The Obama logo was the primary symbol of Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign. The design became one of the most recognized political brand logos during the 2008 U.S. presidential election, and was used again for Obama's reelection campaign and for the Obama Foundation.
The logo was designed by Chicago-based Sender LLC (a brand development and design company) on assignment from Chicago-based Mode Project (a motion design studio). The latter had been brought on board early on by David Axelrod, Obama's chief campaign strategist, although it had never done a political identity before. Creative director and brand strategist Sol Sender led the design team of three which included Amanda Gentry and Andy Keene. Project managers at Mode Project were Colin Carter and Steve Juras. [1]
"We were looking at the "o" of his name and had the idea of a rising sun and a new day," according to Sender. "The sun rising over the horizon evoked a new sense of hope." [2] "The design expression was so constrained and so bland for so many years in politics," Sender says. "I think we had a fresh approach because we'd never worked on a campaign before" — and, of course, the power of the logo had a lot to do with "the power of the candidate's message." [3]
The final design was decided among seven or eight options in the first round. [4] "In terms of our internal process, though, I believe the logo — as we now know it — came out of a second round of design explorations. At any rate, it happened quite quickly, all things considered. The entire undertaking took less than two weeks." [5]
The design began late in 2006 and the finished logo made its debut when Obama officially announced his candidacy for presidency February 10, 2007 in Springfield, Illinois. [1]
John Slabyk and Scott Thomas, designers with the Obama campaign oversaw the customization of the logo for 12 different identity groups as well as for each state with 50 additional versions. There was also identity for Republicans and Independents supporting Barack Obama. [1] [6]
The reception of Obama's logo was generally positive, and in some circles, highly praised. The Boston Globe beamed that "the ever-present rising sun logo has the feeling of a hot new Internet company." [7] "It begins to break with tradition while also rooting itself in tradition," said Peter Krivkovich, CEO of Cramer-Krasselt advertising agency in Chicago. [2] "Patriotism is the foundation, but above that is hope, opportunity, newness." David Morrison, president of Philadelphia-based market research firm Twentysomething Inc., said the logo has "a nice, contemporary, dynamic, youthful vibe about it." [2] Designer Michael Bierut called Obama's branding "just as good or better" as the best commercial brand designs. "Every time you look, all those signs are perfect," Beirut said. "Graphic designers like me don't understand how it's happening. It's unprecedented and inconceivable to us. The people in the know are flabbergasted." [8]
On the other hand, cartoonist Ward Sutton asked, "is it a zero and a sunset over a deserted highway?" "Too many type styles and colors. The look is left undefined. The designer may have been too inexperienced," he added. [9]
Some[ who? ] have noted the similarity of Obama's campaign logo to others, namely those of Pepsi when turned upside down (Obama himself is said to have been of this opinion), [10] Vietin Bank, [11] The Sidney Hillman Foundation, the Taiwan Solidarity Union, [12] and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. There is also some similarity to the European Union's Protected Designation of Origin and Protected Geographical Indication logos and the logo of Germany's Agenda-Glas AG. [13] The official logos of the Party of Business in Russia, The River in Greece and the Democratic Alliance party of South Africa bears a striking resemblance to Obama's campaign logo. [14] Leader of the Hungarian Alliance Krisztián Forró was accused of plagirazing the Obama logo for his campaign in the 2024 Slovak presidential election. [15]
David M. Axelrod is an American political consultant, analyst, and former White House official. He is best known for being the chief strategist for Barack Obama's presidential campaigns. After Obama's election, Axelrod was appointed as Senior Advisor to the President. He left the position in early 2011 and became the Senior Strategist for Obama's successful re-election campaign in 2012. Axelrod wrote for the Chicago Tribune, and joined CNN as Senior Political Commentator in 2015. Until recently, Axelrod served as the director of the non-partisan University of Chicago Institute of Politics. His memoir is titled Believer: My Forty Years in Politics.
Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is an American attorney and author who served as the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017, being married to former president Barack Obama.
Leslie B. Otten is the former CEO of the American Skiing Company. Since resigning as its chief executive officer in 2001, Otten has been involved in numerous other businesses and industries, including the Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox.
Gotham is a geometric sans-serif typeface family designed by American type designer Tobias Frere-Jones with Jesse Ragan and released through the Hoefler & Frere-Jones foundry from 2000. Gotham's letterforms were inspired by examples of architectural signs of the mid-twentieth century. Gotham has a relatively broad design with a reasonably high x-height and wide apertures.
Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv is a New York–based branding and graphic design firm. It is currently led by partners Tom Geismar and Sagi Haviv.
Paul Tewes is a Democratic strategist specializing in national political organizing in the United States.
During the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign, controversy broke out regarding Barack Obama's relationship with Bill Ayers, a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and a former leader of the Weather Underground, a radical left organization in the 1970s. Investigations by CNN, The New York Times and other news organizations concluded that Obama did not have a close relationship with Ayers.
Barack Obama, then junior United States senator from Illinois, announced his candidacy for President of the United States on February 10, 2007, in Springfield, Illinois. After winning a majority of delegates in the Democratic primaries of 2008, on August 23, leading up to the convention, the campaign announced that Senator Joe Biden of Delaware would be the vice presidential nominee. At the 2008 Democratic National Convention on August 27, Barack Obama was formally selected as the Democratic Party nominee for President of the United States in 2008. He was the first African American in history to be nominated on a major party ticket.
Anita Dunn is an American political strategist serving as a senior advisor to U.S. President Joe Biden, having originally held the post from January 20, 2021, to August 12, 2021, and returning May 5, 2022.
Jason Wu is a Taiwanese-Canadian artist and fashion designer based in New York City. Born in Taiwan and raised in Vancouver, he studied fashion design at Parsons School of Design, and trained under Narciso Rodriguez before launching his own line.
AKPD Message and Media is an American political and media consulting firm catering to Democratic candidates and related causes. Formerly Axelrod and Associates, it is named after its four original partners: David Axelrod, John Kupper, David Plouffe, and John Del Cecato.
The 2000 United States House of Representatives election for the 1st district in Illinois took place on November 7, 2000 to elect a representative from Illinois's 1st congressional district for the 107th United States Congress. Incumbent Democratic Representative Bobby Rush faced a primary challenge from Illinois Senator and future President Barack Obama. Rush defeated Obama 61 percent to 30 percent, with other candidates combining for the remaining nine percent. Rush later defeated his Republican opponent, Raymond Wardingley, 88 percent to 12 percent, ensuring his reelection. Subsequent to this election, Obama was elected to the Senate in 2004, and later elected President in 2008.
Macon Phillips is a U.S. public servant who served as the Coordinator of the United States Department of State Bureau of International Information Programs from 2013 to 2017. He reported to Rick Stengel, the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. Phillips is the former White House Director of New Media, in which capacity he had oversight responsibility for WhiteHouse.gov. Phillips' work on WhiteHouse.gov closely coordinated with internet operations at the Democratic National Committee, which has responsibility for administration of the BarackObama.com domain and website. At precisely 12:00 p.m.ET during the inauguration of Barack Obama, Phillips oversaw the conversion of Whitehouse.gov, the official website of the President of the United States. At 12:01 p.m., he posted the site's first blog entry, titled: Change has come to WhiteHouse.gov.
Sheila Nix is an American attorney and political strategist who served as Chief of Staff to Jill Biden, the Second Lady of the United States from April 2013 to January 2017.
Andrew Christian is an American men's underwear, swimwear, sportswear and lingerie manufacturer named after its founder, Andrew Christian.
Bill Burton is an American political consultant and communication strategist who served as Deputy White House Press Secretary in the Obama Administration from 2009 to 2011.
The Barack Obama Presidential Center is a planned museum, library and education project in Chicago to commemorate the presidency of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States. The center will also include community and conference facilities and will house the nonprofit Obama Foundation. Construction on the 19.3 acre campus is expected to top out in April 2024, and the center to open in the first half of 2026.
Cody Keenan is an American political advisor and speechwriter who served as the director of speechwriting for President Barack Obama. Keenan studied political science at Northwestern University. After graduation, he worked in the U.S. senate office of Ted Kennedy, before studying for a master's in public policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. After graduation, he took a full-time position on Barack Obama's presidential campaign in 2008. In 2009, he assumed the position of deputy director of speechwriting. After Jon Favreau left the White House in 2013, Keenan took over as director of speechwriting.
A doppelgänger brand image is a parody logo or narrative intended to highlight ethical issues regarding the product advertised. They are commonly associated with the brand's lack of authenticity, and most are created as a form of individual protest, either posted digitally on social media, or displayed as physical graffiti.
Peter Eric Arnell is an American designer and branding executive, author, photographer, and founder of Arnell Group. He is known for creating products, brands and campaigns for companies including Chrysler, PepsiCo., Reebok, Fontainebleau Resorts, Donna Karan and Unilever, and he has written extensively on architectural theory and art history.
