LONDON — From Mombasa, Kenya’s sandy shores on the Indian Ocean to the hot tubs of Reykjavik, Iceland, the U.S. primary elections are creating unprecedented interest and excitement in a global audience that normally doesn’t tune in until the general election in November.
“It’s a great spectacle, and people are avidly devouring it,” said Jeremy O’Grady, editor of Britain’s The Week.
O’Grady said major British newspapers last week alone devoted more than 87 pages to news of the U.S. primaries, including 22 front-page stories. More than 700 correspondents from 50 countries covered the Iowa and New Hampshire events.
About 1.5 million people visited the BBC Web page reporting the win by Hillary Rodham Clinton over Barack Obama in New Hampshire, making it one of the most read stories in months, a BBC spokesman said.
Much of the enthusiasm comes from anticipation of President Bush’s departure, according to several analysts. “In many capitals, people have been waiting for this change for some time,” said Rosa Balfour, a senior analyst at the Brussels-based European Policy Center.
