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Two candidates for the municipal elections in a small American village had to dice for the mayor’s seat due to a draw. “A unique rule, but we thought it was fairer than a game of heads or tails,” it sounds.
In the municipal elections in the small town of Sister Bay, Wisconsin, candidates had to look twice when they saw the results. Both Rob Zoschke and Nate Bell had 256 votes to their names. But one of them eventually had to take on the position, so a winner was definitely needed.
And it was finally determined specially. According to state election law, the winner would ultimately be chosen after “a game of chance.” The village clerk, therefore, rolled out the dice. So Zoschke and Bell had to roll the dice for the election’s final result. In the end, it was Bell who won 6-2. “It attracted a lot of attention because it is unique that something like this is arranged with a child’s game,” secretary Heidi Teich told the BBC.
There were other options besides the dice game. For example, a name could be drawn from a hat, and they could draw straws, or a game of heads or tails could be played. “We found that if you flip a coin and one candidate chooses one side, the other candidate has no choice but to choose the other side,” Teich explains. “On a roll of the dice, both may participate in a certain way.” It is striking that the two candidates were not physically present when the dice had to be thrown. Two deputies from the polling station, therefore, took their place.
Zoschke followed the event via Teams and saw how he ultimately lost the election. Someone from his supporters said afterwards that his daughter could not vote because she had planned a doctor’s visit in another city. Another could not get a day off from work and could not vote. “But I believe my opponent has also had such calls,” he said. He will not ask for a recount. “I don’t get carried away by a vote here or there because there were 256 more people who voted for the other one,” he said. “I’m at peace with it.”
