Elation Is Tinged With Incredulity

In California, Marlon Morton felt deep vindication over a heated argument he had with his aunt three decades ago. He said a black man could become president; she said he was dreaming.

"I'll never forget it," said Morton, 45. "She said, 'You know what, Marlon, you'll never see a black president in your lifetime.' And I said, 'There's going to be one.' "

Morton planned to visit his aunt's grave sometime this week to spread the news. He plans to make a return trip in November, too. "It hurts me that she doesn't get to see it," he said. "I'm going to tell her: 'There's a brother who might be president.' "

Many of Obama's supporters spoke with a bit more caution. Yes, they said, the successful primary effort had instilled them with new faith in the American electorate. But they remained hesitant to trust it.

Ed Lyles, a 58-year-old African American, went to get his hair cut yesterday in Inglewood, Calif. He sat in the barber chair and offered a political prediction: "I still don't think it's going to happen," he said.

"Why do you say that?" replied the hairstylist, I.D. Stringer, 60.

"We're just as much ready for a black president as we are for Hillary as vice president," said the Vietnam War veteran.

"Well, he's got my vote," Stringer said.

"He's got my vote, too," Lyles said.

For Obama's supporters, the mere taste of history made them antsy for more. They said Obama has built the perfect coalition to defeat McCain: young Americans, black Americans, college-educated Americans -- all voting in record numbers, and all inspired.

"Obama was very successful with bringing in so many new voters," said Maury Tobin, 39, a white communications consultant from Port Tobacco, Md. "If they came out and voted for him in the primary in record numbers, they're going to come out again in the general. That's going to put some states in play for the Democrats that they never imagined would be there."

And if all goes according to plan, Obama supporters said, there will be a lot more history to celebrate.

Mildred Taylor, the 80-year-old from Los Angeles, contacted her great-grandchildren yesterday. They're too young to know what she knows, but she still wanted to make sure they realized that something historic had happened.

"You can do anything you want to do," Taylor told them. "This has opened up the door, so it's up to you to walk through it."

Staff writers Philip Rucker and Petula Dvorak in Washington, Kari Lydersen in Chicago, and Ashley Surdin in Los Angeles contributed to this report.