CHENNAI: Indian organizers watch as fish named Chanakya swims to a portrait of US presidential candidate Donald Trump, (left), floating alongside a portrait of US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in a fish tank, during an event in Chennai yesterday.

CHENNAI: A "psychic" fish in India yesterday picked Donald Trump as the next president of the United States, hours before Americans head to the polls. Chanakya II, a flowerhorn cichlid fish, was given three chances to pick between two floating sticks bearing a photo of Republican Trump or his Democratic challenger Hillary Clinton.

The creature, which has a bulbous forehead that resembles the extravagant coiffure of the real estate mogul, swam towards Trump all three times. Chanakya II's first official prediction sees him join the swelling menagerie of soothsaying animals.  His predecessor, Chanakya I, was famous for accurately forecasting winners in football and cricket matches, his owners at the Chennai-based NGO Indian Community Welfare Organization said.

There have been numerous "psychic" animals since Germany's football oracle, Paul the Octopus, successfully tipped the winner of eight-straight matches during the 2010 World Cup. All eyes are on the US presidential election as a divisive 511-day campaign comes to an end with either the country's first female president or a populist property tycoon poised to enter the White House. More than 40 million Americans have already cast ballots in states that allow early voting, with opinion polls suggesting Clinton has a slim edge.- AFP