Doughnut-inhaling, beer-quaffing Homer Simpson may not be the model father, but he has won the hearts of British TV fans who want the cartoon nuclear power plant worker to be the next U.S. president.
Former President George H.W. Bush notoriously said American families should be “closer to the Waltons than the Simpsons,” but Homer was overwhelming favorite in a Radio Times magazine poll on which U.S. television character should take over at the White House.
As Americans ponder tax and security pledges from President Bush and Democratic rival John Kerry ahead of the Nov. 2 vote, television fans have been considering Homer slogans such as “No big government, just big waist sizes.”
In a manifesto compiled for the magazine by “The Simpsons” writers, the bumbling animated TV hero also pledges: “I promise there will be fewer nuclear disasters with me as your mayor than with me as your nuclear safety inspector.”
Homer got 24 percent of the vote in the poll of more than 2,000 readers. Second place went to the more obvious choice of Josiah Bartlett, the president as played by Martin Sheen in “The West Wing.”
Pompous but eloquent radio psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane was third followed by Sergeant Bilko from “The Phil Silvers Show.” Gil Grissom from “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” was fifth with 10 percent of the vote.
Other favorites were Jack Bauer from “24,” Cliff Huxtable of “The Cosby Show,” Phoebe Buffay from “Friends” and “The Sopranos” heavy Tony Soprano.