Write-in candidate

Some U.S. states and local jurisdictions allow a voter to affix a sticker, with the write-in candidate's name, to the ballot in lieu of actually writing in the candidate's name.

Write-in candidacies are sometimes a result of a candidate being legally or procedurally ineligible to run under their own name or party; write-in candidacies may be permitted where term limits bar an incumbent candidate from being officially nominated for, or being listed on the ballot for, re-election. They are also typically used when a candidate, often an incumbent, has lost a primary election but still wishes to contest the general election.

In some cases, write-in campaigns have been organized to support a candidate who is not personally involved in running; this may be a form of draft campaign.

Write-in candidates have won elections on rare occasions. Also, write-in votes are sometimes cast for ineligible people or fictional characters, often as a form of protest vote.

Some jurisdictions require write-in candidates be registered as official candidates before the election.See, for example, Section 1-4-1101, Colorado Revised Statutes (2008) This is standard in elections with a large pool of potential candidates, as there may be multiple candidates with the same name that could be written in.

In some cases, the number of write-in votes cast in an election is greater than the entire margin of victory, suggesting that the write-ins may have been sufficient to tip the balance and change the outcome of the election by creating a spoiler effect.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/dec/30/alabama-election-roy-moore-write-in-votes |title=Mickey Mouse and Jesus among write-in votes that helped sink Roy Moore |newspaper=The Guardian |date=December 30, 2017 |access-date=November 2, 2020 |last=Pengelly |first=Martin }}

Many U.S. states and municipalities allow for write-in votes in a partisan primary election where no candidate is listed on the ballot to have the same functional effect as nominating petitions: for example, if there are no Reform Party members on the ballot for state general assembly and a candidate receives more than 200 write-in votes when the primary election is held (or the other number of signatures that were required for ballot access), the candidate will be placed on the ballot on that ballot line for the general election. In most places, this provision is in place for non-partisan elections as well.

A write-in option may occasionally be available in a multiple-choice referendum; for example in the January 1982 Guamanian status referendum.

File:Presidentinvaalit 2018 - äänestyslippu.jpg ballot]]

The term "write-in candidate" is used in elections in which names of candidates or parties are preprinted on a paper ballot or displayed on an electronic voting machine. The term is not generally used in elections in which all ballots are blank and thus all voters must write in the names of their preferred candidates. Blank ballot election systems reduce the cost of printing the ballots, but increase the complexity of casting and counting votes. Such systems are used in Japan,{{cite journal|last1=Cox|first1=Karen E.|first2=Leonard J. |last2=Schoppa|year=2016|title=Interaction Effects in Mixed-Member Electoral Systems|journal=Comparative Political Studies |quote=Japanese voters receive a blank ballot paper and are instructed to write down the name of an SMD candidate after examining a sheet posted on the wall of their voting booth. This list gives the names of all candidates along with the names of the party that submitted the candidate's name. |volume=35|issue=9|pages=1027–1053 : 1038|issn=0010-4140|doi=10.1177/001041402237505|citeseerx=10.1.1.555.9675|s2cid=154631760}} and were used in the past in the French Second Republic{{cite book|last=Schaffer|first=Frederic Charles|title=The Hidden Costs of Clean Election Reform|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WOeXMUepNfcC&pg=PA49|access-date=May 11, 2018|year=2008|publisher=Cornell University Press|isbn=9780801441158|pages=49, fn. 32}} and in elections in the Philippines from World War II until the 2010 general election.{{cite journal|last=Schaffer|first=Frederic Charles|year=2016|title=Might Cleaning Up Elections Keep People Away from the Polls? Historical and Comparative Perspectives|journal=International Political Science Review|volume=23|issue=1|pages=69–84 : 76–77|issn=0192-5121|doi=10.1177/0192512102023001004|s2cid=154673192|url=http://projects.iq.harvard.edu/files/gov2126/files/schaffer_2002_0.pdf#page=9|format=PDF|access-date=May 11, 2018|archive-date=February 24, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224200524/https://projects.iq.harvard.edu/files/gov2126/files/schaffer_2002_0.pdf#page=9|url-status=dead}} Some systems use a semi-blank ballot, such as Finland, where the voter must fill in a candidate's given number or letter from a separate ballot, but where there is a clear-cut arrangement with a circle or box with a description of how to vote for a given candidate.{{Cite web |title=How do Finland's elections work? |url=https://www.electoral-reform.org.uk/how-do-finlands-elections-work/ |access-date=2024-11-08 |website=www.electoral-reform.org.uk |language=en-GB |quote=a Finnish ballot paper is just a blank piece of folded card with an empty circle printed on the inside. In this circle, you have to write the unique number assigned to your preferred candidate (with the lists of candidates, by party, displayed in each polling booth – each party usually stands multiple candidates).}} Blank-ballot systems typically require candidates to be nominated in advance.

[[File:US write-in 2024.svg|thumb|250px|Requirements for write-in candidates in the 2024 United States general election

{{aligned table

|{{color box|#00E000}}|Registration not required

|{{color box|#2CA05A}}|Registration required

|{{color box|#D4AA00}}|Write-in not allowed for president, registration required for other offices

|{{color box|#F00000}}|Write-in only allowed for substitutes

|{{color box|#A00000}}|Write-in not allowed}}]]

The requirements to appear on the general election ballot as an independent candidate or to have write-in votes counted vary by state and by political office sought.

As of 2024, 40 states and the District of Columbia allow write-in votes on their ballots, including for president; Alaska, New Mexico and South Carolina allow write-in candidates for some offices but not for president; Mississippi allows write-in votes only to substitute a candidate listed on the ballot who was removed, withdrew or died; Arkansas, Hawaii, Louisiana, Nevada, Oklahoma and South Dakota do not allow any write-in votes. Most of the jurisdictions allowing write-in votes require that the write-in candidates register by a certain date for their votes to be counted. Typically this registration consists only of a declaration of candidacy, but some states also require signatures of a certain number of voters, additional paperwork or fees. The deadline to register as a write-in candidate is usually later than to petition to be listed on the ballot.

;Notes

{{notelist}}

• In the 1960 presidential elections, both major party candidates won a few primaries as write-in candidates, in contests that did not feature any candidates named on the ballot. John F. Kennedy won the Democratic primaries as a write-in candidate in Illinois (with 34,332 votes), Massachusetts (with 91,607 votes), and Pennsylvania (with 183,073 votes). Richard Nixon won the Republican primaries as a write-in candidate in Massachusetts (with 53,164 votes) and in Nebraska (with 74,356 votes). Kennedy also received write-in votes in the Republican primaries in New Hampshire (2,196 votes, which were 3.0% of votes cast), Massachusetts (2,989 votes, which were 4.8% of votes cast), Pennsylvania (3,886 votes, which were 0.4% of votes cast), and Oregon (2,864 votes, which were 1.3% of votes cast).{{cite web|title=Results of 1960 Presidential Election Primaries|date=January 12, 2024 |publisher=John F. Kennedy Library|url=https://www.jfklibrary.org/learn/about-jfk/life-of-john-f-kennedy/fast-facts-john-f-kennedy/results-of-1960-presidential-election-primaries}}
• In the 1964 Republican presidential primary, a write-in campaign organized by supporters of former U.S. Senator and vice presidential nominee Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. won the Republican primaries for president in New Hampshire defeating the frontrunner candidate Barry Goldwater.{{cite web|first=Seth|last=Gannon|date=February 8, 2016|title=How Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. Won the 1964 New Hampshire Primary Without Lifting a Finger|url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2016/02/henry-cabot-lodge-jr-won-the-1964-new-hampshire-primary-as-a-write-in-candidate.html|publisher=Slate}} Lodge also won the Republican presidential primaries in New Jersey as a write-in candidate, as the primaries (for both the Democratic and Republican parties) featured no candidates, with all votes cast requiring candidates' names be written-in (Lodge also received a handful of votes in the Democratic primary).{{cite web|title=Results of the Primary Election Held April 21, 1964|url=https://nj.gov/state/elections/assets/pdf/election-results/1920-1970//1964-primary-election.pdf|access-date=August 17, 2022}}
• In the 1968 Democratic presidential primary in New Hampshire, incumbent President Lyndon Johnson did not file, but received write-ins totaling 50% of all Democratic votes cast. Senator Eugene McCarthy, who campaigned actively against Johnson's Vietnam War policies, was on the ballot. He received 41% of the vote and gained more delegates than the President, who was reportedly "so stunned that he did not run for reelection".{{cite web |url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/the-night-lyndon-quit/|title=The Night Lyndon Quit|first=George|last=Christian|work=Texas Monthly |date=April 1988}}
• In the 1992 Democratic presidential primary and the 1992 Republican presidential primary, consumer advocate Ralph Nader ran a write-in campaign during the New Hampshire primary for the presidential nomination of both parties. Declaring himself the "none of the above candidate" and using his Concord Principles as his platform, Nader received 3,054 votes from Democrats and 3,258 votes from Republicans.[https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=36389 NH US President - R Primary][https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=36387 NH US President - D Primary]
• In the 2024 New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary, incumbent president Joe Biden received 79,100 write-in votes, more than any listed candidate. Biden did not run in primary because of a dispute between the Democratic National Committee and the New Hampshire Democratic Party regarding the scheduling of that year's Democratic presidential primary.{{Cite web |last=Woodall |first=Hunter |date=2024-01-24 |title=Why Biden wasn't on the 2024 New Hampshire primary ballot |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/joe-biden-not-on-new-hampshire-primary-ballot-2024/ |access-date=2024-01-25 |website=CBS News |language=en-US}} Biden did not support the write-in effort mounted by his supporters.{{Cite news |last=Nichols |first=John |date=2024-01-24 |title=Biden Might Have Had the Best Night of All In New Hampshire |url=https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/joe-biden-new-hampshire-primary-results-analysis/ |access-date=2024-01-25 |language=en-US |issn=0027-8378}}

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• Republican William Knowland was elected in 1946 to the U.S. Senate from California, for a two-month term. The special election for the two-month term featured a November ballot with no names printed on it, and all candidates in that special election were write-in candidates.Washington Post, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/03/AR2010110302555.html "Murkowski appears to make history in Alaska"], Debbi Wilgoren, November 3, 2010 (accessed November 3, 2010)
• Democrat Strom Thurmond was elected in 1954 to the United States Senate in South Carolina as a write-in candidate, after state Democratic leaders had blocked him from receiving the party's nomination.
• In 2010 incumbent Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski lost the Republican primary to Joe Miller.[http://www.elections.alaska.gov/results/10PRIM/data/results.htm Official election results for the 2010 primaries]. Alaska Division of Elections. Following her defeat she ran in the general election as a write-in candidate. Murkowski had filed, and won, a lawsuit requiring election officials to have the list of names of write-in candidates distributed at the polls,{{cite news |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/28/lisa-murkowski-can-appear_n_775221.html|work=Huffington Post|title=Lisa Murkowski Can Appear On List Of Write-In Candidates, State Supreme Court Rules|first=Dan|last=Joling|date=October 28, 2010}} and subsequently won the election with a wide enough margin over both Miller, and Democratic Party candidate Scott T. McAdams, to make moot the write-in ballots that had been challenged by Miller.{{cite news |url=https://www.boston.com/news/politics/articles/2010/11/18/murkowski_becomes_1st_write_in_senator_since_54/|title=Murkowski becomes 1st write-in senator since '54|date=November 18, 2010|first=Becky|last=Bohrer|agency=Associated Press|work=Boston Globe}}
• In 2020, Chris Janicek won the Democratic Senatorial nomination, but during the campaign he sent out sexually inappropriate text messages to staffers causing the Nebraska Democratic Party to withdraw its support from him.{{Cite news |date=June 16, 2020 |title=Nebraska Democrat Urged to Quit Senate Race Over Sexual Texts to Aide |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/16/us/politics/chris-janicek-nebraska-senate.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200918014949/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/16/us/politics/chris-janicek-nebraska-senate.html |archive-date=September 18, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com}} The Nebraska Democratic Party attempted to replace Janicek with Alisha Shelton, but Janicek refused to drop out preventing the replacement. Preston Love Jr. later announced his intention to run a write-in senatorial campaign and received the support of the Nebraska Democratic Party, making him the first black person to receive the support of a major party for United States Senate in Nebraska. Both Janicek and Love lost to Republican incumbent Ben Sasse.{{Cite news |date=September 10, 2020 |title=Preston Love Jr. announces write-in candidacy against Sen. Ben Sasse |work=Omaha World-Herald |url=https://omaha.com/news/state-and-regional/govt-and-politics/preston-love-jr-announces-write-in-candidacy-against-sen-ben-sasse/article_aa4ec90c-f11b-56e5-be6b-a30eaa5517f7.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200918015154/https://omaha.com/news/state-and-regional/govt-and-politics/preston-love-jr-announces-write-in-candidacy-against-sen-ben-sasse/article_aa4ec90c-f11b-56e5-be6b-a30eaa5517f7.html |archive-date=September 18, 2020}}{{Cite news |date=September 10, 2020 |title=Nebraska Democrats announce Preston Love Jr. as write-in candidate for Senate |work=WOWT |url=https://www.wowt.com/2020/09/10/nebraska-democrats-announce-preston-love-jr-as-write-in-candidate-for-senate/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200918015608/https://www.wowt.com/2020/09/10/nebraska-democrats-announce-preston-love-jr-as-write-in-candidate-for-senate/ |archive-date=September 18, 2020}}{{Cite news |date=September 10, 2020 |title=Nebraska Democrats name third pick to replace Senate nominee |work=WJAG |url=https://norfolkdailynews.com/wjag/news/nebraska-democrats-name-third-pick-to-replace-senate-nominee/article_31ac9b62-f3bc-11ea-9d53-9f76e9f2c766.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200918015705/https://norfolkdailynews.com/wjag/news/nebraska-democrats-name-third-pick-to-replace-senate-nominee/article_31ac9b62-f3bc-11ea-9d53-9f76e9f2c766.html |archive-date=September 18, 2020}}

• In 1918, Peter F. Tague was elected to the U.S. House as a write-in independent Democrat, defeating the Democratic nominee, John F. Fitzgerald.
• In 1930 Republican Charles F. Curry Jr. was elected to the House as a write-in from Sacramento, California. His father, Congressman Charles F. Curry Sr., would have been listed on the ballot unopposed but, due to his untimely death, his name was removed and no candidate's name was listed on the ballot.
• In 1958, Democrat Dale Alford was elected as a write-in candidate to the United States House of Representatives in Arkansas. As member of the Little Rock school board, Alford launched his write-in campaign a week before the election because the incumbent, Brooks Hays, was involved in the incident in which president Eisenhower sent federal troops to enforce racial integration at Little Rock Central High School. Racial integration was unpopular at the time, and Alford won by approximately 1,200 votes, a 2% margin.{{cite news |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5698889|title=What Happens If Lieberman Wins|publisher=National Public Radio|author=Ken Rudin|newspaper=NPR|date=August 23, 2006|access-date=September 3, 2006}}
• In 1964 Democrat Gale Schisler was nominated for Congress in Illinois as a write-in candidate when no Democrat filed to run in the primary election. He defeated incumbent Robert McLoskey in the November General Election.
• In November 1980, Republican Joe Skeen was elected to Congress in New Mexico as a write-in candidate, because of a spoiler candidate who also happened to be a write-in. No Republican had filed to run against the incumbent Democrat, Harold L. Runnels, before the close of filing. Runnels died on August 5, 1980, and the Democrats requested a special primary to pick a replacement candidate. The New Mexico Secretary of State allowed the Democrats to have a special primary, but did not allow the Republicans to have a special primary, because they had already gone with no candidate. So Skeen ran as a write-in candidate. After Runnels' widow lost the Democratic special primary, she launched her own write-in candidacy, which split the Democratic vote, taking enough votes from the Democratic nominee to give the election to the Republican, Skeen, who won with a 38% plurality.
• Ron Packard of California finished in second place in the 18-candidate Republican primary to replace the retiring Clair Burgener. Packard lost the primary by 92 votes in 1982, and then mounted a write-in campaign as an independent. He won the election with a 37% plurality against both a Republican and a Democratic candidate. Following the elections, he re-aligned himself as a Republican.
• Democrat Charlie Wilson was the endorsed candidate of the Democratic Party for Ohio's 6th congressional district in Ohio to replace Ted Strickland in 2006. Strickland was running for Governor, and had to give up his congressional seat. Wilson, though, did not qualify for the ballot because only 46 of the 96 signatures on his candidacy petition were deemed valid, while 50 valid signatures were required for ballot placement. The Democratic Party continued to support Wilson, and an expensive primary campaign ensued – over $1 million was spent by both parties. Wilson overwhelmingly won the Democratic primary as a write-in candidate on May 2, 2006, against two Democratic candidates whose names were on the ballot, with Wilson collecting 44,367 votes, 67% of the Democratic votes cast.{{cite news|url=http://www.columbusdispatch.com/news-story.php?story=183395|title=Wilson wins primary as write-in candidate|publisher=The Columbus Dispatch|first=Alan|last=Johnson|date=May 3, 2006|access-date=June 30, 2006}}{{Dead link|date=February 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Wilson faced Republican Chuck Blasdel in the general election on November 7, 2006, and won, receiving 61% of the votes.
• Democrat Dave Loebsack entered the 2006 Democratic primary in Iowa's second congressional district as a write-in candidate after failing to get the required number of signatures. He won the primary and in the general election he defeated 15-term incumbent Jim Leach by a 51% to 49% margin.
• Jerry McNerney ran as a write-in candidate in the March 2004 Democratic Primary in California's 11th congressional district. He received 1,667 votes (3% of the votes cast), and, having no opposition (no candidates were listed on the Democratic primary ballot), won the primary.{{cite web|url=http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/sov/2004_primary/congress.pdf|title=Election Results for the March 2004 Primary|publisher=California Secretary of State|access-date=June 29, 2008|archive-date=June 26, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080626073421/http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/sov/2004_primary/congress.pdf|url-status=dead}} Although he lost the November 2004 general election to Republican Richard Pombo, McNerney ran again in 2006 (as a candidate listed on the ballot) and won the Democratic Primary in June, and then the rematch against Pombo in November.
• Shelley Sekula-Gibbs failed as a write-in candidate in the November 7, 2006, election to represent the 22nd Texas congressional district in the 110th Congress (for the full term commencing January 3, 2007). The seat had been vacant since June 9, 2006, due to the resignation of the then representative Tom DeLay. Therefore, on the same ballot, there were two races: one for the 110th Congress, as well as a race for the unexpired portion of the term during the 109th Congress (until January 3, 2007). Sekula-Gibbs won the race for the unexpired portion of the term during the 109th Congress as a candidate listed on the ballot. She could not be listed on the ballot for the full term because Texas law did not allow a replacement candidate to be listed on the ballot after the winner of the primary (Tom DeLay) has resigned.
• Peter Welch, a Democrat representing Vermont's sole congressional district, became both the Democratic and Republican nominee for the House when he ran for re-election in 2008 and 2016. Because the Republicans did not field any candidate on the primary ballot in those elections, Welch won enough write-in votes to win the Republican nomination.{{cite news |title=Sanders-loving Vermont lawmaker snags GOP nomination|date=October 7, 2016|first=Heather|last=Caygle|url=https://www.politico.com/story/2016/10/peter-welch-vermont-democrat-republican-229251|publisher=Politico}}

• Several members of the Alaska House of Representatives were elected as write-in candidates during the 1960s and 1970s, particularly from rural districts in the northern and western portions of the state. Factors in play at the time include the newness of Alaska as a state and the previous absence of electoral politics in many of the rural communities, creating an environment which made it hard to attract candidates to file for office during the official filing period. Most of the areas in question were largely populated by Alaska natives, who held little political power in Alaska at the time. This only began to change following the formation of the Alaska Federation of Natives and the passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. Known examples of successful write-in candidates include Kenneth A. Garrison and Father Segundo Llorente (1960), Frank R. Ferguson (1972), James H. "Jimmy" Huntington (1974), and Nels A. Anderson Jr. (1976). The incumbent in Llorente's election, Axel C. Johnson, ran for re-election as a write-in candidate after failing to formally file his candidacy paperwork. Johnson and Llorente, as write-in candidates, both outpolled the one candidate who did appear on the ballot. Ferguson and Anderson were both incumbents who launched their write-in campaigns after being defeated in the primary election. Anderson's main opponent, Joseph McGill, had himself won election to the House in 1970 against a write-in candidate by only five votes.
• Carl Hawkinson of Galesburg, Illinois won the Republican primary for the Illinois Senate from Illinois's 47th District in 1986 as a write-in candidate. He went on to be elected in the general election and served until 2003. Hawkinson defeated another write-in, David Leitch, in the primary. Incumbent State Senator Prescott Bloom died in a home fire after the filing date for the primary had passed.
• Arizona state senator Don Shooter won the 2010 primary as a write-in and went on to win the general election.
• After failing to receive the Republican Party's 1990 Wilson Pakula nomination, incumbent and registered Conservative New York State Senator Serphin Maltese won the party's nomination as a write-in candidate.{{cite web |url=http://www.queensnewyork.com/elections/senateny/maltese.html|title=Serphin R. Maltese R-C;|access-date=April 15, 2016}}
• Charlotte Burks won as a Democratic write-in candidate for the Tennessee Senate seat left vacant when the incumbent, her husband Tommy, was assassinated by his opponent, Byron Looper, two weeks before the elections of November 2, 1998. The assassin was the only name on the ballot, so Charlotte ran as a write-in candidate.
• Winnie Brinks was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 2012 after a series of unusual events. In May of that year, State Representative Roy Schmidt – who had previously filed to run for re-election as a Democrat – withdrew from the Democratic primary and re-filed as a Republican. A friend of Schmidt's nephew filed to run as a Democrat, but withdrew two days later amid anger among local Democrats. This left Democrats without a candidate. Brinks ran as a write-in to be the Democratic nominee. She won the primary and was listed on the ballot in the general election, which she also won. Coincidentally, the general election also saw a write-in candidate, Bing Goei, receive significant support.{{cite web |url=http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2012/12/winnie_brinks.html|title=Winnie Brinks takes oath of office as Michigan's 76th District State Representative|work=MLive.com|date=December 9, 2012|access-date=April 15, 2016}}
• Scott Wagner was elected as an anti-establishment Republican write-in candidate to the Pennsylvania Senate in a March 2014 special election over endorsed Republican nominee Ron Miller and Democrat Linda Small.{{cite web |first=Jan|last=Murphy|url=http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2014/03/york_county_senate_seat_winner.html |title=Scott Wagner makes history with his win in York County Senate race |publisher=PennLive.com |date=March 18, 2014 |access-date=March 19, 2014}}
• Nick Freitas was re-elected as a write-in candidate after missing a filing deadline to appear on the ballot in the Virginia House of Delegates.{{cite web|url=https://www.fredericksburg.com/news/local/freitas-write-in-campaign-focused-on-winning-supporting-other-gop/article_0fd0e98b-33e4-5b4d-b25f-d03de9e72ffa.html|title=Freitas write-in campaign focused on winning, supporting other GOP candidates|last=STAR-EXPONENT|first=ALLISON BROPHY CHAMPION CULPEPER|website=Fredericksburg.com|date=August 20, 2019 |language=en|access-date=October 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191011001006/https://www.fredericksburg.com/news/local/freitas-write-in-campaign-focused-on-winning-supporting-other-gop/article_0fd0e98b-33e4-5b4d-b25f-d03de9e72ffa.html|archive-date=October 11, 2019|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.starexponent.com/news/abundant-spelling-variations-as-culpeper-certifies-write-in-votes-for/article_973fa6db-37d0-567a-9f04-ea6aa56dee9f.html|title=Abundant spelling variations as Culpeper certifies 5,205 write-in votes for Nick Freitas|first1= Allison|last1 =Brophy Champion|publisher= Culpeper Star-Exponent|date= November 9, 2019}}
• In November 2024, Scott Madon won the election as a write-in candidate for the Kentucky State Senate. The incumbent state senator, Johnnie Turner, died two weeks before the election. Madon was one of 11 write-in candidates who ran to replace the late Turner, and he won with more the double the votes of his nearest rival.{{cite news|url=https://spectrumnews1.com/ky/louisville/news/2024/11/07/pineville-mayor-elected-to-senate|title=Mayor Scott Madon wins write-in campaign to succeed late Kentucky lawmaker|date=November 7, 2024| publisher= Spectrum News| first= Austin |last=Schick }}

• Greg Hribal ran as a write-in candidate for village president/mayor of the Village of Westchester in Illinois in April of 2023, challenging the five balloted candidates after announcing his intentions 60 days before the election. Greg Hribal took the seat with 26.44% of the votes winning the election with 939 votes over second place Kevin McDermott, who obtained 685 votes.{{Cite web |last=thevillagefreepress@gmail.com |date=2023-04-17 |title=Hribal a write-in winner as Westchester village president - Village Free Press Hribal a write-in winner as Westchester village president |url=https://www.vfpress.news/articles/featured-stories/hribal-a-write-in-winner-as-westchester-village-president/ |access-date=2025-03-16 |website=Village Free Press -}}
• Angela Allen was elected mayor of Tar Heel, North Carolina (population 115), as a write-in candidate in 2003.{{cite web|url=http://www.fayobserver.com/news/local/small-town-has-charm-of-its-own/article_ba841b88-d8ed-5934-96d6-de98ea77c022.html|title=Small town has charm of its own|first=Greg Barnes and MarCharia|last=Henderson}}
• Julia Allen of Readington, New Jersey, won a write-in campaign in the November 2005 elections for the Township Committee,{{cite web |url=http://www.co.hunterdon.nj.us/election/2005general/readington.htm#committee|title=2005 General Election results for Hunterdon County}} after a candidate accused of corruption had won the primary.{{cite web|url=http://www.braac.org/HCN-readington_campaign_violations.pdf|title=Reprint from The Huntington County News|access-date=February 14, 2008|archive-date=February 16, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216081312/http://www.braac.org/HCN-readington_campaign_violations.pdf|url-status=dead}}
• Tom Ammiano, President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, entered the race for mayor of San Francisco as a write-in candidate two weeks before the 1999 general election. He received 25% of the vote, coming in second place and forcing incumbent Mayor Willie Brown into a runoff election, which Brown won by margin of 59% to 40%. In 2001, the campaign was immortalized in the award-winning documentary film See How They Run.
• John R. Brinkley ran as a write-in candidate for governor of Kansas in 1930. He was motivated at least in part by the state's revocation of his medical license and attempts to shut down his clinic, where he performed alternative medical procedures including transplantation of goat glands into humans. He won 29.5% of the vote in a three-way race. Brinkley's medical and political career are documented in Pope Brock's book Charlatan.https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/31/books/31maslin.html?_r=0 Fleecing the Sheep, Who Keep Coming Back for More
• Mike Duggan filed petition to run for mayor of Detroit in 2013; however, following a court challenge, Duggan's name was removed from the ballot. Duggan then campaigned as a write-in in the August 2013 primary, with the intent of being one of the top two vote-getters and thus advancing to the general election in November. Duggan received the highest number of votes in the primary, and advanced to the runoff in November. He eventually defeated challenger Sheriff Benny Napoleon and became the mayor of Detroit.{{cite news |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/07/mike-duggan-detroit-mayor-write-in_n_3721433.html |title=Mike Duggan, Write-In Candidate, Pulls Comeback In Detroit Mayoral Primary |work=Huffington Post |first=Kate |last=Abbeylambertz |date=August 7, 2013}}
• Donna Frye ran as a write-in candidate for mayor of San Diego in 2004. A controversy erupted when several thousand votes for her were not counted because the voters had failed to fill in the bubble next to the write-in line. Had those votes been counted, she would have won the election.{{cite news |url=https://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2004/12/25/medias_role_clouds_san_diego_recount/|title=Media's role clouds San Diego recount |work=The Boston Globe |first=James|last=Rainey|date=December 25, 2004}}
• Michael Jarjura was re-elected mayor of Waterbury, Connecticut, in 2005 as a write-in candidate after losing the Democratic party primary to Karen Mulcahy, who used to serve as Waterbury's tax collector before Jarjura fired her in 2004 "for what he claimed was her rude and abusive conduct toward citizens".{{cite news |url=http://www.wtnh.com/Global/story.asp?S=3947552&nav=3YeX|title=Waterbury mayor to wage write-in campaign}} After spending $100,000 on a general elections write-in campaign,{{cite web|url=http://www.waterburyobserver.com/worxcms_published/recent_stories_94.shtml|title=The Waterbury Observer – The Write Stuff|access-date=August 22, 2006|archive-date=August 28, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060828080648/http://www.waterburyobserver.com/worxcms_published/recent_stories_94.shtml|url-status=dead}} Jarjura received 7,907 votes, enough for a plurality of 39%.[http://web.wtnh.com/2005vote/race192.html News Channel 8 / 2005 Vote Election Results]
• James Maher won the mayorship of Baxter Estates, New York, on March 15, 2005, as a write-in candidate with 29 votes. Being the only one on the ballot, the incumbent mayor, James Neville, did not campaign, as he did not realize that there was a write-in campaign going on. Neville received only 13 votes.{{cite news |url=http://www.antonnews.com/portwashingtonnews/2005/04/01/news/elections.html|title=Baxter Estates Mayor James Neville "Stunned" by Write-in Defeat|first=Dolores|last=Kazanjian O'Brien|publisher=Port Washington News|date=April 1, 2005|access-date=June 30, 2006}}
• Beverly O'Neil won a third term as Mayor of Long Beach, California, as a write-in candidate in 2002. The Long Beach City City Charter has a term limit amendment that says a candidate cannot be on the ballot after two full terms, but does not prevent the person from running as a write-in candidate.{{cite web |url=http://longbeach.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=186782&GUID=E700C5E7-4A2C-46FB-9E0B-EAE13A1063B2&Options=&Search=|title=City of Long Beach – File #: 07-0089|author=Darius Tajanko|access-date=April 15, 2016}} She finished first in a seven-candidate primary, but did not receive more than 50% of the vote, forcing a runoff contest. In the runoff, still restricted from the ballot, she got roughly 47% of the vote in a three-way election that included a second write-in candidate.{{cite web |url=http://www.presstelegram.com/news/ci_3942287 |title=Legacy of a Legend |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120909023543/http://www.presstelegram.com/news/ci_3942287 |archive-date=September 9, 2012 |publisher=Long Beach Press-Telegram}}
• Michael Sessions, an 18-year-old high school senior, won as a write-in candidate for Mayor of Hillsdale, Michigan, in 2005. He was too young to qualify for the ballot.
• In 2021, Byron Brown, the incumbent mayor of Buffalo, New York, defeated Democratic challenger India Walton in the general election, by running a successful write-in campaign after losing the Democratic primary to Walton.2021 Buffalo mayoral election
• In Galesburg, Illinois, an error by the Galesburg Election Commissionhttp://www.wgil.com/newsarchive.php?xnewsaction=fullnews&newsarch=012011&newsid=150 {{Dead link|date=February 2022}} in late 2010 gave city council candidate Chuck Reynolds the wrong number of signatures he required to be on the ballot for the April 2011 city council election,{{cite web |url=http://www.galesburg.com/news/x1958454815/Election-commission-upholds-challenge |title=Election commission upholds challenge - Galesburg, IL - the Register-Mail |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130123185830/http://www.galesburg.com/news/x1958454815/Election-commission-upholds-challenge |archive-date=January 23, 2013 |url-status=}} resulting in his removal from the ballot when challenged by incumbent Russell Fleming.{{cite web |url=http://www.galesburg.com/news/x703876634/Election-commission-delays-announcement |title=Election commission delays announcement - Galesburg, IL - the Register-Mail |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130123214030/http://www.galesburg.com/news/x703876634/Election-commission-delays-announcement |archive-date=January 23, 2013 |url-status=}} Reynolds ran as a write-in vote{{cite web |url=http://www.galesburg.com/news/x1254713692/Reynolds-will-run-as-write-in-for-city-council-Ward-3 |title=Reynolds will run as write-in for city council Ward 3 - Galesburg, IL - the Register-Mail |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130124000517/http://www.galesburg.com/news/x1254713692/Reynolds-will-run-as-write-in-for-city-council-Ward-3 |archive-date=January 24, 2013 |url-status=}} in the April 2011 election, and lost by nine votes.{{cite web|url=http://www.galesburg.com/x481356899/Recount-for-Galesburg-City-Council-Ward-3-seat-possible|title=Recount for Galesburg City Council Ward 3 seat possible|author=ERIC TIMMONS|work=The Register-Mail|access-date=April 15, 2016|archive-date=March 25, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160325021747/http://www.galesburg.com/x481356899/recount-for-galesburg-city-council-ward-3-seat-possible|url-status=dead}}{{cite web |url=http://www.galesburg.com/news/x528727041/Final-count-confirms-Fleming-s-victory-for-Ward-3-council-seat |title=Final count confirms Fleming's victory for Ward 3 council seat - Galesburg, IL - the Register-Mail |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130123152136/http://www.galesburg.com/news/x528727041/Final-count-confirms-Fleming-s-victory-for-Ward-3-council-seat |archive-date=January 23, 2013 |url-status=}}
• Anthony A. Williams, then incumbent Mayor of Washington, D.C., was forced to run as a write-in candidate in the 2002 Democratic primary, because he had too many invalid signatures for his petition. He won the Democratic primary, and went on to win re-election.
• In the November 8, 2011, election for Commonwealth's Attorney of Richmond County, Virginia, 16-year incumbent Wayne Emery was certified the winner as a write-in candidate over challenger James Monroe by a margin of 53 votes (2.4%) out of 2,230 votes cast, after his petitions were challenged and his name was removed from the ballot.{{Cite web |url=http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2011/nov/10/tdmet03-richmond-county-write-in-campaign-workedma-ar-1448412 |title=Richmond County write-in campaign worked…maybe - Richmond Times-Dispatch: News: News, state_regional, govt_politics |access-date=November 11, 2011 |archive-date=February 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130204093359/http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2011/nov/10/tdmet03-richmond-county-write-in-campaign-workedma-ar-1448412 |url-status=dead }}
• In the August 4, 2020, primary election of Ypsilanti Township, Michigan, Monica Ross-Williams, a then Ypsilanti Township Trustee,{{Cite news |url=https://www.secondwavemedia.com/concentrate/devnews/westwillowtraffic0495.aspx |title=West Willow neighborhood committee tackles traffic safety issues near American Center for Mobility |website=Concentrate |date=March 20, 2019 |first=Sarah |last=Rigg}} received 3,478 write-in votes for Ypsilanti Township Clerk, for the highest number of write-in votes in any election in Washtenaw County, Michigan history.{{cite web |url=https://electionresults.ewashtenaw.org/electionreporting/aug2020/index.jsp |title=Washtenaw County Government AUGUST 4, 2020 STATE PRIMARY ELECTION |date=August 4, 2020 |website=Washtenaw County Government}}{{failed verification|date=August 2020}}
• In the 1997 election for Mayor of Talkeetna, Alaska, Stubbs the Cat won over the two human candidates. He was re-elected every mayoral election thereafter, and served until his death on July 2, 2017.{{cite news |url=https://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/cat-marks-15-years-as-mayor-of-alaska-town/|title=Cat Marks 15 Years as Mayor of Alaska Town |publisher=Time Magazine |date=July 17, 2012|first=Amy|last=Friedman}}{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jul/24/stubbs-cat-mayor-alaskan-town-talkeetna-20-years-dies-margarita|title=Feline sad: cat who was 'mayor' of Alaskan town for 20 years dies|work=The Guardian |date=July 23, 2017}}
• In 2011, in Pacific, Washington, Marine veteran Cy Sun ousted incumbent mayor Rich Hildreth as a write-in candidate, using a comprehensive ground game in the small town to convince locals to support him over Hildreth, whom he accused of corruption. After the election, the county elections office reported that a sufficient number of write-ins votes had made it possible that a write-in could win,{{cite news|url=https://www.auburn-reporter.com/news/hildreth-has-early-lead-in-race-for-pacific-mayor/|access-date=December 15, 2020|date=November 9, 2011|title=Hildreth has early lead in race for Pacific mayor|work=Auburn Reporter}} and after a count of the write-ins, Sun beat Hildreth by 464 to 401.{{cite news|url=https://nwasianweekly.com/2012/03/pacifics-new-mayor-wins-by-write-in-months-later-faces-controversy-over-medals/|access-date=December 15, 2020|date=March 22, 2012|title=Pacific's new mayor wins by write-in — months later, faces controversy over medals|work=Northwest Asian Weekly}} Sun's mayorship was plagued by political and physical challenges, and Sun would be recalled in 2013.{{cite news|url=https://www.q13fox.com/news/vote-certified-pacific-mayor-cy-sun-recalled-new-mayor-to-be-named-thursday|access-date=December 15, 2020|date=July 9, 2013|title=Vote certified: Pacific Mayor Cy Sun recalled; new mayor to be named Thursday|work=Q13 Fox|last=Cihon|first=Brett}}
• Eau Claire County, Wisconsin sheriff Ron Cramer,{{cite web|url=https://www.co.eau-claire.wi.us/departments/departments-l-z/sheriff|title=Sheriff - Eau Claire County|website=www.co.eau-claire.wi.us}} formerly a sheriff's deputy, won election as Eau Claire County's 47th sheriff, defeating disgraced 10-year incumbent sheriff Richard M. Hewitt in a write-in campaign hastily organized just weeks before the election in 1996. He has handily won reelection every four years since, usually running unopposed.{{cite news|url=http://www.leadertelegram.com/News/Front-Page/2018/05/08/div-class-libPageBodyLinebreak-Cramer-in-the-running-again-div.html|title=Cramer in the running again for Eau Claire County sheriff|first=Christena T. |last=O'Brien|date=May 8, 2018|publisher=Eau Claire Leader-Telegram}}
• Lynda Neuwirth defeated the lone candidate on the ballot, Joseph DiPasquale, for the Ellicottville, New York village justice position on March 19, 2019; Neuwirth received three votes to DiPasquale's two.{{cite news|first=Andy|last=Paulsen|url=http://wesb.com/write-in-candidate-wins-by-one-vote-in-ellicottville/|title=Write-in Candidate Wins By One Vote in Ellicottville|work=WESB|date=March 19, 2019|access-date=March 19, 2019}} Neuwirth was ousted after only two months in the position, as voters had approved a referendum abolishing the court the previous November; when the abolition was delayed two months, Neuwirth was not allowed to retain her seat and was replaced by a justice from the surrounding town, which will absorb the village court's jurisdiction.{{cite web|url=http://www.oleantimesherald.com/olean/as-ellicottville-village-court-is-dissolved-town-courts-will-add/article_1cb6458a-f99c-549a-97fa-3996f335104b.html|title=As Ellicottville Village Court is dissolved, town courts will add to judicial duties|work=Olean Times Herald|date=July 23, 2019|access-date=July 23, 2019}}
• Lon Lafferty won as a write-in for the Martin County, Kentucky Judge Executive election in 2022, defeating four other write-in candidates—Marlena Slone, Jimmy Don Kerr, Benjamin York and Mitchell Crum—with approximately 60% of the vote. This election was solely decided by write-in—the first election in Martin County's history in which all of the candidates were write-ins—after the previous Judge Executive, Colby Kirk, resigned from office and withdrew his candidacy three weeks before the election to take over as President/CEO of economic development organization One East Kentucky. (Governor Andy Beshear had appointed Lafferty to fill the seat for the remaining two months of Kirk's term.){{cite news|title=Interim Judge-Executive Lon Lafferty wins historic Martin County Judge-Executive election|url=https://www.wymt.com/2022/11/09/interim-judge-executive-lon-lafferty-wins-historic-martin-county-judge-executive-election/|author=Kirstin Baum|website=WYMT|date=November 9, 2022|access-date=December 16, 2023}}{{cite news|title=Write-in candidate selected by Gov. Andy Beshear to fill remainder of Martin County Judge Executive's term|url=https://www.wymt.com/2022/10/27/write-in-candidate-selected-by-gov-andy-beshear-fill-remainder-martin-county-judge-executives-term/|author=Brandon Robinson|website=WYMT|date=October 27, 2022|access-date=December 16, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20231216151619/https://www.wymt.com/2022/10/27/write-in-candidate-selected-by-gov-andy-beshear-fill-remainder-martin-county-judge-executives-term/ |archive-date=December 16, 2023 }}

• Aaron Schock was elected to the District 150 School Board in Peoria, Illinois, in 2001 by a write-in vote, after his petitions were challenged and his name was removed from the ballot. He defeated the incumbent by over 2,000 votes, approximately 6,400 to 4,300 votes.{{cite web|url=http://aaronschock.com/about.htm|title=Biography - School Board Write-in Campaign |website=Aaron Schock |access-date=September 27, 2006|archive-date=November 6, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061106183947/http://aaronschock.com/about.htm|url-status=dead}} He went on to serve in the Illinois House of Representatives, and was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 2008. He was later forced to resign in an expenses scandal.{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2015/03/17/rep-aaron-schock-plans-to-resign-in-wake-of-spending-probe |url-access=subscription |title=Rep. Aaron Schock announces resignation in wake of spending probe|newspaper=Washington Post|access-date=March 18, 2015|first1=Mike|last1=DeBonis |first2=Robert |last2=Costa |first3=Paul |last3=Kane |date=March 17, 2015}}
• John Adams became an Orange County, California judge in November 2002 after running along with 10 other write-in candidates in the primaries on March 5, 2002, against incumbent Judge Ronald Kline.{{cite news|url=http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/03/06/california.primary/index.html|title='Fight' seen in California's governor's race|publisher=CNN|date=March 6, 2002|access-date=March 30, 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090123204655/http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/03/06/california.primary/index.html|archive-date=January 23, 2009}} After the filing deadline in which no candidate filed to run against Kline, a computer hacker discovered that Judge Kline had child pornography on his home computer. Kline got less than 50% of the vote in the primaries, requiring a runoff between him and write-in candidate John Adams (who actually received more votes than Kline).{{cite web|url=http://www.oc.ca.gov/election/Live/e2/result2.htm#c2721|title=Orange County Registrar of Voters Election Results for March 5, 2002}} After some legal maneuvers, Kline's name was removed from the general elections, leaving the general election a runoff between Adams and Gay Sandoval, who was the second highest write-in vote getter.{{cite web|url=http://www.oc.ca.gov/election/Live/e5/result5.htm#c2721|title=Orange County Registrar of Voters Election Results for November 5, 2002|access-date=December 8, 2005|archive-date=March 6, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050306131810/http://www.oc.ca.gov/election/Live/E5/result5.htm#c2721|url-status=dead}} Charges against Kline were eventually thrown out.{{cite news |url=http://www.irvineworldnews.com/Astories/oct30/kline.htm|title=Case against ex-judge Kline gutted|publisher=Irvine World News|date=October 30, 2003|access-date=June 30, 2006|first=Rachanee|last=Srisavasdi}}
• On September 15, 2009, four write-in candidates in the Independence Party primaries for various offices in Putnam County, New York, defeated their on-ballot opponents.{{cite news|url=http://www.putnamcountycourier.com/news/2009-10-01/Front_Page/A_Reversal_of_Fortune_for_Interim_Independence_Par.html|title=A Reversal of Fortune for Interim Independence Party|date=October 1, 2009|publisher=The Putnam County Courier|first=Michael Brendan|last=Dougherty|access-date=November 27, 2009|archive-date=July 15, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715133910/http://www.putnamcountycourier.com/news/2009-10-01/Front_Page/A_Reversal_of_Fortune_for_Interim_Independence_Par.html|url-status=dead}}
• In a May 2011 school board election for the Bentley School Board in Michigan, Lisa Osborn ran as a write-in candidate and needed just one vote to win a seat. However, she did not receive any votes, even from herself. She explained herself by saying that she was at her son's baseball game and did not have time to go to the polls.{{cite web |last=Acosta|first=Roberto|title=School board candidate loses election because she didn't vote for herself; calls not voting a 'dumb move'|date=May 11, 2011|url=http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2011/05/bentley_school_board_candidate.html|publisher=Mlive.com|access-date=November 2, 2011}}

In 2010, California voters passed Proposition 14 which set up a new election system for the United States Senate, United States House of Representatives, all statewide offices (governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, state controller, attorney general, insurance commissioner, and superintendent of public instruction), California Board of Equalization, and for the California State Legislature. In the system set up by Proposition 14, there are two rounds of voting, and the top two vote-getters for each race in the first round (the primary{{efn|Prior to 2020, the primary was held in June. Since 2020, the primary has been alternating between March and June, with March being the month held in years divisible by 4, and June in years not divisble by 4.}}) advance to a second round (the general election, held in November). Proposition 14 specifically prohibits write-in candidates in the second round, and this prohibition was upheld in a court challenge.{{cite web |url=https://blogs.findlaw.com/california_case_law/2011/09/court-upholds-prop-14-bans-on-write-in-votes-unqualified-parties.html|title=Court Upholds Prop 14 Bans on Write-In Votes, Unqualified Parties|first=Robyn|last=Hagan Cain|date=September 21, 2011 |website=FindLaw |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210731103639/https://blogs.findlaw.com/california_case_law/2011/09/court-upholds-prop-14-bans-on-write-in-votes-unqualified-parties.html |archive-date= Jul 31, 2021 }} Another court challenge to the prohibition on write-in candidates in the second round was filed in July 2014.{{cite news |url=http://www.sacbee.com/2014/07/30/6594480/lawsuit-challenges-write-in-rules.html|title=Lawsuit challenges write-in rules under California's top-two system|date=July 30, 2014|first=Christopher|last=Cadelago|publisher=Sacramento Bee |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812165038/http://www.sacbee.com/2014/07/30/6594480/lawsuit-challenges-write-in-rules.html |archive-date= Aug 12, 2014 }}

Although Proposition 14 prohibits write-in candidates in the second round of voting, it has created conditions that can make it easier for write-in candidates in the first round to advance to the second round. This generally happens in elections where only one candidate is listed on the ballot. Since in each race the top two vote-getters from the first round are guaranteed to advance to the second round, if only one candidate is listed on the ballot, a write-in candidate can easily advance to the second round, as the write-in candidate would only have to compete with other write-in candidates for the second spot, not with any listed candidates. In some jungle primary systems, if the winner in the first round wins by more than 50% of the vote, then the second (runoff) round gets cancelled, but in the system set up by Proposition 14, a second (runoff) round is required regardless of the percent of the vote that the winner of the first round received. Proposition 14 therefore guarantees that if only one candidate is listed on the ballot in the first round, a write-in candidate running against the one listed candidate can earn a spot for the second round with as little as one vote.{{efn|In the June 2012 election, write-in candidate Lee H. Chauser running in the 33rd Senate District won a spot in the runoff race with as few as 3 votes.[https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/sov/2012-primary/pdf/2012-complete-sov.pdf Official election results for the 2012 California primary]}}

The first election in which Proposition 14 went into effect was the 2012 elections.

With a few exceptions, the practice of recognizing write-in candidates is typically viewed internationally as a tradition in the United States.{{cite web |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/WolfFiles/story?id=91051&page=1|title=Donald Duck's a Big Bird in Politics|author=|work=ABC News|access-date=April 15, 2016}}{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/212163.stm |work=BBC News |title=Livingstone threatens write-in campaign |date=November 11, 1998}}

• A bizarre incident involving a fictitious write-in candidacy occurred in the small town of Picoazá, Ecuador, in 1967. A company ran a series of campaign-themed advertisements for a foot powder called Pulvapies. Some of the slogans used included "Vote for any candidate, but if you want well-being and hygiene, vote for Pulvapies", and "For Mayor: Honorable Pulvapies". The foot powder Pulvapies ended up receiving the most votes in the election."[https://www.nytimes.com/1967/07/18/archives/foot-powder-produces-headaches-in-ecuador.html Foot Powder Produces Headaches in Ecuador]." The New York Times. July 18, 1967. Page 39. Retrieved December 19, 2009.{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/politics/ballot/footpowder.asp|title=Foot Powder Ecuador Election Result|author=David Mikkelson|date=December 10, 2009|work=snopes|access-date=April 15, 2016}}"Foot Powder Wins Election Hands Down." The Washington Post. July 18, 1967 (p. A13).
• In Brazil, until the introduction of electronic voting in 1994, the ballot had no names written for legislative candidates, so many voters would protest by voting on fictional characters or religious figures. In a famous case, the São Paulo city zoo rhinoceros Cacareco got around 100,000 votes in the 1959 elections for the municipal council, more than any candidate.{{cite web |last=Ferreira|first=Neil|title=Cacareco agora é Excelência|url=http://www.memoriaviva.com.br/ocruzeiro/24101959/241059_8.htm|work=O Cruzeiro|access-date=October 20, 2012}} However, those votes were not considered because Brazilian law stipulates that a candidate must be affiliated to a political party to take office.
• Until 2013,{{cite news|url=http://www.sudouest.fr/2014/03/21/elections-municipales-tout-ce-que-vous-devez-savoir-avant-d-aller-dans-l-isoloir-1499247-6035.php|title=Élections municipales : tout ce que vous devez savoir avant d'aller dans l'isoloir |author=P.-YC |date=March 22, 2014 |work=SudOuest.fr |language=fr |quote=La loi du 17 mai 2013 a instauré plusieurs changements dans le scrutin municipal ... Dans les communes de plus de 1000 habitants ... il y a désormais interdiction de voter pour un candidat non déclaré. ...[D]ans une commune de moins de 1000 habitants, ... il est désormais interdit de voter pour une personne qui n'est pas candidate. |access-date=April 6, 2018}} write-in candidates were permitted at municipal elections in France for councils of communes with a population of less than 2500.{{cite web|url=http://www.leparisien.fr/politique/peut-on-voter-pour-quelqu-un-qui-n-est-pas-candidat-29-02-2008-3296094877.php |language=fr |title=Peut-on voter pour quelqu'un qui n'est pas candidat ?|date=February 29, 2008|work=Le Parisien|access-date=April 6, 2018}}
• Elections in Sweden are open list, with voters placing into the ballot box an envelope containing their choice of either a ballot preprinted with the name of a registered party or else a blank ballot on which they write the name of a party (registered or unregistered) and optionally that of a candidate.{{cite web|url=http://www.erdda.se/datafiles/nordic/elref/1997/Elections_Act_1997.pdf|title=Elections Act 157:1997|publisher=Regeringskansliet|no-pp=y|pages=Chapter 6, sections 3 and 5; Chapter 9, section 12; Chapter 16, section 2, No.3|language=en|access-date=May 5, 2018}}{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2014/sep/11/swedish-elections-sweden-votes-2014-key-facts|title=Swedish elections 2014: seven point guide to the key facts|last=Nardelli|first=Alberto|date=September 11, 2014|work=TheGuardian.com|access-date=May 5, 2018}}; {{cite web|url=https://www.val.se/servicelankar/other-languages/english-engelska/the-examination-of-ballot-papers.html|title=The examination of ballot papers -|publisher=Valmyndigheten|access-date=May 5, 2018|archive-date=May 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180506104237/https://www.val.se/servicelankar/other-languages/english-engelska/the-examination-of-ballot-papers.html|url-status=dead}} A person must consent to being a candidate listed on a preprinted ballot, but there was no such obligation for write-in names until the 2018 general election.

{{cite conference |year=2017 |editor1-last=Krimmer |editor1-first=Robert|editor2-last=Volkamer |editor2-first=Melanie |editor3-last=Binder |editor3-first=Nadja Braun |editor4-last=Kersting |editor4-first=Norbert |editor5-last=Pereira |editor5-first=Olivier |editor6-last=Schürmann |editor6-first=Carsten |last1=Wikström |first1=Douglas |last2=Barrat |first2=Jordi |last3=Heiberg |first3=Sven |last4=Krimmer |first4=Robert |last5=Schürmann |first5=Carsten

|title=How Could Snowden Attack an Election? |series=LNCS (Lecture notes in computer science) |volume=10615 |pages=280–291 : 290 |issn=0302-9743 |doi=10.1007/978-3-319-68687-5_17 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PdQ5DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA290 |isbn=9783319686875 |publisher=Springer |conference=Electronic Voting: Second International Joint Conference, E-Vote-ID 2017, Bregenz, Austria, October 24–27, 2017, Proceedings |access-date=May 8, 2018 }} In the 2006 municipal elections, the Sweden Democrats (SD) won seats on several councils where they had no nominee or preprinted ballots; most SD voters wrote the party name but no candidate name. The seats were filled by the name most often written, if any, and left empty if no voter wrote in a name. One example was Vårgårda Municipality, where only 3 of 143 SD voters wrote in names, of which two were for an ineligible non-resident; the winner resigned his seat as he opposed the SD and his sole vote was cast by his father as a joke.{{cite news |url=https://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=95&artikel=952463 |title=Sverigedemokrat i Vårgårda tvekar |language=sv |work=Sveriges Radio |date=September 27, 2006 |access-date=January 15, 2019 }}; {{cite web |last1=O'Mahony |first1=Paul |title=Dad's practical joke turns trucker into politician |url=https://www.thelocal.se/20060928/5052 |website=The Local |language=en |access-date=January 15, 2019 |date=September 28, 2006}} In 2010 one Jimmy Åkesson was elected to Staffanstorp Municipality council after a single SD voter wrote his name. The voter apparently intended SD leader Jimmie Åkesson, not resident in Staffanstorp.{{cite news|url=https://nyheter24.se/nyheter/politik/729889-jimmy-akesson-kan-tvingas-representera-sd|title=Jimmy Åkesson kan tvingas representera SD|last=Adolfsson|first=Viktor|date=October 25, 2012|work=Nyheter24|language=sv|access-date=May 5, 2018}}

• In elections in Austria, writing on a ballot paper does not invalidate a vote provided the voter's preference is clear. In the 1990 legislative election the unpopular SPÖ, worried that voters would not select it on the party-list ballot, advised them to write in the name of Franz Vranitzky, its popular leader. Such ballots would be interpreted as SPÖ votes.{{cite book|last=Höbelt|first=Lothar|title=Defiant Populist: Jörg Haider and the Politics of Austria|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qrsgaVfsUKAC&pg=PA68|access-date=May 11, 2018|year=2003|publisher=Purdue University Press|isbn=9781557532305|page=68}}
• In many German federal states, it is possible to write people on the ballot paper by hand in municipal council elections or mayoral elections if only one person is running or if the number of candidates is lower than the number of seats in the municipal council (″Einzelvorschlag″).

• In United States elections, write-in votes are sometimes cast for fictional characters, notably Mickey Mouse, whose name usage as a protest vote has been attested since 1932.{{cite journal |url=http://prospect.org/article/if-you-give-mouse-vote |title=If You Give a Mouse a Vote |last1=Fuller |first1=Jaime |date=November 5, 2013 |journal=The American Prospect |access-date=December 30, 2014 |archive-date=January 14, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180114182610/http://prospect.org/article/if-you-give-mouse-vote |url-status=live }}
• Mad magazine satirically called to vote for Alfred E. Neuman as a write-in candidate for every U.S. presidential election from 1956 to 1980 with slogans like "You could do worse– you always have!" and "There are bigger idiots running for office!".
• In the 1980 U.S. presidential election, guitarist Joe Walsh ran a mock write-in campaign, promising to make his song "Life's Been Good" the new national anthem if he won, and running on a platform of "Free Gas for Everyone". Though Walsh (then aged 33) was not old enough to actually assume the office, he wanted to raise public awareness of the election. (In 1992, Walsh purportedly ran for vice-president, in his song "Vote For Me", a track on his album Songs for a Dying Planet, which was released that year.)
• During the 2000 United States Congress Elections, film-maker Michael Moore led a campaign for voters to submit a ficus tree as a write-in candidate. This campaign was replicated across the country and was recounted in an episode of The Awful Truth.
• In 2012, a campaign was waged to write in Charles Darwin against Georgia congressman Paul Broun (who was running unopposed) after Broun "called evolution and other areas of science 'lies straight from the pit of hell.{{'"}} Darwin received approximately 4,000 votes.{{cite news |url=http://onlineathens.com/election/2012-11-08/charles-darwin-gets-nearly-4000-write-votes-athens-against-rep-broun|title=Charles Darwin gets 4,000 write-in votes in Athens against Paul Broun|date=November 9, 2012|first=Jim|last=Thompson|publisher=Athens Banner-Herald |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180813112539/http://onlineathens.com/election/2012-11-08/charles-darwin-gets-nearly-4000-write-votes-athens-against-rep-broun |archive-date= Aug 13, 2018 }} However, because Darwin was not registered as an official candidate (some states require even write-ins to be pre-registered), the Georgia Secretary of State did not tabulate those votes.{{cite web |url=http://results.enr.clarityelections.com/GA/42277/113204/en/summary.html|website=GA – Election Results |title=General Election November 6, 2012 |date=Nov 21, 2012 |access-date=April 15, 2016}}
• In 2016, several grassroots campaigns to elect Bernie Sanders President as a write-in candidate were established on social media in the run-up to the United States presidential election. Though Sanders continued to campaign for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, supporters pointed to alleged DNC bias in the Democratic Party's presidential primaries against Sanders, and Clinton's email scandal, and continued to support him.{{cite web |url=http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/election/article112114202.html|title=Latest Hillary Clinton drama gives Bernie Sanders' write-in campaign a boost |website=The News & Observer |date=Nov 2, 2016 |first1=Vera |last1=Bergengruen |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214183829/http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/election/article112114202.html |archive-date= Dec 14, 2017 }} Both Clinton and Donald Trump would have had to win less than the required 270 electoral college votes for Sanders to have denied either candidate the presidency, and for the election to be passed to the House of Representatives – thus the initial write-in campaign around Vermont, offering only three college votes, was not successful, but Sanders did receive almost six percent of the vote there.{{cite web |url=https://theindependentthinker2016.wordpress.com/2016/09/24/how-bernie-sanders-could-become-president-with-only-130000-votes/|title=How Bernie Sanders Could Become President With Only 130,000 Votes|date=September 24, 2016 |website=theindependentthinker2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230627153742/https://theindependentthinker2016.wordpress.com/2016/09/24/how-bernie-sanders-could-become-president-with-only-130000-votes/ |archive-date= Jun 27, 2023 }} The campaign expanded to include all 12 eligible states (one of which listed Sanders as an official write-in candidate), and relied on states such as California, with a high electoral college vote count and large support for Sanders, to be successful in denying both Trump and Clinton.{{cite web |url=http://www.inquisitr.com/3666716/over-18-million-people-in-california-can-write-in-bernie-sanders-in-california-almost-no-media-reporting-it/|title=Over 18 Million People In California Could Write-In Bernie Sanders In California, Almost No Media Reporting It|date=May 24, 2017 |website=Inquisitr |first1=Dawn |last1=Papple |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002003244/https://www.inquisitr.com/3666716/over-18-million-people-in-california-can-write-in-bernie-sanders-in-california-almost-no-media-reporting-it/ |archive-date= Oct 2, 2022 }}
• In Sweden, all handwritten votes are scanned by computer and the results published online, although only votes for valid parties count towards determining successful candidates. In the 2010 general election, ineffective votes included 120 for Donald Duck and 2 for "myself",{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/sweden/8021258/Donald-Duck-and-God-mar-Swedish-election.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/sweden/8021258/Donald-Duck-and-God-mar-Swedish-election.html |archive-date=January 12, 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Donald Duck and God mar Swedish election|date=September 23, 2010|work=The Daily Telegraph|access-date=May 5, 2018}}{{cbignore}} as well as several computer code snippets apparently intended as code injection attacks aimed at either the program which tallied the votes or the browsers of users who accessed the results website.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/sweden-election-hack|title=Hacking Sweden's election with pen and paper|last=Geere|first=Duncan|date=September 24, 2010|magazine=Wired UK|access-date=May 5, 2018}}
• In the 2018 Egyptian presidential election, owing to a large number of candidates being arrested or barred from running, Egyptian football star Mohamed Salah received over a million votes, as many Egyptians cancelled out the names of both candidates and wrote his instead. This was higher than the number of votes received by the second place candidate, Moussa Mostafa Moussa. Write-in votes are not deemed valid in Egypt.

{{Portal|Politics}}

• None of the above
• None of These Candidates - Nevada's implementation of the "None of the above" voting option
• Paper candidate
• Star candidate

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Category:Elections in the United States

Category:Politics of the United States

Category:Elections terminology