Commemorative Plaque at the Presidential Election Declaration Site
Old Illinois State Capitol in Springfield
Also the Location of Lincoln's 'House Divided' Speech
[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lee Gyehwa] A commemorative plaque has appeared in the courtyard of the old Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, where Barack Obama, the first Black president in U.S. history, officially announced his presidential candidacy in February 2007.
According to local media on the 1st (local time), a plaque measuring 1.2m wide and 1.6m tall, engraved with Obama's presidential candidacy declaration, was erected in the southeast courtyard of the old State Capitol in Springfield. Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, Illinois state legislators, and representatives from the Obama Foundation held a plaque dedication ceremony on the 30th of last month in the House chamber inside the old State Capitol. The plaque states that Obama, then a U.S. Senator from Illinois, officially declared his presidential candidacy in the southeast courtyard of the old State Capitol in February 2007, with about 15,000 people attending the event.
Obama entered politics in 1997 and was elected as an Illinois state senator in the 2004 Illinois U.S. Senate election, seven years later. Two years after stepping onto the national stage, on February 10, 2007, he officially announced his presidential candidacy in front of the old Illinois State Capitol. The old State Capitol is where former President Abraham Lincoln, who served as an Illinois state representative and U.S. House representative, likened America to a "house divided" during the 1858 Republican National Convention. National Public Radio (NPR) explained that this was the background for Obama’s presidential candidacy announcement at this location.
Completed in 1839 and used as the Illinois State Capitol until 1876, this site was designated a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1961. At the dedication ceremony, Governor Pritzker said, "The plaque will honor one of our favorite sons and the first Black president of the United States who delivered a message of change and hope to the world," adding, "We will never stop believing that we can create a better future."
The dedication of the plaque commemorating Obama’s presidential candidacy announcement took place as the construction of the Obama Presidential Center, scheduled to open in 2025 in Jackson Park along the southern shore of Lake Michigan, has been gaining momentum. The $3,000 (approximately 4 million KRW) cost of producing the plaque was shared by the Old State Capitol Foundation and the Illinois Historical Society, according to the Chicago Tribune. Michael Strothmanis, Vice Chairman of the Obama Foundation, said, "Springfield was Obama’s first political stage and a place where he learned many principles during his presidency. Once the Obama Center is completed in South Chicago, the two sites will create a synergistic effect."
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