Fat Bear Week 2026: Voting extended as internet "not prepared to handle this much fat bear"
King Salmon, Alaska - The organizers of Fat Bear Week 2026 have made the call to extend voting on the world's plumpest beasties, declaring: "The bears have broken the internet!"
"BREAKING: THE BEARS HAVE BROKEN THE INTERNET!" Fat Bear Week 2026 organizers Katmai National Park and Preserve on Tuesday wrote in a dramatic (and adorable) post to Instagram. "Literally."
"First round Fat Bear Week voting has been extended through tomorrow because apparently the internet was not prepared to handle this much fat bear," the statement read.
"This is an important reminder that bears are very large, they've been eating nonstop, and sometimes servers are less resilient than a bear preparing for winter. If you haven't voted yet, cast your vote tomorrow."
Voting to find the ultimate fat bear of 2026 kicked off on Tuesday, September 22. It was set to run from 12PM ET through to 9PM. Instead, the organizers have extended it to continue through Wednesday.
The ongoing vote is part of a single elimination tournament, as each obese beast fight it out to be recognized as the best example of fatness and success in brown bears.
It seems that voting was stalled on Tuesday due to server issues, likely due to the massive influx of people pouring online to have their stay.
There's a lot to know about Fat Bear Week 2026 – this year's chubby competition is a real doozy! If you're unsure about who to vote for, it's certainly worth brushing up your knowledge on this year's contestants.
Cover photo: Unsplash/Becca