November 4, 2008. I think everyone in the country woke up Tuesday morning and said to themselves, “Something’s gotta give.” Eight years after George W. Bush was elected president, people knew it was time for a change, but spent the day anxious and hopeful.

I didn’t have much doubt in my mind as to who was going to win the presidency. I put some Cava in the fridge to celebrate with and spent the day out and about. I was planning on coming home late – I had things to do – and watching the returns for however long it would take. Some of the swing states, I figured, would be close, and I expected some protracted agony like we had in the last couple of elections. On my way home that night, I was listening to the BBC as they talked about how they were just waiting to officially call Virginia for Obama and how emails were coming in from all over the world “comparing an Obama Presidency to the fall of the Berlin Wall.”

At 11 o’clock pm eastern time, I stepped off the bus, and people started running out of their apartment buildings screaming, “Obama!!! Obama is President!!!” People were honking their horns and yelling up and down my street in Harlem. It was awesome.

So I ran home to see if it was true. My roommates tried to trick me by saying McCain won and putting on Fox News. I told them to stop it, there were hugs all around, and then champagne.  A little after watching John McCain’s concession speech, I got a call from a friend working for the Obama campaign in western Pennsylvania who told me there was a huge rally down on 125th Street. My roommates and I just looked at each other, set the DVR for Obama’s speech, and rushed downtown… thankfully with cameras in hand.

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© Ian for Ian Korn Photo Industries, 2008. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us

These posters have been showing up on the Lower East Side lately. I snapped this picture while I was wandering around during CMJ. Clearly, we know where this designer’s sentiments lie; you can probably guess mine. Regardless of how you feel about this year’s election prospects (or this poster), I would like to remiind you of one thing that I’ve been saying for a while now: If you don’t vote, you can’t complain.

This is probably a good time to point you in the direction of some useful election resources that’ll help you make up your mind about all those other candidates and issues on your ballot… First, check out Project Vote Smart, which can give you a pretty good guide to your candidates. Another really good – and often more complete one – is Smart Voter, by the League of Women Voters. There’s a new one this year, Ballotpedia, which could be worth a look too. Between the three of those, you should be able to figure out what to do once you get into the voting booth.

So, with all that in mind, go out and VOTE! November 4th is tomorrow!

© Ian for Ian Korn Photo Industries, 2008. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us