There's good news for people who can't get a ticket to one of the Washington, D.C., balls to honor Island son Barack Obama.

The Democratic Party of Hawai'i is planning its own Jan. 20 inaugural ball right here, 5,100 miles away, in Honolulu.

"As all the other balls are occurring in Washington, we'll have our own celebration," said Brian Schatz, the party's chairman. "We've received a lot of requests for a party to be thrown in Hawai'i for those of us who support President Obama but can't make the trip to Washington."

Details still need to be nailed down, such as a name for the ball and exactly where it will take place. The number of tickets to be sold also will depend on the location, Schatz said.

But the cost of a ticket is fixed — $250, which is right in the price range of the Washington, D.C., balls that have an Island flavor.

Planning for the Honolulu ball is under way as a record number of people are expected to converge on Washington to see Obama sworn in as America's first black president.

The previous record crowd to witness a presidential inauguration was when 1.2 million converged on the National Mall in January 1965 to see Lyndon B. Johnson take office.

But the Washington Post yesterday said District of Columbia and federal officials are planning for as many as 4 million people to show up this Jan. 20.

Even before the election, Hawai'i's two U.S. senators and two congressmen were getting requests for free tickets to the inaugural area, which are only available through congressional offices.

CLAMORING FOR TICKETS

Hawai'i's congressional offices won't get their tickets for several weeks. But they know they won't come close to meeting the requests from Hawai'i residents — and from as far away as Germany.

Patricia Hill has worked in Sen. Daniel Akaka's Washington office for nearly 30 years and said, "I've never seen anything like this before."

It's still unclear how many inauguration tickets Reps. Neil Abercrombie and Mazie Hirono will receive. But Hawai'i's two senators each will get 365 tickets for people who will have to stand through the inauguration and 26 tickets for people who get to sit.

Each of the two representatives and two senators already has waiting lists of around 1,000 names. Because of the demand, tickets will be dispersed on a first-come, first-served basis — and only to Hawai'i residents or expatriates.

"I'll bet all of the offices could get together and write a funny book about all of this," said Jaclyn Zimmerman, media coordinator for Hirono's Washington, D.C., office. "People have e-mailed saying that they've been to Hawai'i and could they please get a ticket. Someone else wrote and said, 'I saw Mazie on TV once. Can I get a ticket?' "

Zimmerman, whose mother is flying in from San Francisco to attend the inaugural festivities, said, "everybody is getting requests from our personal friends."

Those lucky ones who get tickets will have to show up in person to pick them up within a week before the inauguration.

The day before Obama's inauguration, Jan. 19, is Martin Luther King Day — a federal holiday — but Akaka's office will be open "to accommodate our Hawai'i guests," said Akaka spokesman Jon Yoshimura.

"We've never had this kind of interest from Hawai'i people wanting to come to an inauguration," Yoshimura said. "We're going to have to be available to our Hawai'i constituents up until the last moment. It's a logistical nightmare. At the same time, it's something that we are very happy to have a chance to participate in. This only happens once in a lifetime."

At the request of federal officials, congressional offices will be closed on inauguration day to reduce traffic in the district.

Abercrombie's office looks at the barrage of ticket requests and sees a reflection of Obama's campaign.

"A number of the messages represent the message of Barack Obama," said Abercrombie spokesman Randy Obata. "They use words like 'hope' and 'inspirational.' They really feel a connection to what's happening and they just want to make their way to D.C."

A father in Honolulu wants to share the moment with his daughter, a cadet at the Air Force Academy. "He feels like this is something he needs to take her to," Obata said.

Another woman, a Korean immigrant and grandmother, would like to bring her family.

"She said it's because of what Obama represents: The first African-American president; how people fulfill their dreams in America; that you can live your dreams out," Obata said.

Even if they don't get a ticket to the inauguration or the parade or even a ball, people should still make every effort to come and be a part of history, Yoshimura said.

"There are going to be big screens on the Mall and there's been some discussion about opening up sporting venues like the Verizon Center where they play basketball," Yoshimura said. "You can still stand on the Mall with everybody else. It's something you'll remember for the rest of your life."

BEING PART OF IT

That's Janet Shores' plan.

Shores, who lives in Kailua, and her boyfriend, Kevin O'Connor, don't even have airline tickets yet but are already making plans to be in Washington on Jan. 20.

"Whatever happens, happens," Shores said. "It's just an exciting opportunity."

She and O'Connor plan to use their frequent-flier miles to fly back East and stay with O'Connor's brother in Baltimore.

Shores hasn't even bothered contacting Hawai'i's congressional delegation hoping for inauguration tickets. Her strategy is to reach out to senators or representatives from red states — or blue states whose distance makes it unlikely to place much demand on their congressional tickets.

If not — if Shores ends up standing with 4 million other people without a close-up view of Obama — that's just fine with her.

"I just want to be part of the excitement and the energy," she said. "This really is a historic event."