SPRINGFIELD - Barack Obama should thank at least one Republican for helping him win the presidency. Abraham Lincoln played a small but vital role in helping the little-known candidate with the strange name win over millions of skeptical voters. | The Obamas: The new Camelot? | First family's new dog | Slideshow: Senate replacements?

Obama launched his campaign in front of the former Illinois capitol where Lincoln once served as a lawmaker. The tall, gangly, self-made lawyer not so subtly pointed out that the 16th president was also a tall, gangly, self-made lawyer.

He spoke approvingly of Lincoln's "team of rivals" approach to selecting his Cabinet.

And Obama quoted Lincoln in speech after speech as he campaigned, associating himself with one of America's greatest presidents whether the subject was patriotism or faith or veterans.

Bruce Newman, a professor at DePaul University, called it basic marketing: Obama is linking himself to one of the great brand names of American politics.

Evoking Lincoln reassures voters that Obama shares their basic American values. The specter of the Civil War emphasizes the importance of national unity. And, coming from a black candidate, it reminds people of ending slavery and putting the country on the road toward racial equality.

"A big part of what is behind his victory is image management," said Newman, editor of the scholarly Journal of Political Marketing.

Obama even used Lincoln to help set the tone for his upcoming administration.

"As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, 'We are not enemies, but friends. … Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection,"' Obama said in his acceptance speech Tuesday night. "And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn - I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President, too."

"He's beginning to shape his legacy," Newman said.

The Lincoln-Obama connection seems to have sunk in.

Obama's victory Tuesday inspired a flurry of editorial cartoons featuring both men. A Toronto Star cartoon showed the two holding hands in triumph, with Obama thinking, "I couldn't have done it alone."

The congressional committee planning Obama's swearing-in ceremony has selected a Lincoln theme, connecting the inauguration to the 200th anniversary of Lincoln's birth.

Search the Internet and you'll find T-shirts featuring Obama and Lincoln, along with photos that morph the two into one man.

And Illinois' Old State Capitol, historic for its Lincoln connections, plans to install some sort of marker noting that it's also the place where Obama launched his successful presidential campaign and introduced his choice for vice president.

Obama certainly isn't the first politician to use Lincoln. Illinois' official state historian, Tom Schwartz, noted that Franklin Roosevelt and his supporters often cited Lincoln when trying to build support for New Deal policies.

Schwartz said Obama could evoke Lincoln more effectively than any other candidate because of the many parallels between the two: Illinoisans, lawyers, former state lawmakers, members of Congress briefly.

He sees Obama's use of Lincoln as a way to reach people who disagree with specific Obama policies.

Campaigning requires pointing out how you're different from the other candidates and the other party, thus turning off some voters, Schwartz said. But telling voters that you share Lincoln's values is way of saying you share their values, too.

The message is, "We're in this together, now let's move forward in unity," Schwartz said.

Schwartz also pointed out a Lincoln gaffe by Obama.

In a May speech, Obama quoted Lincoln as saying, "I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. But I also like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him."

"I understand why he used the quote. I've seen other people use it," Schwartz said, noting that some cities have put it on garbage cans and recycling bins.

But Lincoln never said it. It's one of many quotes falsely attributed to Abe.

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Parallels between Obama, Lincoln

A look at some of the parallels in the lives of Abraham Lincoln and Barack Obama:

• Reached national prominence in Illinois after being raised elsewhere: Lincoln in Kentucky and Indiana, Obama in Hawaii and Indonesia.

• Served eight years in the Illinois Legislature: Lincoln in the state House, Obama in the state Senate.

• Spent two years in Washington before running for president: Lincoln served one term in Congress, while Obama was two years into a Senate term when he announced.

• Spoke out, while still political unknowns, against the United States declaring war: Lincoln criticized the Mexican-American War while in Congress. Obama opposed invading Iraq.

• Reached national prominence on the strength of oratorical skills: Lincoln made his name with the Lincoln-Douglas debates and famous addresses such as his "House Divided" and Cooper Union speeches. Obama wowed people with his keynote address at the 2004 Democratic convention.