Moo Deng, the baby pygmy hippopotamus who has unexpectedly found fame this year, has revealed which presidential candidate she thinks will win the 2024 US election.
The cute hippo made her prediction in her enclosure at the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi, Thailand — with the help of zookeepers and two dishes of food to choose from.
In a video recorded as Americans went to the polls, Moo Deng was given two piles of fruit made to look like cake, one with the name of Republican candidate Donald Trump on it and the other with the Democrats’ Kamala Harris.
So who did Moo Deng pick? She chose the fruit cake that spelt out Mr Trump.
The larger hippo in her pen chose differently though, and tucked into the watermelon featuring Ms Harris’s name.
Moo Deng became an internet sensation after zookeeper Atthapon Nundee posted videos of her bathing and playfully biting, before making herself so tired with her shenanigans that she fell asleep.
Moo Deng means “bouncy pork” in Thai and refers to a type of meatball. Born to parents Jonah and Tony on July 10, Moo Deng also has two half-sisters named after pork dishes, Moo Tun and Moo Wan, meaning stewed and sweet pork, respectively.
Pygmy hippos are a small species of hippopotamidae, native to the forests and swamps of West Africa.
Moo Deng’s endorsement of Mr Trump came as national poll results showed the two candidates were neck-and-neck in the race for the White House. This is especially so in the crucial swing states in the election.
More than 75 million early votes were estimated to have been cast before election day on Tuesday.
At 6am local time (11am GMT), polling stations opened in several East Coast states, including New York, New Jersey, Indiana, and Virginia.
On Monday, Vice President Ms Harris concluded her campaign in Pennsylvania, a pivotal battleground state. She held a star-studded rally at the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the site of a famous scene from Rocky.
Backed by stars such as Lady Gaga and Oprah Winfrey, Ms Harris called herself the underdog ready to “climb to victory” in what she predicted would be one of the closest elections in US history.
“The momentum is on our side,” she told a crowd that chanted back: “We will win.”
Meanwhile, Mr Trump finished a four-rally blitz of swing states with an impassioned speech in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Calling Ms Harris a “radical left lunatic”, he told supporters he would win the election. “This will be the single greatest victory, politically speaking, in the history of our country,” he said.
