On Election Day, a small Oregon town elected an 18-year-old as its new town mayor. Ben Simons, just legal enough to vote himself, received 41 percent of the vote to win and officially became the mayor of a small town in Oregon called Yoncalla. Ben is now the youngest mayor in the town’s history.
Now, if you’re a fan of Parks and Rec, I am sure you are having flashbacks of Ben Wyatt and Ice Town. Reporters and journalists have heard this recent news and couldn’t help but relate it to the popular TV show we have all come to know and love. Parks and Rec has not been on the air since 2015 but let’s be real, the stories and memories of the show will forever live in our hearts and in our GIFs. And with the recent election, there is not a more perfect time to reminisce and reference the jokes, stories and quotes that happened in our beloved Pawnee. People cannot seem to wrap their heads around the fact that Oregon has elected an 18-year-old, Ben of all names, to be their official mayor!
In case you’re not the biggest fan or haven’t been able to binge the classic, let’s take a second to renew some of our favorite Pawnee memories. Ben Wyatt, played by Adam Scott, was known for being a mayor at just the young age of 18. Ben’s first executive action as mayor involved creating a massive skating rink, which he called Ice Town, that ended up making his small Minnesota town go completely bankrupt. He was then impeached after two months into his term.
Ben, the recently elected 18-year-old mayor of Yoncalla, does not believe his age should be a conflict. He told KEZI, “My age shouldn’t be my qualifying or disqualifying factor. [It’s] that I really got the skill set and the ambition to take on this, and I hope to do good for this community.”
Even through this well-spoken quote, the internet couldn’t help but flaunt their Parks and Rec knowledge and crack a few jokes:
Well, Oregon Ben, the people have spoken. Just don’t invest all of the town’s money into a Winter Sports complex and you should be good to go. Congratulations! And remember, if you have any questions about how to be a mayor, maybe just binge watch a few seasons of Parks and Rec and everything should be just fine. Long live #IceTown!
All photographs are courtesy of the Hill and the Hill’s Twitter.