Here's Why Writing in a Candidate Is Probably a Waste of Your Time
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The two major-party presidential candidates have left some voters wishing for more options.
Some voters feel like the choice between Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is a reluctant choice for the lesser of two bad options. And some (including some Sen. Bernie Sanders supporters) are planning to write-in a candidate.
However, in most states, you can't just write in any candidate.
The Washington Post's Denise Lu and Kevin Uhrmacher made a list of state rules about write-in candidates.
In eight states, ballots do not allow write-ins for presidential candidates at all. Here's the list:
- Nevada
- South Dakota
- New Mexico
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- Louisiana
- South Carolina
- Hawaii
In 32 states, candidates need to file paperwork to register as a write-in candidate for the presidential election.
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- New York
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Maryland
- Virginia
- West Virginia
- Kentucky
- North Carolina
- Georgia
- Tennessee
- Florida
- Wisconsin
- Michigan
- Ohio
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- North Dakota
- Nebraska
- Kansas
- Texas
- Montana
- Colorado
- Idaho
- Utah
- Arizona
- Alaska
- Washington
- California
There are only 10 states plus the District of Columbia that don't require any prior filing for write-in candidates.
- New Hampshire
- Vermont
- Rhode Island
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- Mississippi
- Alabama
- Iowa
- Wyoming
- Oregon
Who is the most successful write-in candidate of all time?
Ralph Nader and Ron Paul are two of the most successful write-in candidates. However, it's hard to say for sure because some states don't make write-in candidate numbers public: In 2000, Ralph Nader won 2 percent of the vote in Wyoming, which is the most a write-in candidate has ever won in a single state, according to the Post. Bustle reported that Ron Paul's website said that he received 17,000 write-in votes in the state of California in 2008.
