# When a Congressman is running unopposed **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 1, 2006, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777 "2006-11-01T20:12:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bienville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@bienville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bienville)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/1 "2006-11-01T20:12:29Z")
My District doesn’t have the worst Congressman in the House, but none of them are really any great shakes. But, although I don’t have strong feelings _against_ my Congressman, I am extremely frustrated that he is running completely unopposed. His is the _only name on the ballot_. What are my options here? Am I allowed to vote for every other office and issue, but still leave the section for “United States Representative” blank? Or will that invalidate my ballot? I realize, no matter what I do, he’s going to be re-elected. Still, what I really want to know is: If I go to the polls but leave “United States Representative” blank will that be recognized by the candidate and the party as being a protest vote? If enough voters leave it blank, would the candidate and party notice and think “Hey, we’re losing support! Better get our act together!!!” ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/2 "2006-11-01T20:18:26Z")
You certainly are allowed to not vote in a particualr election here (CT) by leaving a lever unpulled. I can’t imagine that it leaving a particular vote blank would invalidate your ballot in any US election. It’s possible a new electronic voting machine might remind you you hadn’t voted, but I can’t imagine you can’t confirm that was your intention. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/3 "2006-11-01T20:31:21Z")
Unless California has _really_ peculiar laws, you’re perfectly entitled to cast a ballot (literally or metaphorically) with no vote for a particular office, without that invalidating your vote. In many states, the press uses “running unopposed” to say that the opposing major party has not nominated anyone for that office; the Socialist Labor Party or the Libertarian Party may have a candidate running for it. In most states, you are also entitled to cast a write-in vote for the person of your choice. If someone eligible to hold the office, this vote counts. (It will probably never count in a statewide, Congressional, or state-legislature election, but there have been a number of cases scattered across America in which small-town write-in candidates have been elected, getting more write-in votes than their disliked but otherwise unopposed opponents’ tallies.) ---
**Author:** ![bienville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@bienville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bienville)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/4 "2006-11-01T20:51:16Z")
[QUOTE=Polycarp] In many states, the press uses “running unopposed” to say that the opposing major party has not nominated anyone for that office; the Socialist Labor Party or the Libertarian Party may have a candidate running for it. [/QUOTE] I’ve got my “Official Sample Ballot” in front of me. He’s the only Candidate listed. [QUOTE=Polycarp] In most states, you are also entitled to cast a write-in vote for the person of your choice. If someone eligible to hold the office, this vote counts. [/QUOTE] What would be a more effective “protest vote”, leaving it blank or writing in a name? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/5 "2006-11-01T20:57:10Z")
[QUOTE=bienville] What are my options here? [/QUOTE] Well, you could enjoy some cocaine, because it’s a fun thing to do. ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/6 "2006-11-01T21:05:34Z")
[QUOTE=bienville] What would be a more effective “protest vote”, leaving it blank or writing in a name? [/QUOTE] Neither would be effective at all, other than from a sense of personal satisfaction. For me, it would be more satisfying to write in “Mickey Mouse” than to leave the ballot blank. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/7 "2006-11-01T21:11:50Z")
[QUOTE=bienville] What would be a more effective “protest vote”, leaving it blank or writing in a name? [/QUOTE] What are you protesting, and who is the intended recipient of your message? I don’t think either of those protest votes are going to get anyone’s attention. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/8 "2006-11-01T22:09:45Z")
[QUOTE=Polycarp] In most states, you are also entitled to cast a write-in vote for the person of your choice. If someone eligible to hold the office, this vote counts. [/quote] Are you saying “most” just to protect yourself against the off chance that some state _doesn’t_ allow write-in votes or do you really know of one? I ask because I thought that write-in votes were always a legal option everywhere, but I just realized that I don’t know this for a fact. > [@](#): > > (It will probably never count in a statewide, Congressional, or state-legislature election, but there have been a number of cases scattered across America in which small-town write-in candidates have been elected, getting more write-in votes than their disliked but otherwise unopposed opponents’ tallies.) Everything has happened in this wonderfully wacky country of ours. > **[Clemson University, South Carolina](https://www.clemson.edu/)** > > Clemson University is a leading public research institution located in Upstate South Carolina. Here, researchers create solutions that change the world. > [@](#): > > Upon the death of U.S. Senator Burnet Rhett Maybank in 1954, Thurmond ran as a write-in candidate for Senator against the nominee of the South Carolina Democratic Party, Edgar Brown. He defeated Brown in the primary, becoming the first person in U.S. history to be elected to a major office by write-in ballot. > **[U.S. Senate: 404 Error Page](https://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/general/one_item_and_teasers/file_not_found.htm)** > > 404 Error Page > [@](#): > > On November 2, 1954, Strom Thurmond won with 63 percent of the vote and thereby became the only person ever elected to the Senate on a write-in. It appears to really be the election he won as a write-in, not just the primary as the first quote indicates. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/9 "2006-11-01T22:23:26Z")
[QUOTE=Exapno Mapcase] Are you saying “most” just to protect yourself against the off chance that some state _doesn’t_ allow write-in votes or do you really know of one? I ask because I thought that write-in votes were always a legal option everywhere, but I just realized that I don’t know this for a fact. [/QUOTE] In Colorado, write-in votes are legal, but they are not officially counted unless the candidate has filed an affadavit of intent. If **bienville** happens to be in Colorado, leaving any race or question blank is OK. Matter of fact, one may leave the entire ballot blank, but that counts as your vote and you don’t get another chance. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/10 "2006-11-01T22:33:13Z")
> [@bienville](#): > > What are my options here? [QUOTE=Bryan Ekers] Well, you could enjoy some cocaine, because it’s a fun thing to do. [/QUOTE] However, you probably want to write in “whoever the Libertarian candidate is” on your ballot first. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/11 "2006-11-01T22:36:02Z")
My personal feeling is that writing in a name would be a more effective protest than leaving the ballot blank, but that’s opinion, not a GQ-standard factual answer. North Carolina’s laws are similar to Colorado’s: a candidate proposing to run as a write-in must affirm his intent to run and accumulate a certain number of supporters by petition to have his write-in votes at the election be deemed valid votes for him. (The number is substantial, but nowhere near as many signatures as are required to run as a candidate listed on the ballot.) ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/12 "2006-11-01T22:46:37Z")
You can write in a protest vote, but only the poor smoe at the county voter of registrars is gonna get to see it… Leaving it blank does not invalidate the ballot. It’s officially counted as an “undervote”, too. (“X” number of ballots received, all the candidates in that race received “Y” total votes, there is an “Undervote of X - Y”. I think an undervote ratio of 1 or 2% is considered normal…) ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/13 "2006-11-01T22:48:00Z")
> [@](#): > > county voter of registrars Bah! That should read “County Registrar of Voters”. I think… ---
**Author:** ![The\_Octagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f9b8f/32.png) [@The\_Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Octagon)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/14 "2006-11-01T23:01:08Z")
Whether they notice is irrelevant. If you don’t want to vote for them, that’s fine. I do it on principle, because I would find it morally reprehensible to vote for the Amphibian party or show support for them in any way. Every time I see an unopposed candidate, it makes me want to run for office. It’s probably easier than trying to get a good job. ---
**Author:** ![Chance\_the\_Gardener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@Chance\_the\_Gardener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chance_the_Gardener)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2006, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/15 "2006-11-01T23:58:03Z")
My dad says that when he votes, and he doesn’t like any of the candidates for a particular office, he’ll just not pull the lever for that election. If you’ve got an election for, say, governor, senator and representative next Tuesday, but you decide to vote for the first two and skip the representative, your first two votes still count, and they don’t take your skipping the last one to mean you actually voted for the guy. I’m curious as to whether electronic voting machines allow for skipped races on a ballot, and how accurate they are when it comes to not tabulating such a ballot. The lack of transparency where electronic voting machines troubles me. We don’t have them where I live, but everyone I know who’s had to deal with them has complained about them. Anyway, all things being equal, don’t fret skipping the unopposed candidate. I can appreciate that principle, but I don’t remember ever having faced it during a major election. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2006, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/16 "2006-11-02T00:01:08Z")
[QUOTE=Polycarp] Unless California has _really_ peculiar laws, you’re perfectly entitled to cast a ballot (literally or metaphorically) with no vote for a particular office, without that invalidating your vote. In many states, the press uses “running unopposed” to say that the opposing major party has not nominated anyone for that office; the Socialist Labor Party or the Libertarian Party may have a candidate running for it. In most states, you are also entitled to cast a write-in vote for the person of your choice. If someone eligible to hold the office, this vote counts. (It will probably never count in a statewide, Congressional, or state-legislature election, but there have been a number of cases scattered across America in which small-town write-in candidates have been elected, getting more write-in votes than their disliked but otherwise unopposed opponents’ tallies.) [/QUOTE] In our state, if you do that, it counts _against_ any initiative or amendment being proposed. ---
**Author:** ![ChiMagnet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a3d4f5/32.png) [@ChiMagnet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChiMagnet)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2006, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/17 "2006-11-02T00:06:27Z")
You have to be careful with write in candidates. Most states have laws on the books allowing them to toss aside such candidates as “Mickey Mouse” Or “This guy sucks” If you’re going to protest it’d be much better to write a third party candidate who has no chance but will work to see his vote is counted. I wish we could get a law passed that required all elections to have “None of The above.” on it. It would still allow the actual person with the most votes to win but it’d make a strong statement. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2006, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/18 "2006-11-02T00:56:15Z")
[QUOTE=bienville] I realize, no matter what I do, he’s going to be re-elected. Still, what I really want to know is: If I go to the polls but leave “United States Representative” blank will that be recognized by the candidate and the party as being a protest vote? [/QUOTE] Absolutely, positively not. Nobody cares how many votes an unopposed candidate receives. Many newspapers don’t bother publishing vote totals for unopposed candidates. I’ve never seen _anybody_ compare the votes for an unopposed candidate against the total number of people casting ballots. Even in the unlikely event that somebody _did_ make that comparison, it wouldn’t reveal much. If your state allows straight-ticket voting, anybody voting the ticket for the opposite party will automatically “undervote” the House race. Many people routinely leave down-ballot races blank, especially when there is no contest. Neither your Congressman nor anybody else will care a whit about his vote total vis-a-vis blank ballots. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2006, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/19 "2006-11-02T04:20:16Z")
In Nevada all of the races with real people in them have a slot marked “None of the Above” for which you can vote. It has no real effect on the race. If NOTA gets 45% of the vote, candidate A 35% and candiate B the remaining 20%, candidate A still wins, but at least he can’t claim to have a mandate from the people. In practice, it’s never come up, the NOTA vote typically being 2 or 3%. I don’t recall reading whether the practice has resulted in smaller under-vote totals or not. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2006, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777/20 "2006-11-02T04:29:45Z")
[QUOTE=FatBaldGuy] For me, it would be more satisfying to write in “Mickey Mouse” than to leave the ballot blank. [/QUOTE] I find that Darth Vader’s positions on health care and immigration are much more persuasive. Also, he’s doing that gesture with his hand as if he were going to choke me from a distance using the Force. I hate it when he does that. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-congressman-is-running-unopposed/378777.md?page=2)