- Born Aug. 4, 1961, to his Kenyan father, Barack Obama Sr., and his white mother, Ann Dunham, of Wichita, Kan., who divorced when he was 2.
- Raised in Indonesia, home of his stepfather, then in Hawaii by his maternal grandparents.
- Graduated in 1979 from the private Punahou School in Hawaii.
- Attended Occidental College in Los Angeles for two years, then transferred to Columbia University in New York City and graduated in 1983.
- Worked from 1985 to 1988 on Chicago’s South Side as a community organizer for Developing Communities Project, setting up a tenants rights program and college preparatory program.
- Entered Harvard Law School in 1988, becoming the first black president of the Harvard Law Review and graduating in 1991.
- Met future wife Michelle Robinson in 1989 when she was assigned to mentor him as a summer associate at a Chicago corporate law firm.
- Accepted a teaching position at the University of Chicago Law School in 1992 while he worked on his first book, “Dreams from My Father,” which would be published in 1995.
- Married Michelle in 1992. The couple has two daughters, Malia, 10, and Natasha, 7.
- Joined a Chicago civil rights law firm in 1993 and served as a director on various boards.
- Ran successfully in 1996 as a Democrat for the Illinois state Senate and was elected twice more in 1998 and 2000.
- Lost the 2002 Democratic primary for the U.S. House of Representatives to incumbent Bobby Rush.
- Won the 2004 Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate and cruised to victory in the general election, becoming the fifth African American elected to the United States Senate.
- Announced his candidacy for president in February 2007 and captured the nomination 16 months later.
