Turning everyone's passion and enthusiasm into votes is the only way we'll bring about the change we all want. But knowing when, where, and how to vote hasn't always been easy -- until now.
We've created a new online tool -- VoteforChange -- that will give you customized answers to all of your voting questions, personalized just for you. Try it now:
Need to find out how to register to vote? Not sure if you're already registered? Just enter some basic information and get instant answers.
Need to find out your Election Day polling location, absentee voting information, or other registration requirements? Or perhaps you want to find out if your state allows early voting or vote by mail. We've got it all covered.
Once you get the information you need, pass it on to all of your friends with our easy-to-use sharing feature. We all know people who'd like to vote but just don't have the information. With VoteforChange, they'll have no excuses.
Making sure that everyone's voice is heard in the political process is what this movement for change is all about. Make sure you and everyone you know isn't left out:
Help Gulf Coast residents and first responders
Category: News and Politics
Today, the thoughts and prayers of all Americans are with those in the path of Hurricane Gustav -- and many of you are asking what you can do to help.
We do not yet know what the impact of Hurricane Gustav will be, and we hope with all our hearts that the damage will not be as great as it was three years ago.
But we know there will be damage, and there is something you can do right now.
Your financial support will strengthen organizations like the American Red Cross that are evacuating Gulf Coast residents and planning to help communities get back on their feet.
Make a donation to support the American Red Cross today.
At times like this, it is our compassion and resilience that define who we are as a nation.
Please give whatever you can afford, even $10, to make sure the American Red Cross has the resources to help those in the path of this storm:
Thank you for your generosity, and I hope you will join Michelle and me in praying for the safety of those in the path of the storm and the first responders who are doing all they can to ensure the safety of their communities.
Video: Barack Obama at Mile High -- "The American Promise"
Category: News and Politics
On a cloudless August night in Denver, before a united party and thousands of grassroots supporters from all across America, Senator Obama accepted the Democratic Party presidential nomination.
Obama made the case for why America cannot afford four more years of the same failed policies and laid out his vision to bring about fundamental change at home and abroad. He reminded us of the extraordinary promise of America at its best and challenged us to continue to fight for that promise, to march ahead, to not turn back...
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That promise is our greatest inheritance. It's a promise I make to my daughters when I tuck them in at night, and a promise that you make to yours – a promise that has led immigrants to cross oceans and pioneers to travel west; a promise that led workers to picket lines, and women to reach for the ballot.
And it is that promise that forty five years ago today, brought Americans from every corner of this land to stand together on a Mall in Washington, before Lincoln's Memorial, and hear a young preacher from Georgia speak of his dream.
The men and women who gathered there could've heard many things. They could've heard words of anger and discord. They could've been told to succumb to the fear and frustration of so many dreams deferred.
But what the people heard instead – people of every creed and color, from every walk of life – is that in America, our destiny is inextricably linked. That together, our dreams can be one.
"We cannot walk alone," the preacher cried. "And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back."
America, we cannot turn back. Not with so much work to be done. Not with so many children to educate, and so many veterans to care for. Not with an economy to fix and cities to rebuild and farms to save. Not with so many families to protect and so many lives to mend. America, we cannot turn back. We cannot walk alone. At this moment, in this election, we must pledge once more to march into the future. Let us keep that promise – that American promise – and in the words of Scripture hold firmly, without wavering, to the hope that we confess.
To all of our supporters, from those who have been with this remarkable campaign from the beginning to those of you who are just joining this movement for change: if you agree that we cannot turn back now -- that this is our moment to seize -- please make a donation today.
Joe Biden Accepts Vice Presidential Nomination: "This is the time to get back up"
Category: News and Politics
Since I've never been called a man of few words, let me say this as simply as I can: Yes. Yes, I accept your nomination to run and serve with Barack Obama, the next President of the United States of America.
Joe Biden formally accepted the nomination for Vice President for the Democratic Party last night. Joe came onto the stage after a moving introduction by his son Beau. And with his family in the audience, including his mom who taught him that "you are defined by your sense of honor, and you are redeemed by your loyalty," he gave a rousing acceptance speech.
Joe told America about his childhood, about being picked on because of his stutter, about his father teaching him to always get up after you've been knocked down, and about the promise that if you work hard, you can succeed in the world. And he spoke about how that promise is slowing slipping away.
Fortunately, Joe told the audience, in Barack Obama, we have a candidate who can and will restore the American Dream for people across the country.
You know, you can learn a lot about a man campaigning with him, debating him, seeing how he reacts under pressure. You learn about the strength of his mind, but even more importantly, you learn about the quality of his heart. I watched how Barack touched people, how he inspired them, and I realized he had tapped into the oldest belief in America: We don't have to accept a situation we cannot bear. We have the power to change it. And change it―and change it is exactly what Barack Obama will do. That's what he'll do for this country.
Our greatest presidents―from Abraham Lincoln to Franklin Roosevelt to John Kennedy―they all challenged us to embrace change. Now, it's our responsibility to meet that challenge.
Millions of Americans have been knocked down. And this is the time as Americans, together, we get back up. Back up together. Our debt to our parents and grandparents too great, our obligation to our children is too sacred.
These are extraordinary times. This is an extraordinary election. The American people are ready. I'm ready. Barack is ready. This is his time. This is our time. This is America's time.
Watch Joe accept the vice presidential nomination below.
Message from Jon Carson: Rolling up our sleeves
Category: News and Politics
National Field Director Jon Carson just sent out this email...
This has been a convention of extraordinary moments. Ted Kennedy passing the torch to a new generation. Michelle Obama moving the crowd to tears. And tonight, Joe Biden will give the biggest speech of his life.
Millions of Americans are watching and counting on us to win this election and deliver real change.
They're not just counting on Barack and Joe -- they are counting on you. Hillary couldn't have said it better: "None of us can afford to sit on the sidelines."
This is our one shot, so let's roll up our sleeves -- or risk another four or eight years of the same disastrous Bush-McCain policies.
Tomorrow, Barack will accept the Democratic nomination, and supporters all across the country are getting together to be a part of this historic moment.
Then, this weekend, we'll kick off the biggest voter registration and mobilization drive in the history of politics.
Attend a Convention Watch Party this Thursday evening, and find a Weekend of Action event near you:
Message from Barack: Did You See Michelle?
Category: News and Politics
Barack just sent out this email...
Dear Friend -
I am so lucky to be married to the woman who delivered that speech last night.
Michelle was electrifying, inspiring, and absolutely magnificent. I get a lot of credit for the speech I gave at the 2004 convention -- but I think she may have me beat.
I have some important news, and I'm pleased to share it with you first.
I've chosen Joe Biden to be my running mate.
Joe and I will appear for the first time as running mates this afternoon in Springfield, Illinois -- the same place this campaign began more than 19 months ago.
I'm excited about hitting the campaign trail with Joe, but the two of us can't do this alone. We need your help to keep building this movement for change.
Please let Joe know that you're glad he's part of our team. Share your personal welcome note and we'll make sure he gets it:
Barack in Chester, Virginia: "The answer is John McCain has seven homes"
Category: News and Politics
Earlier today at a town hall in Chester, Virginia Barack spoke about the real economic challenges facing Americans and the need for a president who has a sense of what ordinary people are going through.
Barack explained:
[John McCain's] top economic advisers said the other day that Americans should stop complaining, that they've become a nation of "whiners." That all of the economic problems that everyone is talking about is just a mental recession.
... Then yesterday, he was asked again, "What do you think about the economy?" And he said "I think the economy is fundamentally strong." Now this puzzled me. I was confused as to what he meant. But then there was another interview .... where somebody asked John McCain "How many houses do you have?" And he said "I'm not sure, I'll have to check with my staff."
... If you don't know how many houses you have, you might think that the economy is fundamentally strong. But if you're like me and you've got one house, or if you're one of the millions of people who are struggling right now to keep up with their mortgage so that they don't lose their home, you might have a different perspective.
By the way, the answer is John McCain has seven homes.
With just three days to go until the start of the Democratic National Convention, excitement is building in Denver and across America. Soon, delegates from all fifty states will convene in the Mile High City to cast their ballots for Barack Obama and witness his acceptance of the Democratic Party's nomination for president of the United States.
Thursday, August 28th will be the biggest night of the campaign so far. Even if you can't be in Denver, you can be a part of this historic convention by attending a Convention Watch Party in your area.
