Can consumers’ preference for donkey- or elephant-shaped cookies predict the outcome of a presidential election? Washington University in St. Louis, the host of Thursday’s vice presidential debate, is testing the hypothesis.

In a lighthearted experiment in culinary polling, the university is selling iced sugar cookies shaped as the political parties’ mascots at three locations across campus through November 3, the day before the presidential election. Each donkey or elephant cookie sold will be counted and the winner will be announced the evening of November 3.

The cookie contest is becoming something of a debate tradition at Washington University, which hosted a debate and bake sale in 2004 as well. That time around, the elephant won, foreshadowing the re-election of President Bush.

As the university notes in a press release, “it may not be the most scientific way to predict an election winner, but it might be the tastiest.”