The Edenton Top Dog Contest is underway—and the prize committee has some news worth wagging about.

The committee met over the weekend and, with such a terrific response to the contest, decided to spread the rewards. Each week, the top five dogs will receive a prize.

Our weekly Top Dog will take home a first-place ribbon and a bag of custom-baked dog biscuits from Bayside Bakery and Boards. That’s a victory worth sitting up for.

So, who’s in the running? Let’s check the leaderboard.

Louie leads the pack with 110 votes. Gizmo is giving chase with 67, followed by Finnegan with 59.

Waylon and Willie are right in the hunt with 52 votes, while Sir Jasper, Duke of Granville, rounds out the top five with 32. With a name like that, he certainly sounds ready for a crown.

Gracie has 27 votes, with Koa just one vote behind at 26. Baxter and Isabella—better known as Izzy—are neck and neck with 24 votes apiece. And Nubby rounds out our leading ten entries with 16.

But this race is far from over.

Layla Maye has 11 votes, Enzo Adachi has 10, Maggie has eight, and Summer has six. Hamish and Mya, along with Deb Good’s Mazie, have five votes each.

And to everyone cheering for a dog farther down the standings: keep those votes coming. Every vote is a little love for a local dog.

A special shout-out goes to Frank Lucas, Hit Toddi, Penny, Stella, Carl and Max, who are still waiting for their first vote. Let’s get those tails wagging.

Here’s how the chase for the crown works.

Each week, the dog with the most votes becomes our Top Dog of the Week and advances to the monthly contest. The monthly dog with the most votes wins and earns a place in the annual championship.

Twelve monthly winners. One final runoff. And one Edenton Top Dog of the Year.

And yes—the winner will actually be crowned.

For the dogs who don’t take the weekly title, a fresh opportunity begins with the next round. The weekly winner advances, and the remaining dogs start again with their votes reset to zero.

So, keep voting, rally your friends and family, and give your favorite dog something to wag about.

Visit Edenton Social Light to cast your vote, and watch for our next standings update on Wednesday.

This is Edenton Social Light, bringing you good news—and very good dogs.