For much of the world, Senator Barack Obama’s victory in the Democratic primaries was a moment to admire the United States, at a time when the nation’s image abroad is in tatters.

From hundreds of supporters crowded around televisions in rural Kenya, Obama’s ancestral homeland, to jubilant Britons writing “WE DID IT!” on the “Brits for Barack” site on Facebook, people celebrated an important racial and generational milestone for the United States.

“A black president of the US will mean that there will be more American tolerance for people around the world who are different,” said Sunila Patel, 62, a woman in New Delhi.

The primary elections generated unprecedented interest around the world, as people in distant parliament buildings and thatched-roof huts followed the political ups and downs as if they were watching a Hollywood thriller.

Much of the interest reflects hunger for change from President Bush, who is unpopular in much of the world. At the same time, many people abroad seemed impressed—sometimes even shocked—by the wide-open nature of US democracy and the history-making race between a woman and a black man.

While Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton has admirers around the world, especially from her days as first lady, interviews on four continents suggested that Obama’s candidacy has captured the world’s imagination.

The Republican nominee, Senator John McCain, who has extensive overseas experience, is known and respected in much of the world. In interviews, McCain seemed more popular than Obama in countries such as Israel, where he is particularly admired for his hard line against Iran. In China, leaders have enjoyed comfortable relations with Bush and are widely believed to be wary of a Democratic administration.

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