(CBS DETROIT) – Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer needs your help in naming the turkey for this year’s turkey pardon.
Since 2022, the governor has pardoned turkeys before Thanksgiving.
The turkey naming contest, now in its third year, is open until Tuesday, November 12 at 11:59 PM and residents can submit entries via this link.
Michigan Governor’s Office
“Thanksgiving is a time to spend quality time with your loved ones, and the annual turkey pardon is a tradition I always look forward to,” said Whitmer. “I look forward to judging all the fun, creative names Michiganders come up with this year. Submit your name ideas and find out if you picked the winner to be pardoned next week!”
More than 3,900 entries were submitted statewide with Whitmer during the 2023 competition pardoning a turkey named “Dolly Pardon.” The one from last year winning name was submitted by Jay Kozlowski of West Bloomfield.
In 2022, the governor pardoned a turkey named “Mitch E. Gander.”
The presidential pardon of Turkey traces its origins to President Abraham Lincoln, although White House historians say the official presentation of turkeys did not begin until 1947. During Ronald Reagan’s presidency, it became common to send the presented turkey to a farm.
