California Recall: Drawing determines alphabetical order for Oct. 7 ballot

AP via San Diego Union Tribune ^ | August 11, 2003 | Jim Wasserman

[heleny]

October 7, 2003 Statewide Special Election Results of Randomized Alphabet Drawing

The results of the Secretary of State's random drawing of letters of the alphabet for the October 7, 2003 Statewide Special Election are listed below. The resulting order of letters constitutes the alphabet to be used for determining the order of candidates' names on the upcoming statewide ballot; it applies throughout the name, not just for the first letter so that Randolph would precede Riddle.

Names of candidates for offices voted on statewide rotate by Assembly district, starting with Assembly District 1 where the names appear as first determined by the random alphabet. In Assembly District 2, the candidate who appeared first in Assembly District 1 drops to the bottom and the other candidates move up one position and so on throughout the 80 districts.

This procedure was established by legislation passed in 1975 in response to court rulings declaring that standard alphabetical order or incumbent-first was unconstitutional since there is a 5% positional bias among undecided voters.

1. R
2. W
3. Q
4. O
5. J
6. M
7. V
8. A
9. H
10. B
11. S
12. G
13. Z
14. X
15. N
16. T
17. C
18. I
19. E
20. K
21. U
22. P
23. D
24. Y
25. F
26. L

[Lazamataz]

Lazamataz would be last.

Figures. Glad I didn't enter the race.

[sgtbono2002]

Arrianna may be a high profile Candidate but she is still a low life gold digger.

[finnman69]

Is it just me, or does this make it especially difficult to locate a candidate this way.

[finnman69]

But good ole Larry Flynt is right on top of you.

[Rabid Dog]

I'm sorry, but is there anyway they could have made the process even more difficult? What is wrong with alphabetizing? The logic path is scary and I am sure pervasive throughout the state government. Do things the hard, painful and convoluted way at every possible opportunity.

[So Cal Rocket]

The process will only be difficult for those people who have not looked at the Sample Ballot that will be mailed to them several weeks before the election.

What I'm most concerned with, however, is once people have found their candidate on the ballot and pulled the lever for him/her, that they will stop... and not cast their votes for the two important Propositions that also will appear on the ballot:

Ward Connerly's initiative forbidding the state to collect racial information & a Dem-sponsored initiative changing the requirement to pass a budget from 2/3 to 55%.

[heleny]

Lazamataz would be last.
Figures. Glad I didn't enter the race.

Only in a few assembly districts. The order rotates up one letter for each district, so L would be the next to last in the 2nd district, 3rd to last in the 3rd district, etc. if all the letters are represented. With 80 districts, you'd be near or at the top a couple times, too, although Lo... would appear before you.

If there are no candidates with names beginning with certain letters (as is usual in regular elections), I'm not sure what is normally done. They probably just skip that letter and rotate to the next letter.

[heleny]

Is it just me, or does this make it especially difficult to locate a candidate this way.

Yes. It is done this way intentionally, since someone sued that the candidate at the top of the list gets an advantage of up to 5%.

[Revolting cat!]

Woo hoo! Revolting cat! would be furst! Is it to late to join the fun?

Just imagine:

Guvnor Revolting cat!

[heleny]

I'm sorry, but is there anyway they could have made the process even more difficult? What is wrong with alphabetizing?

Then people with the last name A... would have an advantage over those with other last names. The alphabet order has been randomized and rotated in past regular elections, too, as far back as I can remember (not very long), except that it's easier to find your candidate in a list of usually fewer than ten names.

[Political Junkie Too]

22, 21, 20, 19, spells P-U-K-E.

-PJ

[Revolting cat!]

Lazamataz would be last.

That'll learn ya to say your name with a lisp!

[Lazamataz]

But good ole Larry Flynt is right on top of you.

Just like in the 'seventies. (shudder)

[SwinneySwitch]

"...a routine process, which is done every election to help erase the estimated 5 percent advantage a candidate gets from being at the top of the ballot, Secretary of State Kevin Shelley said."

Something like this happens in every primary, Rabid - to keep ballots as fair as possible! A simple alphabetical order would not be fair!

[drjimmy]

What is wrong with alphabetizing?
You don't think someone would get his name changed legally to Aaaron Aaabner just to get on the top of the list? I'm sure silliness like that happens in all sorts of elections. The way it is being done isn't great, but I bet it beats out any other way.

[Cooter]

But Jim Robinson would have been first!

[Saundra Duffy]

Glad I'm not on the ballot! LOL!!!

[Revolting cat!]

22, 21, 20, 19, spells P-U-K-E.

Yeah, and 25, 17, 21, 20 spells F.C.U.K. (which stands for Football Club United Kingdom, I'm told.)

[Rabid Dog]

I understand that some idiots would vote by whatever was closest to the top of the list, but most people are going to want to vote for their favorite candidate. So now everyone has to spend time searching for the name.