Obama keeps looking to the future President Barack Obama speaks to supporters at a campaign rally at Ohio State University After winning the White House four years ago on a message of hope and change, Barack Obama foreshadowed a tougher fight for re-election, vowing to battle "door by door, block by block, neighbourhood by neighbourhood" to stay in office. The US president marked the official start of his re-election campaign in the swing states of Ohio and Virginia, where he touted his credentials to protect the middle class and set down the points of attack against Mitt Romney, his Republican opponent. While Mr Romney wants to make the election a referendum on Mr Obama's management of the economy, the president's slogan - "Forward" - symbolises his aim to to focus on the future instead of being forced into solely defending his record. Mr Obama highlighted policies designed to appeal to the various constituencies, including young voters, military veterans, Hispanics and women. He also previewed two lines of attack against Mr Romney, tying him to the "radical" Republicans who control the House of Representatives and throwing the challenger's recent statements against him. I don't care how many times you try to explain it: corporations aren't people. People are people," he said, referring to an oft-quoted statement by Mr Romney, a former private equity executive, in which he equated the rights of companies and individuals. The president, introduced in both venues by Michelle Obama, said working families faced a "make-or-break moment." Mr Romney, he said, "has drawn the wrong lessons" from his experience in business. He sincerely believes that if [chief executives] and wealthy investors like him make money, the rest of us will automatically prosper, as well. The challenge we faced for over a decade is that harder work hasn't led to higher incomes [but] Governor Romney doesn't seem to get that. At both rallies, Mr Obama and his wife emphasised the role that volunteers would play in his campaign, which has invested millions of dollars in building local teams throughout the nation to get out the vote. Mr Obama and Mr Romney are locked in a statistical dead heat in national polls, with the president having an edge in the main swing states. Both campaigns expect the election to be close. The launch took place against the background of continued evidence of the sluggish pace of the economic recovery, with unemployment data released on Friday showing that only 115,000 new jobs were created last month. Mr Romney hammered the president on the rate of job creation in the US after the figures were released. Thousands stood in maze-like queues on Saturday in Columbus and Richmond, chanting "four more years" and "fired up, ready to go" and yelling responses to small groups of protesters. Vendors hawked "Hope" posters and T-shirts with Mr Obama's face in red white and blue, badges and caps. Campaign volunteers sold official memorabilia branded with the "Forward" theme. Both crowds were diverse, with the Richmond event filled mainly with African-Americans, who overwhelmingly support Mr Obama but must be enthused to get out to vote for him in a tight contest like Virginia. In Columbus, Dorcy Reeves sat in a wheelchair with her friend outside the entrance and stayed there for the duration of the speech. "I've seen him on TV, but just hearing his voice and just the idea of being here was enough," she said. The economy was the most important issue for many of the 14,000 people who came to the 18,000-capacity arena at Ohio State University. Lisa, who declined to give her last name, said that while there was more to be done to improve the economy, Mr Obama "couldn't have done any better" given the difficulty of the problem. Mr Obama won Ohio and Virginia in 2008, but he faces close contests in both states this year. Ohio delivered victory to Republican George W. Bush in 2004 and 2000 before turning Democratic in 2008. In 2010, Republican John Kasich became governor of the state, though he has generated a backlash with his efforts to push through anti-union laws. Mr Obama's victory in Virginia, by a small margin, made him the first Democrat to prevail in that state in 44 years. Speaking in Ohio, Mr Obama made reference to some of the themes of his 2008 campaign that energised his supporters. This is still about hope, still about change, still about ordinary people in the face of great odds. We can make a difference in the life of this country," Mr Obama said. Because I still believe Ohio, I still believe we are not as divided as our politics suggest and we have more in common than the pundits tell us . . . We are Americans first and foremost.