Turning out for political animals

In a city where politics has been called a blood sport, and where the relentless roasting of candidates is typical fare, it is perhaps fitting that the animal kingdom is now getting in on the game in Boston.

In honor of Presidents' Day, officials at the Franklin Park Zoo are holding an election today for president of the zoo. But elections need voters, and zoos need visitors; zoo officials acknowledge that they are trying to get people through the gates. They also hope they can give a little offbeat education -- about such things as presidential pets. Theodore Roosevelt had a lion; Calvin Coolidge owned a pygmy hippo.

Officials did not expect a fever of presidential politics to overcome zoo employees.

Curators and keepers have been taking it all very seriously, papering exhibits with campaign literature, creating slogans (''The giraffe will take the long view"), and developing political platforms (''Spot is a snake of the common animal.") Some have even launched nasty attacks (''The cow should be milked!").

There is some glory at stake: The victor will receive a special sign on his or her pen, extra treats throughout the year, and, of course, bragging rights. Polls will be open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. today. And any visitor can vote.

There will be no vice presidential candidates. Zoo officials said presidential hopefuls have decided not to have them, in light of Vice President Dick Cheney's recent hunting debacle.

''It's for safety's sake, really," said the Zoo New England president, John Linehan.

Linehan and his staff chose six nominees based on a number of criteria, including charisma, tenacity, gentleness, physical agility, and huggability.

Spot, an anaconda, is not necessarily huggable, but scored high on tenacity.

An assistant curator and campaign manager for Spot, Ed O'Brien, insists that she is the candidate of the majority, cold-blooded, yes, but warm-hearted in her desire to speak out on behalf of oft-downtrodden ''second-tier animals," such as cockroaches, who are amazingly speedy, and scorpions, who rarely get credit for their mothering skills.

As fuzzy as the platform sounds, Spot was the first to lash out at opponents. ''The cow should be milked! The giraffe is too tall. The gorilla must mother. The lion will eat all!" O'Brien read from a statement Friday.

''But the snake watches the zoo day and night -- that's no lie -- because Spot has no eyelids, she can't close her eyes."

Kiki the gorilla, a mother of two, including a nursing toddler, is hoping to capture the family vote, a considerable constituency for any zoo.

Jeannine Jackle said Kiki is a very strong-minded leader who isn't fazed by adversity and is also attentive to her offspring.

''She's very much like Hillary Clinton," said Jackle, who, in addition to her campaign duties, is assistant curator of the Tropical Forest area at the zoo.

Addy the cow is running on her pedigree: She is a Devon cow, whose ancestors are reported to have arrived on the Mayflower and who have a distinguished record of service, including towing plows and providing milk.

''In the end they make a good dinner companion, really," said the campaign manager, Stacey Goldsmith Nathanson, lead keeper of Franklin Farm, the children's area of the zoo.

Spending time with donkeys, Addy has an affinity for Democrats, Nathanson said, though the candidate respects President Bush for keeping a cow named Ofelia at his ranch in Texas.

Beau the giraffe has overcome tremendous adversity, the only one of his species to survive peracute mortality syndrome, a wasting sickness. Beau now has a mate and a 6-week-old calf, Autumn, who was named after 10-year-old Autumn Faucher of New Hampshire, who raised money for Beau's medical treatment.

Evita the zebra tends to be a loner, but her campaign manager says that could help her at the polls with voters looking for an independent voice.

''She's not as dependent on a social group as other zebras are," said Pearl Yusuf, assistant curator for hooves and horns at the zoo.

Christopher the lion is the most right-wing of the candidates, Linehan said, with a leadership style that borders on despotism. Christopher refuses to share meals until he has finished feeding, and he announces his presence every day with a menacing roar.

''He has leanings toward autocracy," Linehan said.

But Yusuf, the assistant curator, says he may have softened a little after losing his companion, Cliff, to kidney failure last year.

Voting will take place by paper ballot in the Tropical Forest exhibit, and the winner will be announced at 2:30 p.m.

Linehan has been considering the implications of an elected animal -- ''whether it is, in fact, a coup of sorts." But he's concluded he retains job security because animals have trouble wielding a pen. ''I'll continue signing the papers that go with the office," Linehan said, ''but the real decisions will be made by the new president."

Donovan Slack can be reached at dslack@globe.com.