‘A monumental moment for America’

Ernest Jones never thought he’d live to see the day when voters would choose a black president to lead the United States.

“I didn’t think I’d ever see that,” Jones, Ottawa, said. “It’s certainly a monumental moment for America.”

Jones, who watched the 2008 election results at his home, joined millions of Americans in celebrating Barack Obama’s victory.

“Obviously as an African American, I’m pleased to see our country move beyond hurdles that will prevent us from tapping in to all that makes up our country,” he said.

Cathy McClay with the Franklin County Republican Party said she and other Republicans had hoped Sen. John McCain would come out on top, but they weren’t too surprised with the results.

“But Kansas is still Republican territory,” she said. “We’re proud of our state.”

McClay said as a strong conservative, it was difficult to watch a liberal be so widely accepted.

“[Obama] promised a lot of things,” she said. “We’ll have to sit back and see what happens.”

Jones said he thought Obama ran a “sharp” campaign that engaged voters of all ages and backgrounds, which made a huge impact on his success.

“Obama ran a campaign that engaged and educated so many different groups that otherwise did not give much attention to certain issues or didn’t know the depth of certain issues,” he said.

Jones said he often was asked if he would vote for Obama because he’s black. He said no.

“I voted for Obama because he made his agenda and his ideals clear for which direction he wanted to take the country,” Jones said, adding that all Americans have been suffering because of the poor economy, schools, health care and other problems.

Looking at the coming four years, Jones said he’d like to see Obama tackle foreign affairs issues first, and then the nation’s economy.

“It’s because our economy is so wrapped up globally that you need to address those issues abroad so that you can address those issues at home,” he said.

Other pressing issues include the nation’s health care and education systems, Jones said.

“In that order, I think things will get better,” he said.