"Duke first won office three years ago when he was elected as a joke. But it turns out he’s so beloved by the townspeople that they have re-elected him twice now!" Image: www.wday.com
I am a political junkie. I luuuurrrrvvvveee politics. All of it. I love campaigns and elections and Congress and executive orders and the State of the Union Address. It is my favorite thing, and election years usually put a spring in my step.
This year? Meh. This is the weirdest election season I can recall, and it’s frankly depressing. The tenor of political discourse this year has been, basically, “I know you are but what am I?” with undertones of “We don’t like your kind ‘round here!”. Every once in a while there’s a shining moment of good sense and optimism, but then we regress back to the electoral equivalent of making fart noises into a microphone.
But today, my hope in politics and the American electorate is restored! Today, I see before me a candidate — nay, a public servant! — who has transcended partisan bickering! An incumbent mayor who is winning hearts and minds by spirit alone! A politician for our time! Hopeful readers, may I present to you, the three-time mayor of Cormorant, Minnesota: DUKE!
That’s it. Duke. That’s his whole name.
Because he’s a dog.
Duke, a 9-year-old Great Pyrenees with a fluffy white coat and soulful brown eyes, was elected to his third term as mayor of the small northern town during the annual Cormorant Daze festival. Voters pay $1 to cast a ballot and choose the face of their town.
Duke first won office three years ago when he was elected as a joke. But it turns out he’s so beloved by the townspeople that they have re-elected him twice now! In fact, there was only one dissenting vote in this year’s election, and that vote went to Duke’s girlfriend Lassie.
I suspect Duke himself of casting that ballot. Love wins.
Duke’s main duty as mayor is to appear on billboards promoting the community. And receive adoring pets from his constituents, of course.
