Representatives of the Fukui Prefecture city that shares Barack Obama's name are looking to boost their community's profile by trying to meet with the U.S. president in Tokyo during his first official visit to Japan.
"Obama for Obama," a community organization based in the city, has sent delegates 400 km east to the capital in a bid to talk with the U.S. leader, Seiji Fujiwara, the group's head, said by telephone. President Obama was to meet with government leaders Friday in Tokyo.
The city of 32,000 hopes to revive the "Obama effect" it felt when worldwide attention was focused on the U.S. election, Fujiwara said. His group was formed in February 2008, when Obama was locked in a battle with Hillary Rodham Clinton to win the Democratic Party's nomination for presidential candidate. Visitors to the city rose almost 20 percent that year to 1.8 million, according to regional government statistics.
"The effect was huge," Fujiwara said. "Our town suddenly became famous and we saw a significant increase in tourism."
Shopkeepers capitalized on the Obama name by selling souvenirs, including key chains, cell phone straps and pastries bearing the president's image.
"We started to see some foreign tourists on the street last year," said Fujiwara, who owns the Sekumiya Hotel in downtown Obama. One of the city's most popular attractions is an Obama statue created by a local construction worker, he said.
The U.S. president was scheduled to speak in Tokyo Saturday morning. Obama Mayor Kouji Matsuzaki has been invited to attend the event, a city spokesman said.