Obama: The best is yet to come

Barack Obama has been re-elected as US president, telling ecstatic supporters: "For the United States of America, the best is yet to come."

Obama: The best is yet to come

Barack Obama has been re-elected as US president, telling ecstatic supporters: "For the United States of America, the best is yet to come."

In his victory speech in Chicago, Mr Obama thanked the "best campaign team in the history of politics'', telling them: "Thank you for believing all the way... I will always be grateful for everything you have done.''

President Obama walked onto the stage with Michelle and his daughters, Sasha and Malia, to the strains of Stevie Wonder's "Signed, Sealed, Delivered".

President Obama started by saying: "Tonight, more than 200 years after a former colony won the right to determine its own destiny, the task of perfecting our union moves forward. It moves forward because of you. It moves forward because you reaffirmed the spirit that has triumphed over war and depression, the spirit that has lifted this country from the depths of despair to the great heights of hope - the belief that while each of us will pursue our own individual beliefs, we are a family and we will rise and fall together as one people."

The President went on to thank the voters.

He said: "I want to thank every American who participated in this election - whether you voted for the very first time, or waited in line for a very long time. By the way - we have to fix that.

"Whether you pounded the pavement or picked up the phone. Whether you held an Obama sign or a Romney sign, you made your voice heard - and you made a difference."

He then acknowledged his opponent Mitt Romney and the fact that "the Romney family has chosen to give back to this country through public service."

He said: "I just spoke to Governor Romney, and I congratulated him and Paul Ryan on a hard-fought campaign. We may have battled fiercely, but it’s only because we love this country deeply, and we care so deeply about its future.

"In the weeks ahead, I look forward to sitting down with Governor Romney to talk about ways we (can) work together to move America forward."

Victorious Obama then went on to say: "We have picked ourselves up, fought our way back. For the United States of America, the best is yet to come."

"Democracy in a nation of 300 million can be noisy and messy and complicated. We have our own opinions. Each of us has deeply held beliefs. And when we go through tough times, when we make big decisions as a country, it necessarily stirs up controversy. That won’t change after tonight - and it shouldn't," the president said.

President Obama then reached out to his opponents saying: "Despite all our differences, most of us share certain hopes for America’s future.

"We want our kids to grow up in a country where they have access to the best schools and the best teachers. A country that lives up to its reputation as a global leader in technology - free of debt, that isn’t threatened by inequality or a warming planet."

The Democrat President highlighted his achievements in his previous tenure.

He said: "Our economy is recovering. A decade of war is ending. A long campaign is now over. And whether I earned your vote or not, I have listened to you, I have learned from you. You have made me a better president.

"Tonight, you voted for action, not politics as usual. You elected us to focus on your jobs, not ours. And in the coming weeks and months, I am looking forward to reaching out and working with leaders from both parties, to meet the challenges we can only solve together.

"This country has more wealth than any nation -- but that’s not what makes us rich. We have the most powerful military, but that’s not what makes us strong. What makes America exceptional are the bonds that hold together the most diverse nation on earth, the belief that our destiny is shared."

The President said that he was "hopeful" for America.

He said: "I’ve seen it on the shores of New Jersey and New York, where leaders from both parties have swept aside their differences to help their communities rebuild after the wreckage of a terrible storm."

"I’m not talking about blind optimism -- the kind of hope that just ignores the enormity of the task ahead. I have always believed that hope is that stubborn thing inside us that insists, despite all the evidence to the contrary, that something better awaits us, so long as we have the courage to keep reaching."

He concluded by saying that America is united.

He said: "We are not as divided as our politics suggest; we are not as cynical as the pundits believe. We remain more than a collection of red states and blues states - we remain the United States."

His rival Mitt Romney told supporters he had called President Obama to congratulate him on his victory.

The former Massachusetts governor insisted he and running mate Paul Ryan had “given our all” to the campaign and said he wished his Democrat opponent well.

Republican Mr Romney urged his supporters to pray for the re-elected president as returns to the White House against a backdrop of economic gloom.

He added: “I so wish that I had been able to fulfil your hopes to lead the country in a different direction but the nation chose another leader and so I join with you to earnestly pray for him and for this great nation.”

Mr Romney told supporters the election was over ``but our principles endure''.

But the Republican insisted it was not a time to “resort to political posturing” as he revealed he would pray for the President to be successful in “guiding the nation”.

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