Obama Town Votes For Namesake

One can probably guess who the people of Obama town in Japan would vote for if they could. The townsfolk hope to see an increase in tourism if Barack Obama wins.

OBAMA - There's a party going on in a Japanese town for the Democratic Presidential nominee. Around 50 supporters wearing "I Love Obama" T-shirts are learning to hula dance. They hope that Hawaii-born Barack Obama, who shares his name with their town, will visit someday as President. "I think he'll be alright," said Seiji Fujiwara, a hotel owner who heads an Obama support group. He hopes that Obama's popularity and fame will rub off on his town and bring in more tourism dollars. Fujiwara is "85% confident" that Obama will triumph. Shops have been selling T-shirts, steamed cakes, fish burgers, chopsticks and other memorabilia emblazoned with Obama's name. There is even an "Obama Girls" hula troupe. "We've been dancing for Mr. Obama for more than six months, so I hope he wins," said Yuko Shirayama, a member. The Obama Girls travelled to Hawaii in celebration of Obama's win over Hillary Clinton in the Democratic nomination earlier in the year. They plan to attend Obama's inauguration ceremony if he emerges victorious. Mayor Kouji Matsuzaki told Reuters: "If Mr. Obama becomes president and gets a chance to visit Japan, we would like him to visit our city." Japan as a whole seems to favour Obama as well. A survey of 3,500 readers of the Asahi Shimbun daily revealed that 73% would vote for Obama if given a chance, versus only 7% for McCain.