Barack Obama (D)

Barack Obama, until recently a little-known state senator from Chicago's South Side, rode a remarkable wave to victory. He swamped a field of six established candidates in the Democratic primary and overwhelmed a Republican conservative, Alan Keyes, imported from Maryland, to become the only African American U.S. senator.

On the stump, Obama liked to joke that he was the guy with a black father from Kenya, a white mother from Kansas, and a funny name. He spent much of his youth in Hawaii, graduated from Columbia University and became a community activist in Chicago before attending Harvard Law School, where he was the first African American president of the law review.

Obama delivered the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in July, soaring to prominence with a memorable speech. Far ahead of his opponent in the polls, he campaigned and raised money for other Democratic candidates in the campaign's final weeks. He does not deny an interest in running for president one day.