{"id":6239,"date":"2016-10-25T12:33:49","date_gmt":"2016-10-25T17:33:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.robertxgillis.com\/?p=6239"},"modified":"2016-11-07T21:37:03","modified_gmt":"2016-11-08T02:37:03","slug":"election-2016-my-public-service-announcement-about-write-ins-for-president-in-massachusetts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.robertxgillis.com\/?p=6239","title":{"rendered":"Election 2016: My Public Service Announcement about Write-Ins for President in Massachusetts"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"PLEASE<\/a>
PLEASE do not write-in cartoon characters, ineligible names, or protest statements in the write in field in Massachusetts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

by Robert Gillis<\/em>
\nPublished in the Foxboro Reporter and Boston City Paper, 10\/2016<\/em><\/p>\n

November 8 is Election Day \u2013 and I\u2019d like to talk write-in ballots, specifically for Massachusetts.<\/p>\n

First, a disclaimer: I am not endorsing any candidate here; when a real name is mentioned it is NOT an endorsement or statement about that person \u2013 I am using familiar names for example purposes only. Who you vote for (or whether you vote at all) is up to YOU.<\/p>\n

The genesis for this piece came when a co-worker mentioned he didn\u2019t like any of the four candidates for president and was planning to write in a certain politician\u2019s name in the write-in field. That got me wondering \u2013 how do write-ins work? What is counted and what\u2019s not? What\u2019s valid and what\u2019s not?<\/p>\n

Online sites report that Google Trends data of online searches for “write-in” surged over one week by more than 2,800 percent, hitting a record high since 2004. (http:\/\/www.kyma.com\/news\/politics\/google-searches-for-writein-are-off-the-charts\/115001879<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Write-Ins procedures for presidential elections vary from state to state (http:\/\/www.electoral-vote.com<\/a>) I\u2019m writing this as a public service to clarify write-in voting procedure for President of the United States SPECIFICALLY IN MASSACHUSETTS 2016.<\/p>\n

I drew information from the Commonwealth\u2019s Voter Information web site and \u201cHow to Run for Office as a Write-in or Sticker Candidate” at and National Association of Secretaries of State, “SUMMARY: STATE LAWS REGARDING PRESIDENTIAL BALLOT ACCESS FOR THE GENERAL ELECTION” at http:\/\/www.mass.org<\/a>: \u201cMassachusetts: Write-In A write-in candidate for president must file the name of the candidate for president and the names of the candidates for presidential electors with the secretary of state no later than 60 days prior to the election. (Mass. Gen. Laws \u00a7\u00a7 50-1, 53-1, 53-6, 53-8, 53-10, 54-78A)<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

I emailed the Communications Director, Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth and got the response, \u201cThere is one ticket that is running as a write-in, and filed a slate of electors with this office. That is Evan McMullen and Nathan Johnson. Such a write-in gets counted.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

(IMPORTANT NOTE: THIS INFORMATION WAS CORRECT AS OF PUBLICATION (OCTOBER 27, 2016)<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

All other write-ins are handled as follows:<\/p>\n