Nevada has a 35-year-old law — the only one of its kind — mandating the option “none of these candidates” appear on the state’s voting register. It was instituted amid the mistrust of government brought on by the Watergate scandal.
Ironically, the 1975 law could hurt Tea Party candidate Sharon Angle in her race against Democrat Harry Reid, as the Las Vegas Sun and other publications are reporting.
Both candidates have high unfavorable ratings — 56 percent for Angle and 55 percent for Reid.
“In a situation where the incumbent is locked into a mid-40s approval rating and is having an incredibly difficult time getting to 50 percent, I think it helps the incumbent to have none of the above,” Ryan Erwin, a Republican political consultant, told the Sun this weekend. “Anything on the ballot that drives Sharron Angle’s numbers down is a benefit to Harry Reid.”
“I was at his funeral reception yesterday (former Nevada governor Kenny Guinn), and it blew me away the number of people that told me they didn’t know who to vote for now. They can’t stand either one,” a Republican said of Angle and Reid, according to the Daily Caller.
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Thank you for your observation – please see the following press release:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (8/30/2010)
A campaign against marking “None of These Candidates” on the ballot in the upcoming election was recently launched by Cathy Valenta Weise, a mediating attorney in Reno. This line appears below candidates’ names on all statewide races. Nevada is the only State in the country that includes this line on statewide races.
“It concerns me that this ballot line is appearing in election polls, in the media and in campaigns as a possible alternative to voting for or against a candidate”, said Mrs. Weise. “If this line is marked, it is a non-vote, it is not counted and it’s not heard by the candidates.” “It only serves to divert votes that would otherwise be cast for a candidate, most likely in opposition to another candidate in the race.”
The 1975 Nevada Legislature added this line to the ballots for statewide races. Notably, the statute specifically provides that “only votes for named candidates shall be counted in electing a candidate to the office.” It’s first test came in the 1976 Republican Congressional primary. More than 16,000 voters marked the category “None of These Candidates”, almost as many as the combined votes for all the candidates, yet the candidate who received just over 9,800 votes received the Republican nomination. The candidate with more votes that any other is elected, no matter how many voters mark the line “None of These Candidates”.
“People think this category has some protest value”, she continued. “There is nothing farther from the truth. Voters have always had the right to withhold their votes in protest. A person will be elected to office in spite of marking None of These Candidates” on the ballot. Voters shouldn’t be misled into thinking it has some greater impact than withholding a vote. They simply are giving up their votes in both instances. There is no evidence to indicate that a candidate even acknowledges these non-votes or changes a stand on political issues because of this ballot line”, Weise said. “History shows that the real consequence of this ballot line is that is favors an incumbent or the one who conducts the most negative campaign.”
In support, she gave, as an example, the 1998 U.S. Senate race. In that race, Harry Reid out polled his challenger, John Ensign, by 401 votes. 8,113 voters marked “None of These Candidates”, effectively re-electing Reid.
When asked if third party candidates had the same impact on the outcome of a race, Mrs. Weise noted that the significant difference between a third party candidate and None of These Candidates is that the third party candidate could possibly be elected, “None of These Candidates” can never be elected.
“Elections are a way to maintain government or effect a non-violent change in government through the candidates we elect. Vote for a candidate, or for another to oppose the election of a candidate. But don’t throw away your vote by marking None of These Candidates on the ballot,” Weise concluded.
-end-
for further information please contact:
Cathy Valenta Weise
P. O. Box 5009
Reno, Nevada 89513
(775) 742-1099
email: nvnotonone@gmail.com
Cathy is a 5th generation Nevada, born in Reno and having resided in Las Vegas. She is a mediating attorney, graduated from Las Vegas High School, University of Colorado, Hastings College of the Law and Pepperdine Strauss Institute for Dispute Resolution. Cathy’s career spans over 40 years. She has been a Nevada legislative bill drafter, Supreme Court Law Clerk, and deputy attorney general. Together with her husband, Bob, she has owned and operated real estate brokerage and development businesses, earth moving construction company, ranches in Washoe, Lander, Lyon and Elko Counties. She conducts private mediations, is a Nevada Supreme Court Settlement Judge and former foreclosure mediator. Cathy resides in Reno with her husband of 37 years, Bob.
At what point does a person decide to choose between leprosy and smallpox? You may consider it a cop out, but I see it as refusing to spread the disease.
Maybe the non-votes aren’t officially counted, but by counting the votes versus the number of ballots cast will give you an idea that people aren’t happy with these kind of choices. Nature abhors a vacuum. Someday, someone will take advantage of that fact.
The only voting that really works is attached to money. The only action that will shut down the Washington D.C. and Sacramento clown parade is by withholding their food, i.e. their money.
It certainly got England’s attention in the late 1700s.
Whoever first comes up with a creative way to be civilly disobedient with tax revenue will start the revolution. I’ve got my marker on the TPP, and would love to see it happen.
Not that I support the TPP agenda–they want to smash “socialist” funding while I would like to see the military budget cut by at least half–but tea in the bay is tea in the bay at the end of the day.
We live in exciting times.