Campaign '08 Abroad.(The Talk of the Town)

Fukui is a prefecture divided. On the one hand, it is home to Obama, a rustic fishing village on the Sea of Japan. (Obama means "little beach.") On the other, its capital city--two hours from Obama on the commuter train--is a Republican stronghold: Fukui City, where Sarah Palin's rimless gray titanium eyeglasses are made.

Obama, a quaint outpost known for its temples, mackerel, and lacquerware, has emerged as a hub of Barack Obama activism. Last winter, in preparation for Super Tuesday, Seiji Fujihara, the secretary-general of the Obama for Obama Support Group, asked his friend Mr. Adachi, a sometime graphic designer, to draw an image of the Senator. Adachi is no Shepard Fairey, but his image of Obama, sketched in ten minutes--cropped hair, jumbo ears, set in a "Presidential" seal under the motto "I ♥ Obama"--is as prevalent on the streets of Obama as Fairey's posters are in Northeastern cities. Support-group members also recorded a theme song, "Obama Is Beautiful World"--"The sea spreading far out and the bright sunshine reflect the future of your country, America. . . . / La-la-la-la-la Obama! / Obama is beautiful world! / Obama is No. 1!"--which seemingly owes a debt to the opening measures of the Village People's "Y.M.C.A." Another friend of Fujihara's, a plumber, sculpted a bust of Obama, microphone in hand, and wrapped a traditional Japanese sash around its head.

The bust stands at the entrance to the support group's war room, a coffee bar and souvenir shop whose wares include Adachi-designed T-shirts, along with chopsticks, kites, and steamed cakes filled with sweet adzuki beans. Grill marks on the bean cakes depict the back of Obama's head. "We thought it was not appropriate to have Mr. Obama's face without his consent, since these are for sale," Fujihara said. So far, thirteen hundred of Obama's thirty-three thousand citizens have signed up for membership.

The other day, Fujihara had an appointment to present to the city's new mayor, Kouji Matsuzaki, a trumpet-sleeved happi coat with "I ♥ Obama" printed on the back. He arrived at City Hall wearing an Obama-for-Obama-made tie, along with a campaign-issued Obama '08 pin. The previous mayor, he said, had approved of the group's efforts, and had even sent the Senator a lacquer daruma doll--a limbless, egg-shaped figure considered by Japanese politicians to be a good-luck charm--inscribed with the message "You Should Win."

At the designated hour, ...