The elephant-shaped Mitt Yum-ney donut barely edges out the Dough-Bama in 2012 Presidential Donut Poll

Mitt Yum-ney is Projected Narrow Winner in LaMar’s Presidential Donut Poll

LaMar’s to give gourmet donuts to voters on Election Day in select locations

DENVER, Colo., November 2, 2012­­ – In a squeaker of a race between two hotly ingested candidates, LaMar’s Donuts is declaring the “Mitt Yum-ney” as the winner of the 2012 Presidential Donut Poll by less than a half-percentage point.

Since September 1, LaMar’s customers have been able to select from two limited-edition gourmet donuts on sale: the “Dough-Bama,” a donkey-shaped donut with blue sugar topping, or the elephant-shaped Mitt Yum-ney donut with red sugar. Sales of the two handmade goodies have been tracked and posted online at www.lamars.com.

As of the end of the polling October 31, the Mitt Yum-ney finishes with 50.2 percent of sales, compared to the Dough-Bama’s 49.8 percent.

Reflecting other polls, the Dough-Bama took an early lead of 3 percentage points in the first announced results, prior to the initial presidential debate. But by mid-October, the Mitt Yum-ney had moved into the lead by a 0.4-percent margin.

“We have a case of donuts imitating life,” said Kayde Pierce, spokesperson for LaMar’s Donuts. “The race has been almost too close to call, although the larger Mitt Yum-ney has proven slightly more popular, especially among voters ages 10 and younger.”

On November 6, LaMar’s Donuts in Colorado; Omaha, Nebraska; and Overland Park, Kansas, will celebrate Election Day 2012 by giving a free donut to each customer wearing an “I Voted” button or sticker.

In the 2008 LaMar’s Donuts Presidential Poll, the Dough-Bama beat out the “McCandy Cain” with 52 percent of sales. As it turned out, then-Senator Obama won the real presidential election with a nearly identical share of the popular vote: 53.7 percent.

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About LaMar’s Donuts

After developing his original donut recipe as a teenager in 1933, Ray Lamar opened the first LaMar’s Donuts in 1960 in Kansas City, Missouri. Today the franchised chain has 27 stores in Kansas, Missouri, Colorado, Nebraska, Alabama and Arizona. LaMar’s has won numerous awards and favorable reviews by such publications as The New Yorker and Gourmet magazine, and was the first donut to be reviewed and acclaimed by Zagat, the world’s most trusted guide to restaurants. LaMar’s Donuts are proclaimed by many as “simply a better donut.”