US: Vermont town elects goat as honorary mayor

WASHINGTON

A small town in the U.S. state of Vermont elected a 3-year-old Nubian goat as their honorary pet mayor.

The goat, named Lincoln, was on a 16-animal ballot and narrowly won the bid for Fair Haven’s mayor as it was able to gather a total of 13 votes, beating out other candidates, including a dog named Sammie and a gerbil named Crystal.

Lincoln was elected Thursday at the community's Town Meeting Day and will serve in the position for one year, where he will be required to appear in local events such as the Marching Day Parade, according to local reports.

The goat will officially take office Tuesday.

"Congraaaats to Lincoln, the new pet mayor of Fair Haven! It’s a big job, no kidding, but you goat this," Vermont's congressman Peter Welch said on Twitter.

Fair Haven, which holds a population of 2,500, does not have a human mayor, and it is the first time in the town's history it will have an honorary pet mayor.

Lincoln was submitted to the ballot by Christopher Stanton, a math teacher, on behalf of his 4-year-old grandson, Sullivan Clark, on the basis that "she is a very nice goat," according to the Rutland Herald newspaper.

Town Manager Joseph Gunter told the Herald he thought of the idea originally as a fundraiser for a playground, but decided to turn it into a civics lesson to teach kids about local government.