Programs an Events
U.S. Consulate General Celebrates the American Elections
November 5, 2008
About 500 Turkish and American friends, colleagues and journalists joined the Consulate General for an American-style breakfast at the Sheraton Hotel. Attendees watched President-elect Barack Obama make his acceptance speech and then enjoyed a panel of experts discuss the implications of the elections for U.S.-Turkish relations. Many of the students who attended had fun taking pictures with life-sized versions of the candidates. Consul General Sharon Wiener shared her personal perspective on the historic nature of the elections: "The first time I witnessed an American election from abroad was when I was a student in 1968. If you remember, 1968 was the year that Martin Luther King was assassinated and Bobby Kennedy had been assassinated. If you had asked me back then if had thought it would be possible that 40 years later America would be electing its first African-American president, I’m not sure – even as an optimistic student – I would have thought that was possible. But indeed, on January 20, 2009, Barack Obama will be inaugurated as America’s 44th president. . . [And] as I have always said throughout this campaign, I am sure, that as president, Barack Obama will understand the importance of Turkey as a strategic ally and a friend."