When construction required relocating the only polling place in the heavily Hispanic Dodge City, Kan., this month, the local election official, a Republican, moved it four miles away, outside the city limits.
As Japan struggles to cope with the disaster at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear-power plant, Mr Kan has nailed his colours to the anti-nuclear mast, arguing that Japan needs to reduce its dependence on atomic energy.
For a start, Naoto Kan, the prime minister, has maintained relative calm despite the menacing situation at Fukushima Dai-ichi, the crippled nuclear plant.