Barbara Brotherson wanted to be first in line to snag tickets for Barack Obama’s Thursday appearance in Raleigh, so she packed a warm blanket and headed to his downtown campaign headquarters at 1:45 a.m. Wednesday—arriving more than seven hours before the doors were scheduled to be open.
The 69-year-old said she hasn’t been this excited about a presidential race since she cast her ballot for JFK in 1960. So when she found out Obama was hosting a town hall meeting at the N.C. State Fairgrounds, she had to go.
“I just love the way he’s gotten the country to come together – people from all walks of life,” said Brotherson, who was wrapped in a grey, wool blanket. “There’s some of everybody out here.”
It was a sentiment shared by many of the people lining up in a parking lot on South Morgan Street Wednesday morning. There were approximately 1,200 tickets to give out for the town hall meeting, which will focus on economy and Obama’s plans for investing in middle class families.
The line started to grow around 7 a.m., and by 8 a.m. it snaked around the side of the Obama for America Raleigh Headquarters at 130 E. Morgan St. Some people read books, others chatted up whoever they happened to be standing beside in line, others called friends and urged them to head downtown to pick up tickets of their own.
One woman walking down Morgan Street stopped and asked what was going on. When told that tickets to see Obama were being handed out, she looked at her watch and declared she wished she had known, but she couldn’t be late for work. Then she reluctantly walked away, glancing over her shoulder at the group of Triangle residents who would soon have an opportunity to see the presidential candidate in the flesh.
You couldn’t ignore the energy in the parking lot as people toward the end of the long line tried to guess whether there would be enough tickets for them.
Whether you support Obama or not, it was refreshing to see hundreds of people excited about getting their chance to see a presidential candidate. It’s not uncommon for fans to wait overnight to secure tickets to their favorite concerts. But it says something when an American politician can draw a similar crowd.
Raleigh resident Greg Flynn, an architect who blogs for BlueNC, took his spot in line at 6:30 a.m. He said the last time he waited in a line like this was to get his wife tickets to see Billy Joel. Asked why he thought people were compelled to stand in line to get tickets to see a politician, he said: “I don’t think he’s just any politican, he’s Barack Obama.”
Tickets are required to attend Thursday’s town hall meeting at the Kerr Scott Building, 1025 Blue Ridge Road, Raleigh. Tickets are being distributed until 9 p.m. at Obama’s headquarters in downtown Raleigh. They are available on a first come, first serve basis until 9 p.m.
To see footage of people waiting in line and hear why they came, check out Ginny from the Blog.
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