Time looks back at Barack Obama‘s evolution over the long presidential campaign.

“Obama is far from the same man he was four years ago, or even 21 months ago, for that matter. There are the subtle physical changes: the graying hair, the pounds shred from months of grueling 18-hour days. And then there’s the legacy of the longest campaign in U.S. history: a stronger debate voice, a flag pin on his lapel and a tendency, picked up from Hillary Clinton, to relay some of the stories he’s heard from struggling Americans.

“Thanks to John McCain and Sarah Palin, he’s refined the art of attacking an opponent by flinging their own words back at them. ‘Look — we’ve tried it John McCain’s way. We’ve tried it George Bush’s way. Deep down, Senator McCain knows that, which is why his campaign said that ‘if we keep talking about the economy, we’re going to lose,’ Obama said. ‘That’s why he’s spending these last weeks calling me every name in the book. Because that’s how you play the game in Washington.'”

Read the full article here.