What a cat-astrophe! Alaskan town that has a feline for a mayor



He is one of the longest-serving mayors in the United States but all he does is laze about.

Stubbs the cat has been the boss of Talkeetna, Alaska, nearly all of his life after clawing his way onto the political scene through a write-in campaign nearly 15 years ago.



Residents of the sleepy tourist town didn't like the candidates running for mayor so they encouraged enough people, as a joke, to elect Stubbs instead, according to KTUU TV .

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No rats in the ranks: Stubbs the cat has been mayor of Talkeetna, Alaska, since clawing his way to the top nearly 15 years ago

The popular part-Manx pet won and has been honorary mayor ever since, spending his days hanging out at the general store where he is fed Alaskan snow crab as a snack.

The cat has a Facebook page and almost 1000 friends - more than the 900 residents in the town.



His election earned him enough press to catapult Talkeetna, located at the base of Mount McKinley, into a tourist destination.

Feline good: Mayor Stubbs spends his days perched on a counter at Nagley's Store, pictured, in Talkeetna

'He was just in the Alaska Magazine, and he's been featured in a few different things,' Lauri Stec, who works at Nagley's General Store , told KTUU.



The store - Mayor Stubbs' makeshift townhall - says it gets dozens of tourists a day asking for the furry feline and receives letters and cards from all over in his honour.

'Oh my gosh, we probably have 30 to 40 people a day come in who are tourists wanting to see him,' Ms Stec said.

VIDEO: Townspeople extoll the virtues of their Cat Mayor...