California State Senate to Vote on Abolishing Write-in Space on General Election

[BigSkyBob]

Since write-ins are perfectly acceptable for the primary,  voters just will have to accept the fact that the top two vote getters in the primary are the two finalists in November. People with a problem with this fact ought to work to abolish the open primary system.

The only issue I have is that pesky detail called the Constitution.  In past Lousianna open primaries, candidates winning an absolute majority in the primary ran unopposed in November. This was declared unconstitutional since the Constitution states the date federal elections are to take place. It is an interesting  Constitutional question to ask, "If the states can't use the primary to restrict election day to one candidate, why does the Constitution allow states to use the primary to restrict election day to two candidates?"

This objection would only apply to Federal offices. I don't know what the California Constitution reads about this matter.

[BigSkyBob]

I wrote in Alfred E. Newman once for state assembly contest.  It was 2002 and I was living in Alameda County, just inland from Oakland, and both the Democrat and Republican were spamming me with about five pieces per day.  All negative.  They had several televised debates on the local access channel.  It was getting pretty tiresome.

The Newman vote would not be counted, I learned later, since Alfred E. Newman was not a legitimate write-in candidate.  It would have the same effect as if I'd not voted in that race, I later learned.  Like just skipping that race, or leaving it blank, but voting in all the rest of them.  Same effect maybe, but not as satisfactory.  Somehow, it's just not as cathartic to skip it.  I think I'm against the proposal.

Actually, it can even be worse. In Minnesota Senate election of 2008, one voter cast a series of write-in votes for "Mickey Mouse" for minor offices. He did cast a vote for Norm Coleman. Al Franken challenged his vote for Coleman based on the idea the ballot had an "identifying mark."

The political class does not take kindly to being mocked.