How did Obama win the Elections

Primaries
1) His speech on the Iraq war played well with the left wing of the party
2) The use of new technology to conquer the internet and create a new pool of voters and new mechanisms for fundraising
3) Not relying on big donors
4) the genius strategy to win almost all caucuses
5) Promoting a smart foreign policy and avoiding the Carl Rove fear politics
6) American were skeptical of having the Bush/Clinton dynasties ruling for 28 years
7) Crutial endorsement (Oprah/Kennedy/Richardson/Edwards...
8) Hillary dropped the ball by being presumptive and overconfident, which resulted in using the Rev. Wright issue at a really late stage.
9) Bill Clinton
10) It seems there are enough blacks and educated people in this country to make the right choice.
11) Media bias
12) Obama girl

General (McCain mainly lost, after the primaries it was a done deal)
1) Economy
2) Bush
3) McCain VP pick


As a general remark he definitely got lucky, war in Iraq only became better after the primaries and it was so hard for Hill to promote it in the primaries. The economy only took center stage at the time of the general which completely moved focus away from national security.
His remarks on: the danger of the war in Afghanistan - Iraq troop withdrawal - engagement with Iran all became reality or were confirmed by the Bush admin. at the proper times.
His social economic views were very attractive considering the financial stress felt by most American families.

Obama Inauguration Speech (Muslim Reference)

President Obama gave a very encouraging signal to the Muslim word by announcing a type of relation based on mutual respect and cooperation. This chance should never be missed or taken lightly. The message was supported by many other signals in the address, starting from not a single mention of the word Israel, to the new definition to the word friend "America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more" , and most astonishing the mention of Muslims before Jews.
It seems to me that the order was carefully chosen to deliver a powerful message to the Muslim world. When describing the American fabric it is natural to say Christians then Jews and then others or just stop. However, for Obama to say "Christians and Muslims", then wait for a while and add "Jews and Hindus" he can only be sending a very strong message, that the new USA-Muslim World relation will not pass again through the jewish bridge and will never again be viewed through the narrow jewish prism. Indeed, just this one sentence alone is sufficient for all the Muslim leaders to be hopeful and to work tirelessly to seize the moment and lend a hand immediately to this aspiring president!
Thank you Obama