\u201cOnly in America could a little puppy born on the border with parvo make it all the way to becoming mayor of 37th Street,\u201d said Spencer Schumacher, Mo Bamba\u2019s campaign manager, in his acceptance speech.<\/p>\n
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Lorianne Willett<\/p>\n
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KUT News<\/p>\n
Campaign signs and posters smearing the animal candidates were seen all over the street during election season.<\/p>\n
This is the fourth year that neighbors, who also organize 37th Street Lights<\/a>, have held a pet mayoral election alongside the holiday display. The election started as a way to increase voter engagement in Austin\u2019s human mayoral race in 2022<\/a>, said organizer Maddy Braat.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was a runoff, and it was going on at the same time as the opening of the lights,\u201d she said. \u201cWe were like, oh, we should have our own election to plant the seed.\u201d<\/p>\n An orange cat named Dragon became the first mayor. Then there was Zapp, another orange cat and \u201cpawgressive\u201d<\/a> owned by Braat, who served two terms before being narrowly defeated<\/a> by Mo Bamba last week. Several other cats and a stuffed animal were also in the running.<\/p>\n Lorianne Willett<\/p>\n \/<\/p>\n KUT News<\/p>\n Incumbent cat Mayor Zapp, held by Maddy Braat, shakes paws with newly elected Mayor Mo Bamba, held by Spencer Schumacher, in a peaceful transfer of power after the election results are announced.<\/p>\n \u201cThe cats have dominated the street in a form of tyranny that we have not seen in this country, that was frankly anti-democratic, and [Mo Bamba] broke that glass ceiling,\u201d Schumacher said.<\/p>\n Mo Bamba\u2019s parents, Spencer and Erin Schumacher, got him as a puppy from a rescue in Round Rock. He\u2019s named after the song \u201cMo Bamba\u201d<\/a> by Sheck Wes, which is also named<\/a> after the former UT basketball player<\/a>. He\u2019s now 3 years old and spends time playing fetch in his yard, which made him a high-visibility candidate for the Austinites who visited 37th Street Lights this winter, Spencer said.<\/p>\n Lorianne Willett<\/p>\n \/<\/p>\n KUT News<\/p>\n Election officials investigate a case of alleged voter fraud involving possibly photocopied ballots.<\/p>\n The historic nature of the election made it particularly heated. Campaign posters plastered the street, and voter turnout was more than double the previous election’s, Braat said. The ballot counting process was also contentious; Mo Bamba faced multiple allegations of voter fraud, which his campaign denied. In the end, organizers certified the results, and Zapp conceded.<\/p>\n \u201cIt has been a pleasure to serve as your mayor for the past two years, and I look forward to my retirement, where I will be sleeping on the porch for 12 to 18 hours at a time,\u201d Braat, speaking for Zapp, said on inauguration night.<\/p>\n 37th Street mayor isn\u2019t just a symbolic role. Braat said the mayor has several responsibilities, from walking around to talking to constituents.<\/p>\n \u201cThere’s looking at birds, looking at owls, looking at squirrels, sometimes even mice. And that takes up a lot of time of the 37th Street mayor historically,\u201d she said. \u201cBut more than anything, I think what all mayors wanna do is keep Christmas lights free forever.\u201d<\/p>\n Mo Bamba has a concrete plan for improving the street, starting with installing fire hydrants at every house and giving government contracts to people who play fetch.<\/p>\n \n 1 of 6 Cameron Shaw accuses Spencer Schumacher of voter fraud during ballot counting.<\/p>\n Lorianne Willett \/ KUT News<\/p>\n \n 2 of 6 Organizers use a notebook to tally votes for each candidate on the final night of ballot counting, which also serves as inauguration night.<\/p>\n Lorianne Willett \/ KUT News<\/p>\n \n 3 of 6 A campaign sign for a cat named Biscuit hangs from the side of a table on 37th Street.<\/p>\n Lorianne Willett \/ KUT News<\/p>\n \n 4 of 6 Wendy Mitchell and Maddy Braat investigate a suspicious ballot.<\/p>\n Lorianne Willett \/ KUT News<\/p>\n \n 5 of 6 Spencer Schumacher holds up an ominous ballot during the vote count. <\/p>\n Lorianne Willett \/ KUT News<\/p>\n \n 6 of 6 Spencer Schumacher, holding Mo Bamba, throws up a peace sign after giving a victory speech on inauguration night.<\/p>\n Lorianne Willett \/ KUT News<\/p>\n \u201cHe wants to fight for the people,\u201d Spencer said. \u201cHis slogan is, he won’t just fight for you, he will bark at you.\u201d<\/p>\n Mo Bamba also has a message for Austinites about the upcoming human elections.<\/p>\n \u201cPlease go vote. Use your democratic right and vote for the candidate that you believe is best,\u201d Erin said.<\/p>\n The deadline to register to vote in the March 3 primary election in Texas is Feb. 2. You can find more information about important election dates on the Texas secretary of state\u2019s website<\/a>.<\/p>\n ![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1768305010_686_.jpeg\"\/)
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