# Would you vote for a political candidate with a pseudonym? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 9, 2011, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-vote-for-a-political-candidate-with-a-pseudonym/605632 "2011-12-09T16:28:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-vote-for-a-political-candidate-with-a-pseudonym/605632/1 "2011-12-09T16:28:26Z")
I was thinking about this. Let’s say there’s a writer who has used a pen name professionally, perhaps because his real name is something boring like Mike Smith. Does it seem strange to you to vote for him and have him sworn in under something not his legal name? What if it’s sort of pretentious? Is that a minus? What if it’s just a politician who changed his name to distinguish himself from the other Joe Smiths? What about politicians like Addison G. Wilson, who won office as “Joe Wilson”? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-vote-for-a-political-candidate-with-a-pseudonym/605632/2 "2011-12-09T16:39:28Z")
Like Harry S. Truman, Ulysses S. Grant, or Ted Kennedy? ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-vote-for-a-political-candidate-with-a-pseudonym/605632/3 "2011-12-09T17:59:09Z")
Or Gerald Ford, who was born “Leslie Lynch King.” Or Bill Clinton, originally William Blythe. Actually, if my name was Leslie, I’d damn sure change it, too. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Dalliard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Mr\_Dalliard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Dalliard)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-vote-for-a-political-candidate-with-a-pseudonym/605632/4 "2011-12-09T19:25:30Z")
I dunno, how soon would they produce a birth certificate? j/k! I don’t think it would bother me unless it seemed like they changed their name to cover something up. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-vote-for-a-political-candidate-with-a-pseudonym/605632/5 "2011-12-09T19:31:26Z")
Or Willard Romney. But no, I don’t care as long as they don’t go overboard like Prince. If Obama changes his name to just a capital “O” or something, he’s lost my vote. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-vote-for-a-political-candidate-with-a-pseudonym/605632/6 "2011-12-09T19:41:06Z")
Is Cecil Adams planning to run for office? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-vote-for-a-political-candidate-with-a-pseudonym/605632/7 "2011-12-09T20:18:24Z")
Or [James George Janos](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_Ventura#Governor_of_Minnesota)? ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-vote-for-a-political-candidate-with-a-pseudonym/605632/8 "2011-12-09T20:28:22Z")
Last year a rapper named “Rhymefest” ran for alderman in Chicago. I do not know how his name was displayed on the ballot, but the media referred to him much more often as “Rhymefest” than by his real name, Che Smith. I’m not saying I definitely _wouldn’t_ vote for someone going by such a silly name, but it would certainly make me take his candidacy less seriously, and he’d have to work that much harder for my vote. (He didn’t win.) ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2011, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-vote-for-a-political-candidate-with-a-pseudonym/605632/9 "2011-12-16T11:28:08Z")
Continued, sorta, here: [Are generic and familiar names more appealing to you?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=635114)