Shit like this happens when the people directly affected by it are prevented by law from voting to protect their own interests. It's easy to target people who are routinely denied their right to remove your ass from office for pulling shit like this.
When I was 7, in 1984, the school held a mock election. I voted for John Glenn because he was an astronaut and astronauts are cool. Jesse Jackson won because I don’t know why, but maybe lowering the voting age to 6 might not work out.