As soon as the first "straw poll" results started coming in back in April, Etika began pushing the narrative that K. Rool would be another slow, useless heavweight. Ironically, the dude supported Ridley. Though nobody really knows if his support was genuine or staged.
Speaking of democratic elections, the ballot reminds me of the ongoing presidential election.
King K. Rool / Hillary Clinton - A classic Nintendo character who has been waiting patiently for his time to come. Detractors continue to bog him down with scandals like Mii costume gate (Benghazi) thanks to his commanding leads in many polls. Will that be enough?
Banjo-Kazooie / Bernie Sanders - The only candidate who's both an outsider and an insider, Banjo-Kazooie seeks to bring about change by forcing Nintendo and Microsoft to cooperate. Much to the chagrin of the establishment, Banjo-Kazooie has been doing well in the polls, but numbers alone may not be enough. Unlike K. Rool, he doesn't belong to a family dynasty.
Shovel Knight / Donald Trump - The outsider who hasn't been a video game character for very long, but has garnered a tremendous amount of attention from the media. His lack of support from several key voting blocks (Japanese) may prove to be an insurmountable hurdle.
Shantae / Ben Carson - The other, less popular outsider whose scantily clad appearance has left the community divided. Will her looks help or hinder her candidacy? Or perhaps WayForward is merely trying to create buzz for their upcoming game?
Daisy / Jeb Bush - The establishment pick whose support has been negligible at best. Could she still make the cut despite the widespread "no more Mario characters" sentiment?
Inklings / Marco Rubio - The other establishment candidate, but they're younger, fresher, and appeal to demographics that Nintendo traditionally avoids. Many fans see them as the "expected" choice.
Ridley / Joe Biden - While many think he's no longer a contender, will he surprise us all and enter the race? There's still time! Maybe Sakurai was just trolling, guys. Guys...?