Illinois senator Barack Obama launched a bid for the White House on Saturday afternoon with the building where President Abraham Lincoln served in the state Legislature as a backdrop.

The forty-five year old promised to “transform” America in an official speech that lasted twenty minutes.

“I know I haven’t spent a lot of time learning the ways of Washington. But I’ve been there long enough to know that the ways of Washington must change,” he said.

His career began just 10 years ago in the Illinois Legislature. He lost a bid for a U.S. House seat, then won the Senate seat in 2004.

Barack gained national recognition with the publication of two best-selling books, “Dreams From My Father” and “The Audacity of Hope,” and by delivering the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in 2004.

“We can build a more hopeful America. And that is why, in the shadow of the Old State Capitol, where Lincoln once called on a house divided to stand together, where common hopes and common dreams still live, I stand before you today to announce my candidacy for President of the United States of America,” the Presidential candidate said.

The political novice turned Presidential hopeful has a wife and two daughter, eight year old Malia and five year old Sasha.