Tuesday, October 28, Senator Barack Obama held a rally at the James Madison University Convocation Center in Harrisonburg, Virginia. This is the first time a presidential candidate has visited the Shenandoah Valley since 1860, when Senator Stephen Douglas, also from Illinois, visited the town. The Shenandoah Valley is known as the most conservative area of the state., so many people were surprised the Democratic nominee would hold an event in the valley.
The event began at five pm, and lasted about forty minutes because Senator Obama had to be in Norfolk, Va at seven. The JMU Convocation Center only holds about eight thousand people, so the university had to stream live video of the rally in the Godwin Gym and the Ballroom at the Festival Conference and Student Center, as well as on the soccer fields.
This was Obama’s ninth visit to Virginia.