Crowds at Obama’s ancestral Kenyan home go wild over win

Kogelo, a typically sleepy village in rural western Kenya, erupted into dances and celebrations after it emerged that President Obama, called here “favorite son”, has been elected to a second term in office.Hundreds of Kogelo residents started dancing, holding in their hands tree branches or holding the plastic chairs above their heads, right after the news of Obama projected reelection broke.Obama’s late father grew up in Kogelo, while his step-grandmother, Sarah Obama, and other relatives still live here.The people of Kogelo, who call Obama their favorite son and know he has been the only one to put them on the map, say they will keep the party going until Friday.Meanwhile, at Jakarta’s Menteng 01 Elementary School, which Obama once attended, students happily marched with a poster of the president from one classroom to another after hearing that he had defeated Republican Mitt Romney to win a second term. “Obama wins ... Obama wins again,” they shouted.A statue of a young “Barry” Obama, as he was called as a child, stands outside the school.“I want to be like him, the president,” student Alexander Ananta said.The news also thrilled Obama’s former nanny in Indonesia, Evie, who became well known this year following reports of her struggles living in the conservative country as a transgender.“Hopefully, he will contribute to the betterment of not only American citizens, but to the world as well,” said Evie, who like many Indonesians uses only one name.