WASHINGTON – A goat, named Lincoln, was elected as the honorary pet mayor of a small town in the United States state of Vermont last March 8.
The three-year old Nubian goat gathered 13 votes on a 16-animal ballot and won the bid for Fair Haven’s mayor, beating the other candidates, including Sammie the dog, and Crystal the gerbil.
Lincoln was elected during the community’s Town Meeting Day. He had already started working and will serve in the position for a year, where he is required to appear in local events such as the Marching Day parade, according to local reports.
The goat belongs to Christopher Stanton, a school math teacher. Rutland Herald newspaper reported that Stanton only submitted his goat on behalf of his four-year old grandson, Sullivan Clark, because “she is a very nice goat.”
Town manger Joseph Gunter, who leads Fair Haven that has a total population of about 2,500, told The Herald that the idea came after reading a newspaper in a village in Michigan, which made Sweet Tart the cat its top official. From there, he created the “election” event as a way to teach kids about the local government, especially since communities in the US are also expected to vote for their next human president soon.
