Canine campaign

While Americans from coast to coast cast ballots in record numbers for Democrats and Republicans, one Kentucky community signaled that voting is for the dogs. In an election tallied on a whiteboard, denizens of Rabbit Hash, Ky., elected Wilbur Beast, a French bulldog, as the census-designated place’s next mayor. The Rabbit Hash Historical Society conducted the election, selling votes for a dollar apiece and encouraging voters to “vote early and often.” The bulldog blew away beagle and golden retriever runners-up. Other dogs—along with a donkey, a rooster, and a deceased cat—finished far behind Wilbur Beast. The unincorporated community first elected a dog mayor in 1998 by granting a mutt named Goofy a four-year term. Proceeds from the election go toward refurbishing the town’s general store. Like others, this election also set a record for turnout: Voters cast 22,000 ballots. 

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