President Obama officially launched his re-election campaign yesterday with stops in two key battleground states, Ohio and Virginia.

“I still believe in you, and I’m asking you to keep believing in me,” he said to an audience at Ohio State University, his first rally of the day.

Despite the hopeful words, he predicted this year’s race will be much tighter than the one against Sen. John McCain in 2008, in which Obama won the popular vote, 53 percent to 46 percent.

Obama, whose campaign slogan in 2012 is “Forward,” focused his rhetoric on winding down the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the death of Osama bin Laden, and ObamaCare.

He also acknowledged that not all Americans have received jobs through his recovery plan, and that the country is still reeling from the most severe economic crisis since the Great Depression.

Obama predicted an onslaught of negative ads from his Republican opponent, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

“It’s still about hope. It’s still about change,” he said. “I still believe we are not as divided as our politics suggest.”

First Lady Michelle Obama, who introduced her husband, urged the audience to register to vote.

“This could come down to those last few thousand people who register to vote,” she said.