Election Crisis Splits Santa's Sleigh Team

The North Pole has had its own troubles with election problems this year. Every four years, the reindeers hold an election to decide who will be the new team leader. All adult reindeer residing at the North Pole may vote for this position.

Edwinna Bell, Sleigh Maintenance Manager, explained, “Outsiders might not be aware that this position differs from the job of heading up Santa's team on Christmas Eve. Another reindeer may physically head the team without being the team leader.”

The team leader has year round duties. Clark Kent of the Metropolis Daily Planet newspaper secured a rare interview with Santa Claus to learn more about the inner workings at the North Pole. Claus explained, “On Christmas Eve, the team leader must provide direction to my sleigh team when I'm busy distributing toys. During the rest of the year, he presides over the reindeer games and handles all organizational functions for the team and new recruits. It's a very important management role.”

Rudolph has been the team leader since 1996, when his father Donner retired. He said, “It was a natural role for me, since I was also the head of the team, lighting our way. I had no idea this year's election would be so crazy.”

Rudolph gets position as lead reindeer, winning election by only one vote.

The first signs of turbulence appeared when Donner announced his retirement right before the 1996 Christmas season. This opened the door for Rudolph's election, which he won by a landslide. However, not everyone was happy with the result.

Rudolph's support began to erode following the sudden departure of Blitzen. Blitzen, who had joined Santa's team at the same time as Donner, was fired in 1996 after crashing Santa's sleigh on a practice run over New York. Blitzen's close friends and family blamed Rudolph for the harsh treatment of the longtime sleigh team member.

The reindeers split into two factions, one led by Rudolph, and the other led by Prancer, another long time member of the sleigh team. When it came time to plan for the next election, Prancer was nominated to compete against Rudolph.

Their campaigns were neck-and-neck up to election day, September 1st. Hans Candle, current chief of the Elves Guild, headed up the independent vote monitoring team. He said, “Voting was so close that initial counts pointed to Prancer as the winner. Rudolph even conceded the election, but after a recount on September 2nd, he retracted his concession when the votes pointed to him as the winner—by one vote!” A second recount confirmed this number and the election held. Rudolph now has four more years to prove he can handle the position.

ENTERTAINMENT

Frosty Night

There is a new variety show starting this summer up at the North Pole. Aptly named the Frosty Night Show, it is going to be hosted by none other than Frosty the Snowman.

Modeled after the Tonight Show, Frosty is planning to bring in guest stars from around the world. Airing begins in April and runs through the summer months on Friday nights.

Host Frosty said, “I got the idea from some of my friends down south. They suggested it as a way to liven the atmosphere at the Pole during the off-season.”

The new show has a promising roster of guests lined up for its first season. The first show will feature Blitzen, former Santa sleigh team member and recent star of box office hits Destination: North Pole and Runaway Holiday.

MILLENNIUM UPDATE

Family Feud Resolved

This time last year the inhabitants of New Year's island were arguing over a twin dilemma. The 1999 New Year's twin babies Happy and Jolly had grown up and were divided over whether to celebrate the year 2000 or 2001 as the real millennium. The arguments flared even hotter when both discovered they were expecting New Year's babies.

The argument was unexpectedly resolved by their wives. Happy's wife Rose and Jolly's wife Star decided in a private meeting to end the argument by a coin toss. In an interview following the meeting, Rose said, “It was simple. The winner's child would be the designated Baby New Year, while the loser would get to decide the Millennium question.” Star won, and by their agreement, Jolly's child would become the official Baby New Year, while Rose picked 2001 as the official Millennium, following the scholarly approach which states that the true Millennium does not arrive until 2001 since there was no year zero.

When Jolly and Star had a baby girl, Joy, everyone was extremely surprised. Defying tradition, they named Joy as the New Year Baby, the first female to ever hold that title. Normally, the position has been reserved for a male, but Joy's parent's were insistent. Happy even reconciled with his brother Jolly and supported them in their decision.

Joy has had a very successful year in her position, and everyone on New Year's Island is happy with the unexpected turn of events. Smiley, the son of Happy and Rose, was not left behind either. He spent his entire year on the magical island promoting the Millennium idea. The cousins are preparing for a smooth transition into the new year. Though both are expecting babies, only Joy's will be assuming her hereditary title.

Rusty Sundial of the National Calendar Institute commented, “It was the perfect blending of tradition, innovation, and reconciliation. When New Year's Island enters the new Millennium this year, everyone will be ready for it.”