The Ins and Outs of Write-in (Candidates)

The Ins and Outs of Write-in (Candidates) Can you vote for a write-in candidate in your state? In 2004, Business Week said "Regardless of which state you live in, voting for a write-in contender is much more complicated than scribbling whatever name you please on the dotted line at the bottom of the ballot. Thirty-five states require that a write-in candidate must submit some form of affidavit and, sometimes, a filing fee at least one month before the election. In North Carolina, these candidates must circulate a petition. Then their names are posted on a list at the polling place, though not on the official ballot. All other write-in votes are tossed. " In Massachusetts, the Boston Globe reports Write-in candidates face hurdle on paper ballots. Wikipedia reports there have been some successes however (including Strom Thurmond's election to the US Senate).

Don't worry. I'm not running for anything( but you can still write in my name in Massachusetts if you want.) I am interested in this question, however, having supported Ralph Nader's campaign in 2004.
posted by notmtwain at 5:16 AM PST on October 29

During the 2004 election after DeLay gerrymandered my district (Austin, TX), the Democrat candidate for my district was a write in. On the eSlate machine where there's an iPod-like wheel to enter the letters like you do when you get the top score in video games. The guy running had a not-that-easy-to-spell name and so he didn't have a chance.
posted by birdherder at 5:33 AM PST on October 29

Sounds like a Mickey Mouse system.
posted by BillyElmore at 5:54 AM PST on October 29

Alex Hightower reports "... with corporate and right-wing interests seizing all three branches of the national government, and with the Democratic leadership being either co-opted or inept, the flow of progressive energy has moved steadily out of Washington and (like water finding a new course) into grassroots organizing. In the past decade, these feisty groups using street actions, ballot initiatives, lawsuits, the internet, media exposés, local elections, radio, potluck suppers, festivals, satire, and every other tool at their disposal have become a powerful force on a wide range of issues, and they are changing American politics from the ground up. Let's take stock of some of the progress being made."

I would like to think that he is correct. Is there any evidence for this?
posted by notmtwain at 6:09 AM PST on October 29

birdherder, your point is quite valid. we still don't have a viable electronic voting system. how write-in candidates get treated in electronic systems is something I haven't even seen discussed before. Perhaps there should be a Google or Yahoo like search function so that you would put in a name and you would be asked "Do you mean "notmtwain"? I sympathize with those candidates with names that are longer than 4 letters or have non-English origins .

billyelmore, i don't doubt that Mickey Mouse has been the leading write-in candidate in many elections. I think that liberals should perhaps consider voting for someone more progressive like "Jon Stewart" or "Steven Colbert" instead of voting for the distressingly conservative Mickey.

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