(NEXSTAR) — Whether it's during early voting or on Election Day, millions of boxes or bubbles around the country are being filled in on ballots, putting forth a vote for desired candidates.
But, there is a fair chance you or a voter near you is not voting for someone on the ballot and are instead writing in a candidate. In some cases, a candidate whose name was not printed on the ballot may be written in while in other cases, a voter may write in a “protest vote,” like their own name or Mickey Mouse.
During the 2020 general election, various third-party or once-presidential hopefuls were frequently written in. According to reports from Florida, Kansas’ Riley County, New Jersey, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania’s Lancaster County, among the top write-in vote-getters were rapper Kanye West, then-American Solidarity Party candidate Brian Carroll, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), Green Party nominee Howie Hawkins, and Dr. Anthony Fauci, the former head of the National Institution on Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
Other common options were Andrew Yang, the businessman who ran for the Democratic presidential nomination; Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who unsuccessfully ran against President Barack Obama in 2012; and former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
While these write-ins could be elected to the White House, other popular options could not — largely because they aren’t real people.
An analysis of Florida ballots found — potentially unsurprisingly — multiple Disney characters garnered support in the presidential race. That includes Mickey and his pals Donald Duck and Minnie Mouse, as well as members of the “Star Wars” universe: Han Solo, Baby Yoda, and Darth Vader himself even received a write-in nod, according to a local news outlet.
Mickey was the most popular of the write-in nominees across the states and counties reviewed, earning at least one vote (and oftentimes more). Some fictional votes were also dedicated to The Hulk, the “Flying Spaghetti Monster,” Superman, “Seinfeld” character Cosmo Kramer, and “the fly on Pence’s head.”
Other popular write-ins included WWE wrestlers Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and John Cena; singer-songwriter Taylor Swift; and actor Chuck Norris. A single voter in Riley County opted for Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes instead of the printed nominees.
Some voters opted for long-deceased candidates — among them were George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Ronald Reagan, and Walt Disney.
In Wake County, North Carolina, a local analysis of off-ballot votes found Jesus was written in over 70 times. One voter in the same county preferred “giant meteor.”
“Rather than not voting or just skipping that particular contest, they write in a name. While some may feel this is a wasted vote, if a voter does not like the two candidates listed and would otherwise skip the race, there is no impact on who wins or loses the race by writing in a different name,” Dr. Aubrey Jewett, associated professor of political science at the University of Central Florida, told a local news outlet.
It’s hard to say who may be among the most written-in options this year. Based on previous trends, however, other recent candidates will likely receive at least a few nods. That could include President Joe Biden and former Republican candidate Nikki Haley, for example, as well as Sanders. It’s also likely Mickey Mouse will receive his fair share of votes.
While the likes of Disney characters, dead presidents, and space occurrences don’t stand a chance at winning an election, some write-in candidates have gotten lucky.
In 2002, Anthony Williams, then-mayor of the District of Columbia, was forced to run as a write-in candidate after an error by his campaign that kept him off the ballot. He went on to win the party primary and the general election, earning his second term in office.
Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) lost her primary during the race for the U.S. Senate seat in 2010 but later won after a successful write-in campaign. After campaigning for only about a month, a Washington state man was elected mayor of his town — all thanks to write-in votes.
Earlier this year, Biden won as a write-in candidate during the New Hampshire Democratic primary. As The Hill previously reported, Biden's name was not on the state's ballot because he did not file for the primary in accordance with what was then the new Democratic National Committee-sanctioned primary calendar.
It’s worth noting that a handful of states — Nevada, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and South Dakota — do not allow write-in voting. In Mississippi, write-in candidates are only allowed in specific cases, according to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. In other states, write-in candidates are only counted in specific races (usually president and governor races) or if the candidate declared their intention to fill the seat.
