A new write-in candidate has entered the race for Flint mayor: Giggles the pig. Gary Ridley reports at MLive.com:
In a bizarre turn of events that has already set the stage for the possibility of a blank mayoral ballot in Flint, local defense attorney Michael Ewing is trying to enter his pet pig, Giggles, into a race that could already consist of all write-in candidates.
While Ewing said Giggles would bring a term of calm and civility to the often tumultuous mayor’s office, it isn’t exactly clear if the nearly 1-year-old mini-pig can even legally run a write-in campaign.
If Giggles were somehow elected, Giggles would join the ranks of a handful of other animals, including dogs, cats and a beer-swilling billy goat, to be elected to leadership positions around the country.
The announcement that Giggles was seeking to become the next mayor of Flint was made when Ewing launched a Facebook page Monday, May 4, following news earlier this week that no names would appear on the upcoming mayoral primary ballot because a clerical error resulted in the wrong date given to candidates to submit their nominating petitions and signatures on time.
Four candidates who submitted signatures were told they missed the signature deadline by a week.
Ewing said he believes an all-write-in mayoral race will result in residents electing an unqualified leader.
All Chris Christie jokes aside, this is not the first time a pig has run for office. In 1968 the Youth International Party (Yippies) nominated “Pigasus” for president at the Democratic convention. They were subsequently arrested for disorderly conduct, disturbing the peace, and transporting livestock into Chicago.
They were undercover counterrevolutionaries.
I was told by a Brazilian friend that candidates are allowed to use any name they want on the ballot (not sure if its this way nationwide, or just in her area). Consequently, according to her, fictional characters appear on ballots regularly, with Batman being very common.
“Do the Libertarians support giggles?”
Anyone who has read Animal Farm knows that the pigs were the leaders of the socialist revolution. Unless this pig can verify that he has read Bastiat’s The Law and that he is fluent in and agrees with our party’s platform, has read every Rand book and has bought autographed copies of every Harry Brown book on eBay then NO!
Even then, he could be a Republican infiltrator just faking it.
Thanks.
My new email address isn’t a secret, and I’m happy to pass it along: [email protected].
Jill, I tried to email this story to you at same time I sent it to Jed, Paulie and Warren but your email address kept bouncing back.
Feel free to email me offline your new address, unless you’d prefer not to because you’re laying low and residing at a forward from a dead drop. 🙂
>it’s still illegal to elect a one-year-old mayor. And good luck finding an eighteen-year-old pig.
Andy, Giggles may not be able to serve if elected, but I don’t think there’s any prohibition against his running.
If I was living in Flint, I probably would vote for Giggles. One pig’s as good as another, and it’s at least more serious than my usual write-in vote for Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Daffy Duck, Spongebob Squarepants, Ron Swanson, Katniss Everdeen, Santa Claus, Burgermeister Meisterburger, or whoever else.
Truth is stranger than fiction 🙂
You can’t make this stuff up!
Do the Libertarians support giggles?
This was the subject of some discussion today during breaks at the LP Michigan Convention
US Elections were 100% write-in (no official printed ballots) for over a century.
“Ewing said he believes an all-write-in mayoral race will result in residents electing an unqualified leader.”
Nonsense. All-write-in provides choice for the voters who actually care, rather than having the mindless press buttons at random.
Reminds me of when a county clerk caused a ruckus by issuing a marriage license to a lesbian couple in the 1970s, upon legal advise that it wasn’t forbidden (the courts later disagreed of course). But while all the publicity was going on, some Mensa decided to protest by showing up to request a marriage license for himself and his horse. The conversation went something like this (paraphrasing from memory):
“I’d like a marriage license.”
“Name of spouse?”
“Nellie”
“Age?”
“3 years old”
“I’m sorry sir, that is too young to be legally married in Colorado.”
So, even if you were somehow able to argue that Giggles is a natural person, a resident of Flint, and a citizen of the United States- it’s still illegal to elect a one-year-old mayor. And good luck finding an eighteen-year-old pig.
My information is that Giggles is up to the challenge of spreading the pork, something all the other politicians do as well.
It’s rare that one finds a story more appropriate for IPR.
Here’s the piece as reported in the Flint, MI Journal:
FLINT, Mich. — A lawyer wants to enter his pet pig into the Flint mayoral race after a mix-up threatened to keep candidates’ names off the primary election ballot.
Michael Ewing started the “Giggles the Pig for Flint Mayor” effort after learning that the August primary could be skipped unless a judge intervenes and all candidates would have to file as write-ins for the November general election, The Flint Journal reported (http://bit.ly/1IUTZvC ).
Giggles’ candidacy seeks to draw more attention to the mayoral race, better educate voters about their choices and encourage residents to demand more of elected officials, Ewing said. He plans to take his pig to the streets to let people meet Giggles.
“I don’t want to turn it into a laughingstock,” Ewing said. “I don’t know how else to get people to pay attention.”
State elections officials have said that Flint’s clerk mistakenly told candidates that nominating petitions were due by April 28, but candidates later were told they missed the actual deadline by a week. State law doesn’t permit a clerk to extend a deadline.
Mayoral candidate Karen Weaver called Giggles’ candidacy and the deadline problem a “mockery of the democratic process.”
“I didn’t see any pig walking around getting signatures,” Weaver said.
City councilman and mayoral candidate Wantwaz Davis also took issue with Giggles’ campaign.
“Putting a pig in a race is an offense to the character and moral value we’re trying to exemplify in the city,” Davis said.
Last month, Gov. Rick Snyder declared an end to a financial emergency in Flint. The city has been run by four emergency managers since 2011 and control is being returned to local officials, although a five-member transition board will have a significant role.
“If we elect someone who is not up to the challenge, we’ll be right back to the state of Michigan emergency manager again,” Ewing said.
The Pigasus entry on Wiki is a scream! Thanks to Jed, who was not even alive in ’68, for reminding me about him.
I especially liked this portion of the testimony (William Kuntsler questioning Phil Ochs):
MR. KUNSTLER: Now, did you find a pig at once when you went out?
THE WITNESS: No, it was very difficult. We stopped at several farms and asked where the pigs were.
MR. KUNSTLER: None of the farmers referred you to the police station, did they?
THE WITNESS: No.
MR. FORAN: Objection.
****
MR. KUNSTLER: Were you informed by a police officer that the pig had squealed on you?
THE WITNESS: Yes.