BENTON - As a freshman state senator in 2003, Gary Forby knew just where to turn when he had a question about the inner workings of state politics.

He turned to the senator next door, then-state Sen. Barack Obama. Now, Democratic Party's presumptive presidential nominee.

"His office was right next to mine," Forby said. "I asked him lots and lots of questions when I first got there."

Obama represented the 13th District in the state Senate from 1997 to 2004, when he left for the U.S. Senate in Washington, D.C.

"No matter what the question, he took his time to answer. He never talked down to anybody or acted like he was better than you. He never once gave me that impression. He's a real down-to-earth guy," Forby, D-Benton, said.

Obama took his duties seriously, he said.

"He's a serious guy. He wasn't always laughing or telling big jokes,"

Forby said. "He thought a lot about the issues and always wanted to hear what other people thought."

The two senators could not have represented two more different districts, Forby said, but they were always able to find common ground.

"His district is a lot different than mine. I knew if I had a pro-gun bill, he wouldn't vote for it and if he had a bill my district would oppose, I wouldn't vote for it," Forby said. "But unlike a lot of people in Springfield, he didn't try to pressure me into voting his way. He knew I was doing what I had to do to represent my district."

Forby knew there was something special about his neighbor when Obama would speak in front of the Senate.

"I guess what excited me most about him was how everyone, Republican or Democrat, would get quiet when he would get up to talk in front of the Senate. Everybody listened. He could work with anybody and he was just as close to the people on the other side of the aisle as he was the Democrats," he said.

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