ICYMI: That Time a Dog Ran For Mayor In An Upstate New York Town

You might have heard of Wilbur Beast? He's the 6 month-old French bulldog who was recently elected mayor in the small town of Rabbit Hash, Kentucky. Yes, it's a real place. And no, Wilbur is not the first canine to hold office in Rabbit Hash. In fact, all their mayors have been dogs. The tiny three and a half acre town in Boone County has only elected dogs as mayors since 1988.

Some may say this sounds crazy. But hey, they might do a better job than a lot of human officials, right? Can't be worse than some of the other elected officials we've got. Through the years, there's been a number of dogs and other animals who have run for office in various places around the world. A lot of times, it's done as satire. Sometimes the animals' owners even enter them into the race as a form of protest.

This is a rather peculiar story about the time a canine actually ran for office in a pretty well known town in the Capitol Region just seven years ago.

Anyone remember the story of Diamond? Diamond is a dog who ran for Mayor of Schenectady in 2015. Diamond ran as a write-in candidate against Mayor Gary McCarthy, Roger Hull, and Chris Gibbs, and was described by her owner as “Schenectady’s best friend.”. She wasn't the first four-legged candidate to run for mayor in Schenectady either. According to the Daily Gazette, there was Sparky the cat in 2007, Roger the cat in 2011, and Loffredo the dog in 1999.

Diamond's owner, Kathy Fitzmaurice, was also the owner of both cats who had previously run, according to the Gazette. Fitzmaurice said she just wanted to have a little fun. Of course, Diamond didn't win, even after promising lower taxes and a fire hydrant on every block. Maybe some other time.