Obama student field coordinator celebrates South Carolina win

Naomi Michaelis grew up in Codey country, but it was her immersion in the West Wing TV show, more than West Orange politics, that taught her about the hazards of celebrating a campaign victory too early.

"I was in eighth grade and I was hooked after the teacher mentioned it on the first day of class," said Michaelis. "I would watch that show and continuously hit pause just to pick up on the details."

Sen. Barack Obama’s 55-27% blowout win over Sen. Hillary Clinton in the South Carolina primary on Saturday flabbergasted her and her fellow Rutgers University students, who couldn’t believe the news networks called it for Obama just moments after the polls closed in the southern state.

"It's so encouraging, and a re-affirmation of everything we've been working on," said Mark Alexander, state director of Obama's campaign in New Jersey, where his candidate trailed Clinton by double digits in polls last week.

On Saturday evening, Michaelis, a sophomore political science/history major and the statewide field coordinator for Students for Barack Obama, had just finished an afternoon canvassing in dorm rooms at Rutgers. She hadn’t been a half an hour in the Red Lion lounge in the student center waiting for the returns when Obama’s smiling face flashed on screen accompanied by the words "projected winner."

She let it sink in slowly. It wasn’t just the West Wing anymore that kept her on guard. She had led a group of volunteers up to New Hampshire and after riding the wave all week the come down with Obama’s loss was tough.

She said she returned to Jersey, focused on trying to talk to as many people as she could, doing phone banking, door knocking and generally mustering student efforts all around the state and especially in the student power centers: Rutgers, Princeton and Seton Hall.

"I loved that Sen. Obama has taken the time to speak to people, and particularly young people, college-aged people," said Michaelis.. "You want to know the people you elect are going to listen to you, and from the time I started about a year ago, he was actually taking the time to let people know what was going on and getting feedback and that was important to me."

Michaelis said she is at Douglas College because of money issues.

"Sen. Obama wants to make college more affordable for me and for my parents - and my brother," she said. "Two kids in college isn’t easy. That specific issue is important. And also his emphasis on volunteerism, bringing that back again in politics - that sense of giving back to the community was vital to me."

A few years ago she was cheering for the Martin Sheen character on her favorite television show. Now she’s a delegate candidate in the same district as Newark Mayor Cory Booker, and on Saturday night she was cheering for Obama, who was victorious a week and a half in front of the primary in Michaelis’ home state.

Earlier in tha day on Saturday, lead organizers with the Obama campaign told volunteers they would knock on 100,000 doors in New Jersey in the days leading up to Feb. 5th.

"We see in this campaign a fundamentally different approach," said Alexander. "The margin of victory in South Carolina shows that this is not a segmented win. Barack Obama is drawing all kinds of people."