With Halloween around the corner, we thought we’d bring you this kooky story about an ex-cruise ship captain who was re-elected as Mayor of Deveselu after he died of COVID-19.
We assume this means all mayorial decisions will now be made via seance, which is quite fitting for the spooky season.
The former cruise captain in question, Ion Aliman, won a third term as mayor of the southern Romanian village, securing 64 per cent of the vote, according to BBC News.
It turns out that Aliman’s name had already been printed on the ballots and could not be removed despite his death two weeks prior to voting day.
Another election is to be held in the coming weeks, though his supporters told Reuters he deserved the post-humous victory.
“He was a real mayor to us,” a woman wearing a surgical mask told local media.
“He took the side of the village, respected all the laws. I don’t think we will see a mayor like him again.”
However, this isn’t the first time Romanians have tried to re-elect a dead person, with Reuters also reporting that an eastern Romanian village also knowingly re-elected their mayor who had recently died.
Featured image source: iStock/CatEyePerspective
