October 18, 2013 03:28 PM UTC

At Least You Don't Have to Replace a Cat

• 5 Comments
• by: Colorado Pols

Replacing a beloved elected official with nearly two decades of public service is a difficult task for anyone. Replacing a beloved elected official that also happens to be a cat is a apparently a real problem in Alaska. From the Wall Street Journal:

The mayor of this tiny village has been shot, fallen into a restaurant fryer, jumped off a moving truck and been mauled by a dog. Now the burning question around these parts is: Has Mayor Stubbs used up his nine lives?

Stubbs is a cat—but that didn't stop residents of this unincorporated burg of 876 from naming him their mayor 16 years ago…

…But townsfolk are being forced to contemplate regime change, after the golden-furred Manx mix was attacked by a dog in late August and left with 12 stitches, a punctured lung and fractured sternum. [Pols emphasis] Stubbs spent nine days in a veterinary hospital before being released to his home in an upstairs room of the general store, where he is said to be recuperating slowly…

…But with Stubbs' recovery going slowly, talk inevitably has turned to succession plans. Exactly how—or whether—to replace Stubbs hasn't been determined. Says Sassan Mossaner, owner of the Denali Brewing Co., "Those are difficult paws to fill."

In our opinion, Mayor Stubbs should be allowed to remain in office until his death, mostly because we're curious to see if the town would mourn Stubbs by having his body lie in state in the town hall.

If Stubbs is forced into retirement, we'd certainly like to see if he would be interested in continuing his political career in Colorado. We'd give Stubbs even odds in a race against Rep. Doug Lamborn, who was the only Colorado lawmaker to vote against the deal to re-open the federal government.

Even a cat wouldn't have cast that vote.