The Mule That Was Elected To Public Office
In 1938, a politician decided to prove many voters didn’t know who they were voting for by helping get a mule elected
No matter what side of the political aisle you may come down on, it is a reasonable bet that most will agree that throughout history there have been times when some real jackasses have been voted into office. However, on one occasion, in 1938 in the state of Washington, an actual mule received enough votes to win public office.
Political stunts are unfortunately another all too familiar occurrence in the United States. In 1938, Kenneth Simmons, the Democratic mayor of Milton, Washington decided to play a very significant trick. He not only wanted to make the Republican party look foolish, he also hoped to demonstrate how many voters in his opinion had no real idea of who they were casting votes for.
Mayor Simmons covertly helped put a Republican candidate named Boston Curtis up for the position of Republican precinct committeeman. An unknown, Curtis still managed to win his race with 51 votes. This was despite there being no campaign and no platform presented by the candidate. Essentially, voters chose him based on simply name and party. However it turned out there was something voters weren’t aware of. Their new committeeman…
