Kenyan Government Declares National Holiday After Obama Victory in U.S.

Kenya declared a national holiday today after Senator Barack Obama was elected the 44th President of the United States of America.

The Kenyan government dedicated this holiday to commemorate the fact that Obama’s father was born in Kenya according to Agence France-Presse (AFP). The Kenyan President, Mwai Kibaki, released the following statement to AFP:

"This is a momentous day not only in the history of the United States of America, but also for us in Kenya...The victory of Senator Obama is our own victory because of his roots here in Kenya. As a country, we are full of pride for his success.''

Barack Obama Sr. was born in Kenya and was briefly married to Obama’s mother. He went back to Kenya two years after his son Barack was born. Obama met his father only once since that time, and his father died in a car accident in 1982. Obama talks about his father in his book titled “Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance." Obama has step-brothers and step-sisters from his father’s side in Kenya. Obama’s father couldn’t achieve the American Dream but his son did yesterday thanks to his maternal grandparents, Madelyn and Stanley Dunham.