Jan 3 (Reuters) - Barack Obama won the Democratic nominating contest in Iowa on Thursday, a major step in his bid to beat rival Hillary Clinton and become their party's presidential pick for the November general election.

Here are five facts about the Illinois Senator who aims to become the first black president of the United States:

*Obama's father was born and raised in a village in Kenya; his mother, who was white, grew up in Kansas.

*Obama grew up in Hawaii and Indonesia. He earned his law degree from Harvard in 1991 and was the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review.

*He is married to wife MichellE and has two young daughters.

*He was a member of the Illinois State Senate before being elected to the U.S. Senate. His speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2004 earned him national attention and acclaim.

*On issues key to many Democratic voters, Obama favors withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq, reducing carbon emissions to fight climate change, and eliminating tax breaks from companies that move jobs overseas.

(Writing by Jeff Mason in Washington; editing by Stuart Grudgings)

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