Morning of Hope and Goodwill in U.S. (The Independent, UK)

The long transition between an American election and the inauguration means that the actual import of the occasion can all too easily be taken for granted. Not this year. The excitement that has been mounting in Washington since the night of 4 November has radiated not only across the United States, but around the world.

At midday today, east coast time, power in the country that is still the world's richest and mightiest will be transferred, as the constitution decrees, to Barack Obama. Thanks to satellite television, it will be one of the most watched events ever – a truly global occasion, and a model of how democracy should work.

At 47, Mr Obama will not be the youngest President of the United States. But that is one of the few barriers he has not shattered on his triumphant progress to the White House. As the outsider, contesting the Democratic Party's nomination against Hillary Clinton, one of the best connected and best funded candidates on record, he ran an inspirational grassroots campaign. With his rhetorical gifts and his unique personal history, he mobilised young Americans and those of all ethnic backgrounds – some of the voters always hardest to reach. Imaginative use of the internet spread the word and brought in the money; he raised more and spent more than his rival.

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