Obama's Business Backers Look Ahead

A powerful group of African American executives helped get Obama elected President. Now they hope he can provide solutions to the economic crisis

U.S. President-elect Barack Obama walks onstage with his wife, Michelle, and daughters Malia and Sasha during an election night gathering in Chicago's Grant Park. Win McNamee/Getty Images

By Roger O. Crockett

On Nov. 4 at 10 p.m., Lyle Logan raised his arms toward the autumn sky over Chicago's Grant Park in triumph. News that Senator Barack Obama had officially won enough electoral votes to become the next President of the U.S. was flashing on the big video screen above the VIP pen at "ground zero" for the 2008 Presidential election results. And Logan, an African American executive vice-president at Northern Trust Co., couldn't hold back the tears suddenly streaming down his face. "I'm overwhelmed," he said, his young son clinging to his waist. "It's just amazing."

Although much of Obama's success can be attributed (BusinessWeek, 11/4/08) to his vision, personal skills, and leadership appeal, no small amount of credit goes to a powerful circle of black business leaders in Chicago. In addition to Logan, they include Valerie Jarrett, CEO of real estate management firm The Habitat Co. and now co-head of Obama's transition team; Jim Reynolds, CEO of investment bank Loop Capital Markets; John Rogers, CEO of mutual fund icon Ariel Investments; Quintin Primo III, CEO of commercial real estate development company Capri Capital Partners; and Frank Clark, CEO of electrical utility Commonwealth Edison.

These black executives have maintained a low profile since early February 2007, when Obama launched his Presidential quest. But they have been Obama's link to well-heeled Chicagoans such as Penny S. Pritzker and James S. Crown. And contrary to widespread statistics showing blacks lagging other groups in wealth, together they have donated some $30,000 to Obama over the past two years.

Celebrating with High-Fives

Just as important, Logan and the others served as a kind of stealth sounding board long before Obama had a glimmer of an idea about the White House. They gathered for a private meeting in late 2002 as he was mulling his run for the U.S. Senate. In a tony high-rise overlooking Lake Michigan near the South Side, the then-largely anonymous state senator vetted his lofty political ambitions with some of his closest friends.

Later, during his second year in the U.S. Senate, Obama called Clark, among others, to discuss whether it made sense for him to mount a bid for the Presidency. Clark, 62, is one of Chicago's elder statesmen and chief of ComEd, a subsidiary of energy giant Exelon (EXC) and the largest electric utility in Illinois, serving nearly 4 million customers in Chicago and Northern Illinois. He didn't mince words: "Your window of opportunity is now," Clark recalls saying. "Go do it."