When Barack Obama took the podium for the first time as President, Avery Wehner felt excited.

“Nov. 4 was a victory, but this is much more so,” said Wehner, public relations director for the College Democrats, describing it as a “where were you” moment.

In partnership with the DeKalb Democratic Party and the Young Democrats, the College Democrats hosted a free inauguration watch party in the Holmes Student Center Tuesday. As Chief Justice John Roberts swore in Obama, close to 150 people had gathered in the auditorium, the majority of them applauding and very enthusiastic, Wehner said.

Like Wehner, College Democrat Eric Schmack had supported Obama from the beginning.

“I felt that he got it better than the other guys,” Schmack said. “He always thought he understood what the problem was and what the solution is.”