begin his bid, six months to this year’s poll.
The United States President, Barack Obama on Saturday May 5, 2012 kicked off his campaign for re-election this November with rallies in the two key battleground States of Ohio and Virginia, the BBC said. The President was joined on the campaign trail by First Lady Michelle Obama, who spoke first in Ohio before an estimated crowd of 14,000.
Also speaking to supporters in Ohio, Barack Obama admitted that many people in the country were dissatisfied with the slow pace of the change he promised when he came to power, pledging further efforts on the economy if given a second term. While acknowledging that the November 6 vote would be tight, the Democratic presidential candidate warned against his likely Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, saying he would turn the hands of the clock back if elected.
The Voice of America, VOA reported that the President chose to hold his first rallies at Ohio State University in Columbus, then at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. At the former, he urged those who supported him four years ago to do so again this year to enable him finish what he had started. Obama repeatedly accused Romney of favouring policies that benefit the rich and hurt the middle class.
Fox News said though his campaign officially began over the weekend, Obama has in effect been in campaign mode for months, crisscrossing the country and talking about election issues. While in Ohio, he mentioned most of the major issues that have so far come to define the general election such as the economy, women's health, college education and the U.S. military involvement overseas.
Obama described Romney as a good family man and businessman, but said he had learned the wrong lessons from being a Chief Executive Officer, saying his policies would only benefit the wealthy. Revisiting a 2008 campaign promise, he said he wants more citizens in the United States than anywhere else in the world to have a college degree by the end of the decade.
