More than 100 people packed into the local pub of this small Irish town Tuesday that was home to an ancestor of Barack Obama, drinking to his hoped-for victory in the US presidential vote.

Knocking back Guinness and dancing to Irish music, the party at Ollie Hayes`s Bar was in full swing hours before the results were due from Tuesday`s White House face-off between the Democrat and Republican John McCain.

American flags and campaign boards spelling out Obama`s slogan were dotted around the pub, where locals -- one wearing an Obama t-shirt -- watched coverage of the election on television.

Two `Welcome to Obama Country` billboards have gone up at either side of Moneygall, a town of 250 in County Offaly, central Ireland, that hopes Obama will visit if he wins.

`Senator Obama`s connection goes back six generations, to when his ancestor Fulmuth Kearney emigrated` in 1850, said Church of Ireland Cannon Stephen Neill on Monday.

`There is a lot of excitement in the area,` Neill added.

The entire Kearney family has emigrated from the area, though some cousins by marriage still live locally. Gone, too, is the Kearney family shoe shop, with remaining traces of the building demolished three years ago.

About 34 million people in the United States claim Irish heritage, and past presidents Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan and John Kennedy all had Irish roots.