Willie the dog campaigning for mayor of ‘Annantail’

Willie, a friendly pit bull mix who lives in Sleepy Hollow Woods, wants to be your mayor. Actually the idea came from his “campaign manager,” Giovanna Di Biccari, who would like Annandale to become more welcoming to dogs.

Di Biccari decided to launch Willie’s campaign for mayor of Annandale to highlight the need to revitalize the community, as well as make it more dog friendly. When she learned that Annandale doesn’t have a mayor, she switched the slogan to “Let’s turn Annandale into Annantail” and set up an Instagram account for the campaign.

Di Biccari, who moved from Arlington to Annandale two years ago, would like to see a dog park, pet boutiques, water bowls in front of stores, shops that welcome dogs, and dog-friendly sidewalk cafes with dog treats on the menu and places to tie up a large dog like Willie, who weighs 65 pounds. And how about a doggie day care facility in that vacant storefront that used to be a Bloom grocery store?

“Annandale has a lot of potential,” says Di Biccari, who hopes the Willie for Annantail campaign will highlight opportunities for mixed-use redevelopment with more parks.

She got Willie from the D.C. Humane Society and thinks he is about two years old. “He’s a favorite at his doggie daycare center and has some awesome skills,” she says. He can sit on command, shake hands with his left paw, high five with this right paw, and has mastered a “double,” where he stands and does two high fives. He’s working on the downward dog yoga position.

Willie was even an extra in a Hyundai of Alabama commercial, where he appeared in a jogging scene. He can thank Di Biccari for that gig; she performs in corporate and government training videos.

Since there’s no actual election, and Willie is running unopposed – unless a cat or other pet jumps in – he has a pretty good chance of becoming mayor of Annantail. According to Di Biccari,  “Willie has his paws crossed.”