HARRIS OR TRUMP? North Charleston squirrel makes presidential prediction

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) — Move over, Pennsylvania. South Carolina has its own furry forecaster.

As voters across the country cast their ballots in the 2024 Election, one squirrel in North Charleston made its presidential pick on Friday.

The squirrel, affectionately known as “Gnocchi Jr.,” was given two separate bowls labeled Harris and Trump each containing an equal number of hazelnuts and brazilnuts. The winner is determined by which bowl he eats the most nuts out of.

After more than 30 minutes of snacking, Gnocchi decided Vice President Kamala Harris will win the White House in November.

Of the ten nuts in each bowl, he ate seven from the Harris bowl and three from the Trump bowl.

Gnocchi Jr.’s caregiver, Serena Ash, said the nutty tradition started during the 2008 presidential election with a different squirrel, Gnocchi Sr.

“The election of 2008 was getting ready to happen and we decided to go ahead and let him vote for the president and that’s how the story began,” she said. “They’re very wise, very sneaky and that sneakiness leads them to be able to be more intelligent. They use their brain and so I thought it would be neat to see how he would do that.”

And while Gnocchi Jr. hasn’t always gotten it right — he selected Trump as the winner in 2020 — Ash says the overall goal is to encourage people to turn out to vote.

“If an animal has the instinct to be able to vote for someone, then people should have a natural instinct to be able to keep their liberties of their country and their freedom to go and vote,” she said. “If an animal is doing it…people should do it too.”

Can Gnocchi Jr. really “tail” the future? We’ll find out on November 5.

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