Write in voting

Want to cast a write-in vote on Dec. 12 for a candidate not listed on the ballot?

Write in his or her name in the blank write-in box at top of the ballot. It is immediately under the boxes for Doug Jones and Roy Moore.

For your vote to count:

You must shade in the circle next to left of the “write-in” box.

For your vote to count:

The name of your candidate needs to be spelled correctly. Minor misspellings won’t disqualify the vote, but it has to be close enough that the full last name is understandable. Be safe and get it right. It is best to list first name and middle name or initials for same.

Do not use stamps or stickers.

Votes must be handwritten.

Is there anyone I cannot vote for?

It must be for a person qualified to hold office.

What about people who lost earlier for same race?

You can write in the name of any qualified candidate. Alabama’s “sore loser” law prohibits a candidate that lost in the primary from running as an independent, which would provide for their name being printed on the ballot. There’s nothing to keep any qualified candidate from running a write-in campaign or someone casting their ballot for whomever they choose.

When will we know the total of write-in votes?

Alabama law stipulates that write-in votes for a particular contest are not counted unless the total number of write-in votes is greater than the difference in the number of votes received by the first place and second place candidates. If that takes place, write-in votes are counted on the seventh day after the election. If the number of write-ins doesn’t meet that requirement, they are not counted.

 

There are at least six candidates who have announced a write-in campaign for the upcoming U.S. Senator seat. They are as follows: Ron Bishop (Libertarian), IT Professional; Lee Busby, Retired USMC Colonel, Iraq War Veteran, Businessman, Ex-Factory Foreman; Chanda Mills Crutcher, Pastor; Eulas Kirtdoll Sr., Perry County School Board Member, Pastor; Arlester “Mack” McBride, Educational Management Consultant and Mac Watson, Businessman.

The top contender for a write-in vote seems to be Lee Busby. A press release by Busby stated the following:

Lee Busby, a Tuscaloosa resident raised there, decided to be a write-in candidate several weeks before the Tuesday, Dec. 12, election between Democrat Doug Jones and Republican Roy Moore.

“I’m running for this office because I believe that party politics as usual, has failed the Alabama voters on this election,’ Busby said.

“On the far end of one side, they’ve offered our voters a personality that isn’t representative of the majority of Alabamians.

“On the far end of the other side, they’re offered a platform that isn’t representative of the majority of Alabama voters,” Busby continued.

“The majority of Alabama voters are being IGNORED at the expense of the two extremes.

I’ll represent that majority . . . with character, courage, and true leadership.

I believe that YOUR individual vote still counts. But you’re going to have to believe that yourself. You’re going to have to believe that YOU COUNT.   Please go out on Dec 12, and write-in, “LEE BUSBY,” he concluded.

In recent years Busby has worked as a sculptor creating bronze busts of Alabamians killed in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.