Obama sets first election rallies for early May

US President Barack Obama will hold the first official campaign rallies of his re-election bid on May 5 in the crucial battleground states of Ohio and Virginia, his campaign said Wednesday. The two rallies in Columbus, Ohio and Richmond, Virginia, will take place almost six months to the day before Obama asks voters to give him a second term despite the still stuttering US economic recovery. Obama\'s announcement came one day after Mitt Romney effectively clinched the Republican presidential nomination with a five-state primary sweep, and as Obama aides expected a very close race to the November 6 election. This week, the Democratic incumbent visited university campuses in North Carolina, Colorado and Iowa in a bid to build support among young voters. Obama\'s campaign manager Jim Messina said in an email to supporters that the president would \"lay out the very real stakes in this election\" at the two rallies. \"Are we going to continue to move forward rebuilding an economy that\'s meant to last with a growing middle class and more Americans getting a fair shot? Or are we going to go back to the same failed policies that crashed our economy and left too many folks struggling to catch up? That\'s the choice.\" Messina said First Lady Michelle Obama would join the president at the rallies. On Tuesday, Romney swept primaries in Connecticut, Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island, solidifying his already tight hold on the Republican nomination to take on Obama in November. \"What we\'re looking at right now is essentially the start of a general election. We\'ve all but got our opponent,\" Messina said, in an obvious reference to Romney. \"The president can\'t wait to get out there.\"