小狗登记后竟然成为合格选民

　　摘要：

　　当你看到新西兰283万名选民中的一位——托比时，你可能会认为新西兰的选举将无可避免地转变为一场狗狗大战。因为，“选民”托比竟然是一只小狗。

　　It was almost inevitable New Zealand's election would turn into a dog fight when you look at one of the country's 2.83 million voters — Toby the Jack Russell terrier.

　　当你看到新西兰283万名选民中的一位——托比时，你可能会认为新西兰的选举将无可避免地转变为一场狗狗大战。因为，“选民”托比竟然是一只小狗。

　　据报道，托比是一只4岁大的杰克拉塞尔梗犬。当它的主人——新西兰皇后镇的航空安全专家彼得·罗德斯使用托比的名字填写了一份登记表之后，它就成为了一名登记在册的“选民”。

　　登记表上，托比成了一名现年28岁的职业捕鼠员。在将这份表格交回到新西兰选举登记中心之前，罗德斯还用潦草的字迹签了名，并印上了托比的爪子印。罗德斯说，当他接到托比成为合格选民的书面批准后，自己也感到非常震惊。

　　在新西兰，投票活动并不是强制性的，因此罗德斯表示，“选民”托比并不打算投票。

　　对此，新西兰选举登记中心的负责人默里·维克斯却表示非常气愤。他说，“这是一种冒犯行为，做这种事情的人应该交予警察处理”。

　　Dog Registers to Vote in New Zealand

　　It was almost inevitable New Zealand's election would turn into a dog fight when you look at one of the country's 2.83 million voters — Toby the Jack Russell terrier.

　　Toby became a registered voter when his owner, Peter Rhodes of Queenstown, completed an enrollment form in the dog's name, giving his occupation as "rodent exterminator" and his age as 28.

　　He signed the form with a squiggle and Toby's paw print before returning it to the Electoral Enrollment Center, the Otago Daily Times reported.

　　Rhodes, an aviation safety specialist who said he was making a humorous point about local government bureaucracy, was shocked to receive written confirmation of Toby's enrollment in the Otago electorate on New Zealand's South Island.

　　Voting is not compulsory in New Zealand and Rhodes said Toby had elected not to vote.

　　"The only roll he's interested in is a dog roll, not the electoral roll," Rhodes told the paper.

　　Electoral Enrollment Center manager Murray Wicks was more angry than amused that an application filed by a dog had slipped through the center's checking system.

　　"It's an offense, and whoever's done it will be in the hands of the police," he said.