Editing Protest vote (section)

== Significant protest vote events ==

One United States court case determined that voting is not an issue of free speech or expression, but rather about electing officials; in ''Burdick v. Takushi, 1992'', the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] upheld a ban on write-in votes after Alan B. Burdick argued that Hawaii should be required to count his protest vote for [[Donald Duck]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/91-0535.ZO.html|title=Burdick v. Takushi, 504 U.S. 428 (1992)|website=Cornell University Law School Legal Information Institute}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Hill|first=Lisa|date=2006|title=Low Voter Turnout in the United States: Is Compulsory Voting a Viable Solution?|journal=Journal of Theoretical Politics|volume=18|issue=2|pages=207–232|doi=10.1177/0951629806061868|citeseerx=10.1.1.1005.9634| s2cid=154361874 }}</ref>

In the [[Parliament|parliamentary elections]] in Finland and Sweden, voters have also used Donald Duck as a protest vote.<ref>Kallionpää, Katri. "[http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Donald+Duck+holds+his+own+in+the+north/1135226493131 Donald Duck holds his own in the north] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131227085047/http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Donald+Duck+holds+his+own+in+the+north/1135226493131|date=2013-12-27}}." ''[[Helsingin Sanomat]]''. March 7, 2007. Retrieved on March 4, 2009.</ref> In Ukraine, the [[Internet Party of Ukraine|Internet Party]] nominated [[Darth Vader]] for mayoral elections in [[2014 Kyiv local election|Kyiv]] and [[Odesa]], and tried to nominate Darth Vader for [[2014 Ukrainian presidential election|presidency]], although this application was rejected.<ref>[http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ukraine-crisis/vote-dark-side-darth-vader-runs-mayor-ukraine-n94781 Vote Dark Side: 'Darth Vader' Runs for Mayor in Ukraine — NBC News]</ref>

Protest voting is common in [[Latin America]], where over 5.5% of ballots in presidential elections since 1980 have been blank or spoiled.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Cohen|first=Mollie J.|date=April 22, 2018|title=A dynamic model of the invalid vote: How a changing candidate menu shapes null voting behavior|journal=Electoral Studies|volume=53|pages=111–121|doi=10.1016/j.electstud.2018.04.015| s2cid=158301581 |doi-access=free}}</ref> During the [[2000 Peruvian general election|2000 presidential elections]] in [[Peru]], candidate [[Alejandro Toledo]] withdrew over concerns about election integrity and encouraged his supporters to spoil their ballots as protest—an example of organized protest voting.<ref name=":1" /> In that election, around 31% of ballots cast were spoiled or blank.<ref name=":1" />

After the [[2002 French presidential election]], in which [[far-right]] leader [[Jean-Marie Le Pen]] arrived second behind conservative candidate [[Jacques Chirac]], protest vote was named a contributing factor. The [[2017 French presidential election]], won by [[Emmanuel Macron]], saw the highest level of protest voting and abstention in France since the late 1960s, with 4 million blank or spoiled ballots and an additional 12 million abstentions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/french-election-protest-vote-nobody-was-highest-half-century-n756261|title=French Election: Protest Vote for 'Nobody' Was Highest In Half a Century|last=Smith|first=Saphora|date=May 8, 2017|website=NBC News}}</ref>

In [[Colombia]], the blank vote has a legal path to force a repetition of an election and a change of the candidates in that election. According to the paragraph 1 of the article 258 of the [[Colombian Constitution of 1991|Political Constitution of Colombia]], if the [[:es:Voto en blanco#Voto en blanco en Colombia|blank vote in Colombia]] becomes the most voted option, the elections should be repeated once and, depending on the nature of the election, the parties should present new candidates or new lists of candidates. This gives the protest vote a way to express dissent with real electoral consequences. So far, the blank vote has not been majoritarian in presidential or congress elections in Colombia, but it already has forced to repeat some elections for mayor's office.<ref>Freeman, Daniel E. "[https://colombiareports.com/blank-vote-explained-colombia-biggest-electoral-gamble/ The blank vote explained: Colombia’s biggest electoral gamble]". March 7, 2014.</ref>

In certain parts of the United States, especially in the [[Southern United States|South]], protest candidates often receive a large number of votes in [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] presidential primaries due to a large presence of [[Conservative Democrat|conservative Democrats]] who, while registered Democrats, often vote [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] at the federal level. This phenomenon received significant attention in the [[2012 Democratic Party presidential primaries|2012 Democratic primaries]], where attorney [[John Wolfe Jr.]] polled at 42% against incumbent President [[Barack Obama]] in the [[Arkansas]] primary, and prisoner [[Keith Russell Judd|Keith Judd]] received 41% in [[West Virginia]]. In Oklahoma, non-Obama candidates gathered a combined total of 43%, with the highest number of votes going to anti-abortion activist [[Randall Terry]].<ref name="greenpapersElectionDate">{{cite web|url=http://www.thegreenpapers.com/P12/events.phtml?s=c|title=2012 Presidential Primaries, Caucuses, and Conventions: Chronologically|work=The Green Papers|date=August 28, 2013|access-date=January 31, 2020}}</ref> The phenomenon showed up in later elections but on a smaller scale (as many former Democrats left the party). In the [[2016 West Virginia Democratic primary]], [[favorite son]] [[Paul T. Farrell Jr.]] received 9% of the vote and placed ahead of eventual nominee [[Hillary Clinton]] in one county.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2016/05/11/protest-candidate-paul-farrell-wins-9-percent-of-west-virginia-primary-vote/|title=Protest Candidate, Paul Farrell, Wins 9 Percent of West Virginia Primary Vote|last=Rappeport|first=Alan|date=2016-05-11|website=The New York Times - First Draft|language=en-US|access-date=2017-06-27}}</ref> In the [[2020 West Virginia Democratic primary|2020 primary in that state]], fellow favorite son David Rice received a similar 8%.<ref name="WV-SOS-results">{{cite web |title=Results – Democratic Contests |url=https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/WV/103231/web.247524/#/summary?category=C_2 |website=results.enr.clarityelections.com/ |publisher=West Virginia Secretary of State |access-date=June 10, 2020}}</ref>

During the [[2024 Democratic Party presidential primaries|2024 Democratic presidential primaries]], a [[Gaza war protest vote movements|significant protest vote movement]] formed against Biden's support of Israel during the [[Gaza war]].

In the [[2024 Russian presidential election]], amid the exclusion of [[Anti-war protests in Russia (2022–present)|anti-war]] candidates from challenging incumbent President [[Vladimir Putin]], anti-Putin activists employed the protest voting tactic known as [[Noon Against Putin]], first proposed by jailed Russian opposition leader [[Alexei Navalny]] before his death.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Ebel |first1=Francesca |last2=Dixon |first2=Robyn |date=2024-03-18 |title=Russian voters, answering Navalny's call, protest as Putin extends his rule |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/03/17/russia-presidential-election-putin-protest/ |access-date=2024-03-20 |newspaper=Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> This involved gathering at polling stations on the last day of voting around midday to advocate for spoilt ballots such as writing Navalny's name or to cast votes for [[New People (political party)|New People]] candidate [[Vladislav Davankov]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sauer |first=Pjotr |date=2024-03-17 |title=Russians form long queues at polling stations in 'noon against Putin' protest |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/17/russians-urged-to-disrupt-final-day-of-vladimir-putins-presidential-election |access-date=2024-03-20 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> While perceived as aligned with the Kremlin, Davankov incorporated anti-war sentiments reminiscent of the barred candidates, rendering him an alternative candidate to opposition voters as a means of protest voting.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-10 |title=Who is Vladislav Davankov – a new hope for opposition in the presidential election? |url=https://www.russian-election-monitor.org/who-is-vladislav-davankov-a-new-hope-for-opposition-in-the-presidential-election.html |access-date=2024-03-20 |website=www.russian-election-monitor.org |language=en}}</ref> Despite the action, Davankov nevertheless received officially only 4% of the official vote, while independent exit polling conducted showed him overwhelmingly defeating Putin.{{Citation needed|date=April 2024}}