Caitlin told you about these goofy election candies a few weeks ago, but here’s a quick report that the Bipartisan and Republican Sets are now available. (Candy Addict stands firm in maintaining that candy knows no political party; candy loves red, blue, and purple states; and candy always seeks common ground.)

Now, supposedly the McCain face was undergoing a makeover (hmmmm), and yes, his lollipop face doesn’t look too bad because the eyebrows are pronounced. But take a look at McCain on the little candies in the lower part of the photo above. I’m not sure you can tell, but I coulda sworn that was Casper the Ghost! I’m not saying McCain’s old, but… seriously, when you see one of these in person you’ll think it’s a comic book character of the spectral variety.

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In our continuing coverage of the ’08 election (hey, everyone else is covering it, why shouldn’t we?), today we bring you Kai’s Campaign ’08 Candies. Kai’s makes traditional handmade Japanese rolled candy (kumi ame) in various cute and fun designs. For this election season, they’re offering both Lick Obama and Lick McCain candy sets. I got a chance to try the Obama set, and while I can’t claim the candies set new heights in confectionery deliciousness, I will admit that they’re pretty darn amusing!

The Obama set includes several lollipops with a cartoon Obama face, a bunch of little blue lozenge-shaped hard candies with the Democratic donkey, and similar candies in red, white and blue with the word “Vote.” For now the Obama set also includes a McCain pop, and the website says that they’re redoing the McCain face – in the meantime, only the Obama set is available.

The candies themselves taste fairly typical – the Obama ‘pop is mostly just sweet (the website says it’s lemon-lime flavored), while the lozenges have very slight flavors – lemon-lime for the donkeys and lemon for the vote candies (the lemon-lime of the lozenge tastes different than the lemon-lime of the Obama lollipop). McCain’s ‘pop sports a flavor that seems to be that of burnt sugar, though the website claims it’s strawberry. It’s not totally unpleasant, but I’m not sure I would ever have come up with strawberry if I hadn’t read it.

What’s cool about these is that the images go all the way through the pop, so even after you’ve sucked on them for a while, you can still take it out of your mouth and proudly display it for coworkers or admirers. And while the flavor may not be astounding, they’re certainly good in a general sugary kind of way. But really, we aren’t buying these for their flavors, are we?

• Kai’s Candy Company Website

Art is by no means limited to the canvas depicting bowls of fruit, and candy artist Cindy Atmore proves this. Like L.A. Burdick’s Campaign Chocolates, she has used the upcoming November election as an inspiration, fashioning mini figurines out of fondant depicting all the major twenty-three candidates who ran for the presidential nomination. Each figure bears a remarkable resemblance to the respective candidate and works as fine pieces to display on your work desk or adorn a coffee table. They even give off an alluring smell of candy.

Even better, they’re all edible! The figurines have been described as tasting like the marshmallow pieces found in Lucky Charms cereal (and is there really a better marshmallow cereal?). For the calorie conscious, Cindy estimates that each one contains roughly 400 calories, which isn’t bad when you consider the volume of sugar per candidate.

Also posted on her website that features these lovable works are figurines of mentalists and magicians. If you’re not interested in purchasing a figurine, I still highly recommend that you check out her galleries to see the high quality of craftsmanship and hilarious use of props (my favorite is Harry Blackstone sawing a Peeps bunny in half).

Cindy’s work has appeared in a variety of magazines and you might even catch her on an upcoming special on The Food Network. Obviously, she is a rising star in the candy art world, and you don’t want to miss her work. Even those who don’t like candy (if there are such people out there), will appreciate the levity and skill inherent in her art, and the fact that they’re made of candy just makes them all the better.

• Cindythings Candy Candidates Gallery

It’s about time someone engaged in meaningful political discussion. Candidates today are so consumed with the economy and war that they are neglecting some of the most important issues out there, i.e., candy. Thanks to L.A. Burdick’s chocolates, confection is now playing an important roll in our country’s future.

Burdick is offering quarter and half-pound boxes of bonbons, each designed for the two major candidates running in November’s election. Boxes are adorned with their respective party’s seal and a color-coordinated ribbon. Within each box are four flavors inspired by the background and likes of the two candidates. Team Obama is sporting Hawaiian-Pineapple, Kenyan Coffee, Kansas Corn Crunch, and Tennessee Sour Mash. Meanwhile, the McCain end includes Arizona Citrus, Hot Pepper Tequila, Peanut Butter, and Kentucky Rye.

For every box you purchase, a vote will be cast for that party’s assortment. Though the results are still preliminary, and boxes will be sold until the November election, Obama has jumped out in front to command the early lead. Are you happy about this? If not, buy a box or two or fourteen to throw your support to the McCain team. Could the promise of Kenyan Coffee be alluring enough to get even the most die-hard Republican to vote Democrat in this case? Remember, democracy only works if everyone participates (and in this instance, it costs between $15-28 per vote).

I think Burdick is really onto something here, and I would be a staunch supporter of this method of voting becoming the official manner in which everyone voted. In their words, “Vote Early, Vote Often!”

• Burdick’s Campaign Chocolates [via WRAL.com]