There has never been a first couple like Barack and Michelle Obama. The 44th President of the United States and his accomplished wife have been together for roughly 32 years and married for 30, celebrating their recent anniversary on October 3, 2022. After time as the State Senator of Illinois, two terms in the White House, and book tours and family trips alike, this couple has endured so much and made history along the way. Take a look back at Barack and Michelle’s romance with this timeline of their relationship.
Meeting In 1989
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At just 25 years old, Michelle was working as an attorney in the Southside of Chicago when she was asked to mentor Barack. While their relationship remained strictly professional at first, Barack eventually built up the courage to ask Michelle on a date. “Once [Barack and I] started talking and became friends, he was very clear — just like, ‘I want to date you.’ At least in my experience up until then, men would be coy. They would, you know, sort of look around the room. It was all so complicated, and it felt, a little immature,” Michelle recalled to Conan O’Brien.
“What struck me about Barack was his, lack of pretense,” Michelle said. “I mean, he was somebody who knew what he wanted, and wasn’t afraid to say it. And, I thought, ‘well, if he’s that in tune with his emotions that he can say out loud to somebody that doesn’t know.’ He didn’t know whether I liked him back! He was like, ‘look, let me tell you, this is what I think about you: I think you’re special, I think you’re different, and I would like to take you out.’ And that was rare. And it was attractive.”
Wedding Bells In 1992
