Election Day in One Kentucky Town is Quite Literally Going to the Dogs

It’s been a crazy election year, to say the least. But, for one Northern Kentucky town, election day is—quite literally—going to the dogs (and a donkey, a rooster, a late cat, and one hooman).

Every town needs a mayor, someone to make those “ruff” decisions. And, for the citizens of Rabbit Hash, Kentucky, it’s going to be an adorable election day.

The citizens of the northern Kentucky town had a whopping 17 candidates to choose from this year. Among them, 13 dogs, a donkey, a rooster, a late cat, and a single human. However, just one day before the election ended, four contestants conceded their votes to a fifth candidate. Stella (the deceased cat), Champ, Oscar and the lone human, Mike Calhoun stepped out of the race, donating their combined 187 votes to the General Store’s dog, Poppy.

Mayor Goofy Borneman was the first elected mayor of Rabbit Hash, a tiny river town in Kentucky. Despite being a bit of a troublemaker in his youth, lounging in the streets and poaching the town chickens, Goofy was elected Mayor when local residents simply became fed up with human politics.

Junior, a black Labrador, became the 2nd Mayor of Rabbit Hash after Goofy passed away, but not before starting a long legacy of canine mayors. Not without some conspiracy of his own, Junior came under the scrutiny of the Northern Kentucky Health Department and was banned from entering the town’s General Store due to complaints.

When Junior passed at 15-years old, a special election was held to fill the vacancy. That’s when Lucy Lou, Rabbit Hash’s first female mayor was elected. On the success of her mayoral term, Lucy Lou announced a plan to run for U.S. President in 2015.

In 2016, a rescued Pitbull named Brynneth Pawltro, or “Bryn” for short, beat out a donkey, a chicken, and a little boy to win the title. Of course, as with any political election, Brynn wasn’t immune to criticism. There’s always inappropriate licking going on,” Rabbit Hash resident Bobbi Kayser told WDRB.

Bryn is running for re-election in 2020, but is trailing behind a few of her canine counterparts. So far, French Bulldog, Wilbur-Beast, is in the lead. Wilbur is leading the pack under the campaign slogan, “Vote Wilbur, he’s all ears!”

The new Mayor will be announced on November 3rd, shortly after 8:00 pm.

In reality, the mayor’s race isn’t really an election; instead, it’s a fundraiser with money going to the Rabbit Hash Historical Society to pay for repairs, bills and insurance. The cost to vote is $1 and (unlike a real race) you can vote as often as you’d like.

You don’t have to be a registered voter or live in Rabbit Hash to weigh in. You can vote right here until 8 p.m. Tuesday.