Carp Fishing for Votes in Ann Arbor City Council Race

An unlikely candidate hoping to swim its way onto a seat on the city council in Ann Arbor, Mich., is waging a write-in campaign that has voters wondering if something fishy is going on.

The candidate in Tuesday's election is a 20-pound common carp that was pulled from the waters of a local pond last November after preservation workers deemed it was destroying the local vegetation, according to The Ann Arbor News.

The carp was released into the nearby Huron River at the time but, thanks to social media, never really left in the first place.

Instead, the carp appeared on Twitter, under the handle @TwentyPoundCarp, and, earlier this year, announced it is running for office.

"When I'm elected as a write-in candidate in the Ward 4 city council race this fall, look for some awesome changes, my friend," it tweeted on Sep. 17.

Who exactly is behind the carp's Twitter handle is not known. An email sent by ABCNews.com to the carp's Gmail address listed on its Twitter account was not returned.

The candidate, who describes itself as a "Grass roots Ann Arbor local politician" and "Bottom feeder," is taking on another write-in candidate, William Lockwood, as well as Democrat Jack Eaton, the only candidate on the ballot, The Ann Arbor News reports.

"I'm amused," Eaton told the newspaper. "I have a sense of humor and I think it's funny. I consider a 20-pound carp to be a substantial opponent and I wish him the best."

Eaton can have a sense of humor about the carp's campaign because it is, indeed, fishy. The carp did not file paperwork with the elections office so votes cast for it in Tuesday's election will not be counted.

Nonetheless, the carp's campaign continues.

"Man. Just a reminder when you're like voter 28 at 7pm on November 5: it's spelled T-W-E-N-T-Y P-O-U-N-D C-A-R-P," it tweeted Oct. 23.