Cornelius the First (died April 3, 2013) was a

black rhinoceros The black rhinoceros (''Diceros bicornis''), also called the black rhino or the hooked-lip rhinoceros, is a species of rhinoceros native to East Africa, East and Southern Africa, including Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Moza ...

at the

Granby Zoo The Granby Zoo () is a zoo in Granby, Quebec, and is one of Quebec's major tourist attractions. It was founded in 1953 by the mayor of Granby at the time, Pierre-Horace Boivin. There are currently more than 1,800 different animals grouped into ...

Granby, Quebec Granby () is a town in the southwestern region of Quebec east of Montreal. According to the latest statistics from the 2021 Canadian census, 2021 Canadian Census, Granby has a population of 69,025. It is the administrative center of La Haute-Yam ...

, Canada.

Political candidature

Cornelius was the nominal leader of the federal political party, the

Rhinoceros Party of Canada A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family Rhinocerotidae; it can also re ...

from 1965 to 1993. The party attracted a considerable number of votes in Canadian elections

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

and

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

, sometimes even coming in second place in some ridings, but never elected a candidate to the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...

. The Party was inspired by

Cacareco Cacareco (1954–1962) was a female black rhinoceros exhibited in Brazilian zoos. She is known for receiving many votes in the 1958 São Paulo city council elections as a form of protest vote. Electoral officials did not accept Cacareco's candidac ...

, a rhinoceros at the

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

zoo in Brazil, which was a candidate for the 1958 city council elections with the intention of protesting against political corruption. Electoral officials did not accept Cacareco's candidacy, but he eventually won 100,000 votes, more than any other party in that election (which was also marked by rampant

absenteeism Absenteeism is a habitual pattern of absence from a duty or obligation without good reason. Generally, absenteeism refers to unplanned absences. Absenteeism has been viewed as an indicator of poor individual performance, as well as a breach of an ...

). Today, the term "Voto Cacareco" (Cacareco vote) is commonly used to describe protest votes in Brazil. During the Canadian federal election of 1984, the party made a major part of their platform declaring war on

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

because a Belgian cartoon character, ''

Tintin Tintin usually refers to: * ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé ** Tintin (character), the protagonist and titular character of the series Tintin or Tin Tin may also refer to: Material related to ''The A ...

'', killed a rhinoceros in one of the early works of the comics series. The party offered to call off the threatened Belgium-Canada war if Belgium delivered a case of

mussels Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other edible clams, whic ...

and a case of Belgian beer to Rhinoceros "Hindquarters" in Montreal (the Belgian Embassy in Ottawa went through with it).

United States

The Granby Zoo eventually traded Cornelius to the

San Diego Zoo The San Diego Zoo is a zoo in San Diego, California, United States, located in Balboa Park (San Diego), Balboa Park. It began with a collection of animals left over from the 1915 Panama–California Exposition that were brought together by its ...

in exchange for a

giraffe The giraffe is a large Fauna of Africa, African even-toed ungulate, hoofed mammal belonging to the genus ''Giraffa.'' It is the Largest mammals#Even-toed Ungulates (Artiodactyla), tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on ...

. The San Diego Zoo loaned him to the Caldwell Zoo, where he fathered an offspring on January 6, 2003.

Death

Cornelius died on April 3, 2013, at the Caldwell Zoo. A news report indicated he "was suffering from pneumonia and

mycobacterium tuberculosis complex The ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' complex (MTC or MTBC) is a genetically related group of ''Mycobacterium'' species that can cause tuberculosis in humans or other animals. It includes: * ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' * ''Mycobacterium africanu ...

was present in his lungs".

References

{{Canadian federal election, 1979A 2013 animal deaths Leaders of political parties in Canada Individual rhinoceroses Individual animals in politics Individual animals in Canada