Noah Johnson Daily Press The ballot boxes for the 2025-2026 Daily Press Pet Idol are located in the Daily Press front office. It costs 50 cent per vote. Votes can also be submitted through ballots found in the Daily Press and the U.P. Action.

ESCANABA – It’s voting season at the Daily Press; don’t worry, this contest isn’t about politics, but about pets.

The 2025 Daily Press Pet Idol contest is in full swing, with round one voting open until July 31.

The contest asks the public to vote for their favorite or cutest animal from a selection of submitted photos. Money raised by submissions and votes supports Newspapers in Education (NIE), which provides local schools with newspapers to use as teaching tools.

This year, 22 pets are competing, including dogs, cats, and even a fish.

Readers may bring in or mail their ballots, which will be advertised in the Daily Press and the U.P. Action in the coming weeks.

It costs 50 cents per vote.

If you’re in town, you can stop by the Press front office and drop money into the pets box you wish to vote for.

This year, Daily Press Publisher Sarah Greenlund announced that voters who donate an item or cash to the Delta Animal Shelter will receive a free vote for the contest.

“There are slips that they can fill out at the animal shelter, and they just write down who they want to vote for, as long as they donate something,” she said.

The shelter confirmed it has already received donations for vote slips.

After the July 31 deadline, the top 10 of the 22 submitted pets will advance to the second round of voting.

The deadline for voting in the second round is August 25.

In the second round, votes still cost 50 cents, and participants may again donate to the Delta Animal Shelter for free votes.

Once the votes are tallied, the 2025 Daily Press Pet Idol will be announced in September.

The winner will receive a plaque, a pet gift basket, and recognition as the 2025-2026 Daily Press winning mascot.

The winner will also be featured in an article published by the Daily Press and will periodically appear as the face of NIE throughout the following year.

Last year’s winner of the Daily Press Pet Idol and the 2024 to 2025 mascot was Rip, a goldendoodle owned by Joni and Dan Smith.

Greenlund encourages the public to participate this year and reminds prospective contestants for next year’s Pet Idol that any pet can be submitted, including but not limited to horses, hamsters, lizards, and birds.