None of the above
Encyclopedia
None of the Above or against all is a ballot
option in some jurisdiction
s or organization
s, designed to allow the voter to indicate disapproval of all of the candidates in a voting system
. It is based on the principle that consent
requires the ability to withhold consent in an election, just as they can by voting no on ballot questions
.
Entities that include "None of the Above" on ballots as standard procedure include Greece
(λευκό, white, but unrelated to a political party of the similarly sounding name-however it is symbolic only), the U.S. state
of Nevada
(None of These Candidates
), Ukraine
(Проти всіх), Spain
(voto en blanco), Colombia
(voto en blanco), the United States Libertarian Party
and Green Party
and the Florida affiliate of the American Patriot Party. Russia
had such an option on its ballots (Против всех) until it was abolished in 2006. Bangladesh
introduced this option (না ভোট) in 2008.
When None of the Above is listed on a ballot, there is the possibility of NOTA receiving a majority
or plurality of the vote, and so "winning" the election. In such a case, a variety of formal procedures may be invoked, including having the office remain vacant, having the office filled by appointment, re-opening nomination
s or holding another election (in a body operating under parliamentary procedure
).
In Nevada, the candidate with the greatest number of votes assumes office regardless of votes for None of the Above. None of the Above acts as a repository for protest vote
s.
The Green Party of California
included NOTA in its original 1991 bylaws, to offer voters a choice of rejecting all candidates presented. After one round of successful elections in which a candidate in Southern California and all gubernatorial candidates were retired after the primary by NOTA, a lawsuit by the California Secretary of State led to the disallowal of NOTA in Green Party primaries.
In 2000, Michael Moore
advocated a write-in candidate
Ficus (the plant) for Congress as a unified vote for none of the above in congressional seats where the incumbent was running unopposed.
In 2004, the Oklahoma Green
, Libertarian
and Constitution parties endorsed a NOTA campaign for president that was organized by Oklahomans for Ballot Access Reform. The campaign called for voters to leave the Presidential ballot line blank in protest of restrictive ballot access
laws.
Ralph Nader
ran as a NOTA candidate and supports the NOTA option as a method of voters to withhold consent and to initiate a new round of elections.
The South Wales
Anarchists group has run a campaign urging people to "Vote Nobody" since 2008 and many other Anarchist groups worldwide have promoted similar slogans.
During the run up to the 2008 United States elections, Beltaine's Fire
, a celtic hip hop band from California, released a song and a music video in support of such anti-parliamentary campaigns called "None of the Above" urging people to "check other and write none of the above".
use a similar ballot option called re-open nominations (RON) in IRV (also known as the alternative vote) and single transferable vote
(STV) elections. These include the National Union of Students in the UK
and UCD Student's Union in the Republic of Ireland
. The difference is that RON is a vote against all candidates in FPTP (first-past-the-post
) and all subsequent candidates in an IRV or STV election.
There are several ways of dealing with a RON candidate. In a single member constituency or election to a single position RON is treated as a normal candidate. If re-open nominations is deemed elected to any position then at the end of the count that position is declared vacant and nominations must later be re-opened for that position.
In a multi-member constituency there are two approaches. In the first, when a RON candidate is elected, all other candidates below RON are declared not to be elected and the counting process stops, the election is then re-run for that and all other unfilled positions. In the second, RON is elected to a position, then any surplus is transferred to another RON(2) candidate as if such an option had been presented on the ballot paper. If RON(2) is elected, then the process carries on with RON(3), RON(4) candidates and so on until all seats are filled. This is sometimes called the Stack RON method.
RON is not strictly a none of the above candidate in transferable vote elections, as when RON is eliminated during the count its votes are transferred to other candidates if those preferences exist.
until the change in the law is enacted. Only then will the candidate step down and the party be disbanded.
It is the intention of the party that if a NOTA gains the majority vote that it should cause an automatic by-election
. The idea being that the majority have given a Vote of No Confidence in the candidates. If the same candidates stand under the same policies then the electorate simply vote NOTA until the candidates change their policies to something that the electorate can vote for.
In 2010, Stephen Phillips of Stevenage
ran for the UK General Election on behalf of No Candidate Deserves My Vote. Phillips received 327 votes, or 0.7% of the vote, placing 7th out of 9 candidates.
.
By voting such option at the local elections in may 2011, the citizens of the villages of Gironella (Barcelona) and Foixà (Girona) were able to reduce the amount of politicians in their councils by one and two respectively. Overall, citizenship supported Seats in white at different municipalities, including Barcelona, with 15582 votes (averaging 1,71% of valid votes).
This party aims to give blank ballots the meaning of representing empty seats if the amount of votes dictates so as for any other party, disbanding the party when such law would be approved.
, p. 402 describes various forms of illegal ballots, which are ballots which do not count for any candidate. Blanks are treated as "scrap paper" and are of no effect but "unintelligible ballots or ballots cast for an unidentifiable candidate or a fictional character are treated as illegal votes. "All illegal votes cast by legal voters… are taken into account in determining the number of votes cast for purposes of computing the majority." RRONR always requires a majority for election so casting an illegal ballot or one for a hopeless candidate, whether on the ballot or as a write-in, is equivalent to voting No for all other candidates. "The principle is that a choice has no mandate from the voting body unless approval is expressed by more than half of those entitled to vote and registering any evidence of having some opinion."
Ballot
A ballot is a device used to record choices made by voters. Each voter uses one ballot, and ballots are not shared. In the simplest elections, a ballot may be a simple scrap of paper on which each voter writes in the name of a candidate, but governmental elections use pre-printed to protect the...
option in some jurisdiction
Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction is the practical authority granted to a formally constituted legal body or to a political leader to deal with and make pronouncements on legal matters and, by implication, to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility...
s or organization
Organization
An organization is a social group which distributes tasks for a collective goal. The word itself is derived from the Greek word organon, itself derived from the better-known word ergon - as we know `organ` - and it means a compartment for a particular job.There are a variety of legal types of...
s, designed to allow the voter to indicate disapproval of all of the candidates in a voting system
Voting system
A voting system or electoral system is a method by which voters make a choice between options, often in an election or on a policy referendum....
. It is based on the principle that consent
Consent
Consent refers to the provision of approval or agreement, particularly and especially after thoughtful consideration.- Types of consent :*Implied consent is a controversial form of consent which is not expressly granted by a person, but rather inferred from a person's actions and the facts and...
requires the ability to withhold consent in an election, just as they can by voting no on ballot questions
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
.
Entities that include "None of the Above" on ballots as standard procedure include Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
(λευκό, white, but unrelated to a political party of the similarly sounding name-however it is symbolic only), the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
(None of These Candidates
None of These Candidates
None of These Candidates is a voting option for Nevada voters for President of the United States and for state constitutional positions. This is listed along with the names of individuals running for the position....
), Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
(Проти всіх), Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
(voto en blanco), Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
(voto en blanco), the United States Libertarian Party
Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
and Green Party
Green Party (United States)
The Green Party of the United States is a nationally recognized political party which officially formed in 1991. It is a voluntary association of state green parties. Prior to national formation, many state affiliates had already formed and were recognized by other state parties...
and the Florida affiliate of the American Patriot Party. Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
had such an option on its ballots (Против всех) until it was abolished in 2006. Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
introduced this option (না ভোট) in 2008.
When None of the Above is listed on a ballot, there is the possibility of NOTA receiving a majority
Majority
A majority is a subset of a group consisting of more than half of its members. This can be compared to a plurality, which is a subset larger than any other subset; i.e. a plurality is not necessarily a majority as the largest subset may consist of less than half the group's population...
or plurality of the vote, and so "winning" the election. In such a case, a variety of formal procedures may be invoked, including having the office remain vacant, having the office filled by appointment, re-opening nomination
Nomination
Nomination is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to an office, or the bestowing of an honor or award.In the context of elections for public office, a candidate who has been selected by a political party is normally said to be the nominee of that party...
s or holding another election (in a body operating under parliamentary procedure
Parliamentary procedure
Parliamentary procedure is the body of rules, ethics, and customs governing meetings and other operations of clubs, organizations, legislative bodies, and other deliberative assemblies...
).
In Nevada, the candidate with the greatest number of votes assumes office regardless of votes for None of the Above. None of the Above acts as a repository for protest vote
Protest vote
A protest vote is a vote cast in an election to demonstrate the caster's unhappiness with the choice of candidates or refusal of the current political system...
s.
The Green Party of California
Green Party of California
The Green Party of California is the California affiliate of the Green Party. The party is a ballot-qualified in California, first established as such in 1991, using the petition method of gaining state recognition....
included NOTA in its original 1991 bylaws, to offer voters a choice of rejecting all candidates presented. After one round of successful elections in which a candidate in Southern California and all gubernatorial candidates were retired after the primary by NOTA, a lawsuit by the California Secretary of State led to the disallowal of NOTA in Green Party primaries.
In 2000, Michael Moore
Michael Moore
Michael Francis Moore is an American filmmaker, author, social critic and activist. He is the director and producer of Fahrenheit 9/11, which is the highest-grossing documentary of all time. His films Bowling for Columbine and Sicko also place in the top ten highest-grossing documentaries...
advocated a write-in candidate
Write-in candidate
A write-in candidate is a candidate in an election whose name does not appear on the ballot, but for whom voters may vote nonetheless by writing in the person's name. Some states and local jurisdictions allow a voter to affix a sticker with a write-in candidate's name on it to the ballot in lieu...
Ficus (the plant) for Congress as a unified vote for none of the above in congressional seats where the incumbent was running unopposed.
In 2004, the Oklahoma Green
Green Party of Oklahoma
- Key values :The Green Party of Oklahoma is a third party founded on the Four Pillars of the Green Party: ecological wisdom, social justice, grass-roots democracy and non-violence.- History :...
, Libertarian
Oklahoma Libertarian Party
The Oklahoma Libertarian Party is the branch of the Libertarian Party in Oklahoma. It has been active in state politics since the 1970s, but due to what critics characterize as Oklahoma's restrictive ballot access requirements the party has been an "official" party during only portions of the last...
and Constitution parties endorsed a NOTA campaign for president that was organized by Oklahomans for Ballot Access Reform. The campaign called for voters to leave the Presidential ballot line blank in protest of restrictive ballot access
Ballot access
Ballot access rules, called nomination rules outside the United States, regulate the conditions under which a candidate or political party is either entitled to stand for election or to appear on voters' ballots...
laws.
Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader is an American political activist, as well as an author, lecturer, and attorney. Areas of particular concern to Nader include consumer protection, humanitarianism, environmentalism, and democratic government....
ran as a NOTA candidate and supports the NOTA option as a method of voters to withhold consent and to initiate a new round of elections.
The South Wales
South Wales
South Wales is an area of Wales bordered by England and the Bristol Channel to the east and south, and Mid Wales and West Wales to the north and west. The most densely populated region in the south-west of the United Kingdom, it is home to around 2.1 million people and includes the capital city of...
Anarchists group has run a campaign urging people to "Vote Nobody" since 2008 and many other Anarchist groups worldwide have promoted similar slogans.
During the run up to the 2008 United States elections, Beltaine's Fire
Beltaine's Fire
Beltaine's Fire is a five-member Hip Hop/Folk-Rock/Celtic Fusion collective from the San Francisco Bay Area in California fronted by Emcee Lynx. Their music has evolved considerably over the years...
, a celtic hip hop band from California, released a song and a music video in support of such anti-parliamentary campaigns called "None of the Above" urging people to "check other and write none of the above".
Re-open Nominations (RON)
Many students' unions in the British IslesBritish Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
use a similar ballot option called re-open nominations (RON) in IRV (also known as the alternative vote) and single transferable vote
Single transferable vote
The single transferable vote is a voting system designed to achieve proportional representation through preferential voting. Under STV, an elector's vote is initially allocated to his or her most preferred candidate, and then, after candidates have been either elected or eliminated, any surplus or...
(STV) elections. These include the National Union of Students in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and UCD Student's Union in the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. The difference is that RON is a vote against all candidates in FPTP (first-past-the-post
Plurality voting system
The plurality voting system is a single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member constituencies...
) and all subsequent candidates in an IRV or STV election.
There are several ways of dealing with a RON candidate. In a single member constituency or election to a single position RON is treated as a normal candidate. If re-open nominations is deemed elected to any position then at the end of the count that position is declared vacant and nominations must later be re-opened for that position.
In a multi-member constituency there are two approaches. In the first, when a RON candidate is elected, all other candidates below RON are declared not to be elected and the counting process stops, the election is then re-run for that and all other unfilled positions. In the second, RON is elected to a position, then any surplus is transferred to another RON(2) candidate as if such an option had been presented on the ballot paper. If RON(2) is elected, then the process carries on with RON(3), RON(4) candidates and so on until all seats are filled. This is sometimes called the Stack RON method.
RON is not strictly a none of the above candidate in transferable vote elections, as when RON is eliminated during the count its votes are transferred to other candidates if those preferences exist.
None of the Above candidates
- In the British parliamentary elections of 2010, a former boxer changed his name by deed pollDeed pollA deed poll is a legal document binding only to a single person or several persons acting jointly to express an active intention...
from Terry MarshTerry Marsh (boxer)Terry Marsh is an English former professional boxer who was an undefeated world champion in the light welterweight division....
to "None Of The Above X", in order to run as a parliamentary candidate under that name in the constituency of South Basildon and East ThurrockSouth Basildon and East Thurrock (UK Parliament constituency)South Basildon and East Thurrock is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
. Claiming that he will not take the seat if he wins, he told BBC Essex: "I don't take it for one moment that it would be a vote for me. [..] I'm doing what I think the Electoral Commission should be doing and what should be on every ballot paper in any electoral process." BBC News reported that, while the Registration of Political Parties (Prohibited Words and Expressions) (Amendment) Order 2005 stipulates that no political party can be registered in the UK under the name "None of the Above", there is no legislation against a person changing their name by deed poll and appearing on the ballot paper as "None Of the Above". In the event he polled 0.3% of the vote, the lowest of any candidate standing. - Another individual changed his name by deed poll to None Of The Above in order to stand as a candidate in Chingford and Woodford Green in 2010. With the surname Above, he was listed first on the ballot paper in alphabetical order, with all the other candidates listed below.
- A Prince George businessman ran in the June 2, 1997 Canadian election in the district of Prince George-Bulkley Valley under the name Zznoneoff, Thea Bove (Thea Bove Zznoneoff); ballots listing candidates alphabetically by surname, he appeared at the bottom. He came sixth of seven candidates with 0.977 percent of votes cast.
- In the film Brewster's MillionsBrewster's Millions (1985 film)Brewster's Millions is a 1985 comedy film starring Richard Pryor and John Candy based on the 1902 novel of the same name by George Barr McCutcheon. It is the seventh film based on the story, with a screenplay by Herschel Weingrod & Timothy Harris...
, the protagonist Brewster (played by Richard PryorRichard PryorRichard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor was an American stand-up comedian, actor, social critic, writer and MC. Pryor was known for uncompromising examinations of racism and topical contemporary issues, which employed colorful vulgarities, and profanity, as well as racial epithets...
) is required under certain conditions, to spend 30 million dollars in 30 days. He joins the race for Mayor of New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and throws most of his money at a protest campaign urging a vote for None of the Above. The two major candidates sue Brewster for his confrontational rhetoric, leading to a massive settlement which of course furthers their competitor's goal. Brewster is forced to end his campaign when he learns that he is leading in the polls as a write-in candidate and has to publicly announce that he if he won the mayoralty he wants to decline it but is surprised his "None of the Above" campaign became so popular. Oddly neither candidate wins the election, and a new election with different candidates must be held. - L. Neil SmithL. Neil SmithL. Neil Smith , also known to readers and fans as El Neil, is a libertarian science fiction author and political activist. He was born on May 12, 1946 in Denver...
's novel The Probability BroachThe Probability BroachThe Probability Broach is the first novel by science fiction writer L. Neil Smith. It is set in an alternate history, the so-called Gallatin Universe, where a libertarian society has formed on the North American continent, styled the North American Confederacy.-Plot summary:Edward William "Win"...
has an alternate history of the United States, where None of the Above has received the most votes for President of the North American ConfederacyNorth American ConfederacyNorth American Confederacy is an alternate history series of novels created by L. Neil Smith. The series includes the novel The Probability Broach and its sequels, and takes place in a country of the same name.-By Publication:...
on multiple occasions. - David Gatchell of TennesseeTennesseeTennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
ran for governor in 2002 and for Senate in 2006Tennessee United States Senate election, 2006The 2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee was held on November 7, 2006. The election winner, Bob Corker, will serve between January 3, 2007 and January 3, 2013. Corker replaced Republican Bill Frist in the Senate, who retired upon the end of his second term in 2007. Corker was the...
as a protest, officially changing his middle name from Leroy to None of the Above. In 2006, he got 3,738 votes (0.2 percent). - Geoff Richardson changed his full name to "Of The Above None" and stood as an independent for the seat of GilmoreDivision of GilmoreThe Division of Gilmore is an Australian Electoral Division in New South Wales. The division was created in 1984 and is named for Dame Mary Gilmore, the poet and author. It is located in the Shoalhaven the southern Illawarra regions, extending from Warilla in the north to Durras in the south, then...
at the 2007 Australian federal election. His name appeared as NONE, Of the Above on the ballot. - In SerbiaSerbiaSerbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, None of the above (Ниједан од понуђених одговора, NOPO) is a new party, formed in 2008, which became mostly popularized on FacebookFacebookFacebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
and other social networking sites. - In Ukrainian presidential election, 2010Ukrainian presidential election, 2010The Ukrainian presidential election of 2010 is Ukraine's fifth presidential election since declaring independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. The first round was held on January 17, 2010...
, a candidate Vasiliy Humeniuk changed his name to Vasily Protyvsih (Vasily Against-all). "Against all candidates" is the name of the "none of the above" vote used in Russia and Ukraine.
NOTA party
NOTA was registered as a political party with the UK Electoral Commission on 2 March 2009. It is the intention of NOTA to field candidates in every UK parliamentary constituency. The respective NOTA candidates will not continue in office should they receive the most votes. It is merely a mechanism to facilitate a means of recording a NOTA vote. This party is registered as "NOTA" and not "None of the above" as the latter is a prohibited expression regarding registration as a party name.No Candidate Deserves My Vote! party
"No Candidate Deserves My Vote!" was registered as a political party with the UK Electoral Commission on 23 November 2000. The No Candidate Deserves My Vote party has one aim, and that is to introduce a bill to Parliament to have a "None of the above" option added to every local and general election ballot paper of the future. They feel this will allow the UK electorate to exercise their democratic right to vote to say that none of the parties currently represents them, which will encourage their democratic responsibility to turn out to vote. If a candidate wins an election it is the intention to stay as an MPMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
until the change in the law is enacted. Only then will the candidate step down and the party be disbanded.
It is the intention of the party that if a NOTA gains the majority vote that it should cause an automatic by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
. The idea being that the majority have given a Vote of No Confidence in the candidates. If the same candidates stand under the same policies then the electorate simply vote NOTA until the candidates change their policies to something that the electorate can vote for.
In 2010, Stephen Phillips of Stevenage
Stevenage
Stevenage is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England. It is situated to the east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1, and is between Letchworth Garden City to the north, and Welwyn Garden City to the south....
ran for the UK General Election on behalf of No Candidate Deserves My Vote. Phillips received 327 votes, or 0.7% of the vote, placing 7th out of 9 candidates.
Landless Peasant Party
The Landless Peasant Party, which advocates the ownership of land by those who live on it and the replacement of income tax by a flat land tax, and whose leader Derek Jackson gained publicity for standing against then- Prime Minister Gordon Brown in his home constituency in the 2010 elections, include a pledge to add a "None of the above" option to the ballot in all UK elections.Zero, None Of the Above
None Of The Above Zero was a candidate at the 2010 UK General Election in Filton and Bradley Stoke. Previously known as Eric Mutch, he changed his name by deed poll to stand under that name. As candidates are listed by surname first he appeared on the ballot paper as "Zero, None Of The Above," in effect giving voters a none of the above option since had he been elected he would have resigned immediately. He came last with 172 votes.Blank ballot
Due to the Spanish voting regulations (legislación electoral española), the blank ballot is recognized as None of the above (voto en blanco) but has very little chance to influence the distribution of seats within a democratic election. It is mostly considered as an statistical indicator of candidatures' disapproval. The blank ballots only increase the amount of valid votes, rising up the threshold of votes (3% and 5% depending on the election) which every political party has to overcome to be fully considered. The parties over the threshold get their seats according to the D'Hondt methodD'Hondt method
The d'Hondt method is a highest averages method for allocating seats in party-list proportional representation. The method described is named after Belgian mathematician Victor D'Hondt who described it in 1878...
.
Seats in white (Escaños en blanco)
Since 1999, several political parties have arosen in order to make visible the None of the above option in the parliaments and force empty seats. Currently, "Seats in white" runs for the the Congress and Senate elections of the 20th November 2011. Its programme is to leave empty the corresponding assigned seats by not taken full possession of their duties as congressperson, senator, etc. According to law, the seat remains assigned to the elected candidate until the possession act takes place, the elected candidate explicitely refuses or new elections are called. In this way, the political party and its candidates stay free from obligations and are not entitled to receive any money from the public funding scheme for politics.By voting such option at the local elections in may 2011, the citizens of the villages of Gironella (Barcelona) and Foixà (Girona) were able to reduce the amount of politicians in their councils by one and two respectively. Overall, citizenship supported Seats in white at different municipalities, including Barcelona, with 15582 votes (averaging 1,71% of valid votes).
This party aims to give blank ballots the meaning of representing empty seats if the amount of votes dictates so as for any other party, disbanding the party when such law would be approved.
Illegal ballots in Robert's Rules of Order
The U.S. manual Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised, 10th editionRobert's Rules of Order
Robert's Rules of Order is the short title of a book containing rules of order intended to be adopted as a parliamentary authority for use by a deliberative assembly written by Brig. Gen...
, p. 402 describes various forms of illegal ballots, which are ballots which do not count for any candidate. Blanks are treated as "scrap paper" and are of no effect but "unintelligible ballots or ballots cast for an unidentifiable candidate or a fictional character are treated as illegal votes. "All illegal votes cast by legal voters… are taken into account in determining the number of votes cast for purposes of computing the majority." RRONR always requires a majority for election so casting an illegal ballot or one for a hopeless candidate, whether on the ballot or as a write-in, is equivalent to voting No for all other candidates. "The principle is that a choice has no mandate from the voting body unless approval is expressed by more than half of those entitled to vote and registering any evidence of having some opinion."
See also
- Election boycottElection boycottAn election boycott is the boycotting of an election by a group of voters, each of whom abstains from voting.Boycotting may be used as a form of political protest where voters feel that electoral fraud is likely, or that the electoral system is biased against its candidates, or that the polity...
- None of These CandidatesNone of These CandidatesNone of These Candidates is a voting option for Nevada voters for President of the United States and for state constitutional positions. This is listed along with the names of individuals running for the position....
- Vote of No Confidence
- "None of the above" voting option in India
External links
- NOTA in India
- Rainbow Coalition - NOTA on Ballot - Random Selection of Man & Woman from pool of NOTA electorate following first past the post win
- Voters for None of the Above
- Green Party of California v. Jones (1995) [registration required]
- None of the Above DNC Parody Site
- Website of Geoff Robinson, aka Of the Above None
- None Of The Above - Tennessee
- American Patriot Party
- NOTA party uk
- No Candidate Deserves My Vote! party uk
- Campaign for a None of the Above option
- Campaign for a None of the Above option in Uruguay