The rights and wrongs of write-in votes

Rather than choose between Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump, two candidates with record-high unfavorability ratings, many voters are considering writing in their presidential picks come Election Day. During the second week in October, Google searches for “write-in” surged by 2,800 percent, according to CNN, the highest they have been since 2004.

The rules vary widely from state to state, so people wanting to write-in their choice might need to do some homework first. Thirty-four states require some form of registration before their board of elections will accept a vote for a write-in candidate, otherwise the vote is not counted.

In Illinois, for example, anyone who wants to be written in has to fill out a declaration of intent in each of the state’s 150 counties. Other states are even more restrictive. In Indiana and Kentucky, a candidate must fill out paperwork and have presidential electors for the Electoral College to be a viable candidate. In Maine, voters write in the party name, not the candidate’s name. And eight states simply do not allow write-in votes.

Local elections offices can provide lists of viable candidates, and websites such as My Time to Vote list presidential hopefuls eligible for write-in votes.

Write-in candidates tend to be much more successful at the local or municipal levels, but some well-known politicians have won statewide elections without their names appearing on the ballot.

The first write-in candidate elected to Congress was Strom Thurmond in 1954. After the death of Sen. Burnet R. Maybank, the South Carolina Democratic Executive Committee did not hold a primary to replace him. Thurmond protested, ran as a write-in candidate, and won.

More recently, Rep. Charlie Wilson, D-Ohio, lacked the necessary signatures to appear on the primary ballot in 2006, but he mounted a successful write-in candidacy. And incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, won as a write-in candidate in the 2010 general election after she lost in the primary.

Often voters cast write-in votes in protest against the candidates offered by the major parties or as a vote for someone who lacks the money or support to make it to the ballot. But write-in votes also are a longstanding favorite of practical jokers. Mickey Mouse has been a popular write-in candidate for many years—so much so that in 1987 Georgia passed a law prohibiting votes for the Disney character in state elections. And Mad magazine ran a write-in campaign during every presidential election between 1960 and 1980 supporting Alfred E. Neuman, its fictitious mascot and cover boy, with slogans like, “You could do worse—and you already have” and, “There are Bigger Idiots running for office!”

Listen to Paul Butler’s report on write-in voting on the Nov. 3, 2016, edition of The World and Everything in It.