Arizona:
Here we needed 10 registered voters in Arizona to be Frank’s presidential electors. We were not able to do this 1) because we had few contacts in Arizona, and 2) because the process involves each elector getting a form notarized, which makes it more challenging to get people.
Colorado:
Here by August 26, we needed 9 registered voters in Colorado to be Frank’s presidential electors. In this case, there was no notarization of elector forms required, but because we have few close contacts in Colorado, it was challenging to get people. We were able to get one person in Colorado to be an elector for Frank.
Connecticut:
Here we still could qualify, with the help of 7 registered CT voters willing to be electors, by October 21st. We have not been able to contact anyone in Connecticut who would do this. In this case, it would have involved each elector signing a simple form and sending it to us so that we could send them all in together to the Legislative & Elections Division.
Florida
Here, given more time, we may have been able to gather the people needed to qualify. All we needed were the names and addresses of 27 registered voters in Florida to complete our application, but it proved difficult to gather people in a state where we had few close contacts.
Indiana
This was a lesson for the campaign! The only reason we did not qualify in Indiana is because our paperwork was lost in the mail, and the deadline passed before we could re-send everything. After this experience, we have sent everything more securely, with delivery and signature confirmation.
Kentucky
Here we still could qualify, with the help of 8 registered voters in Kentucky willing to be electors, by October 24th. Again, as in most cases where we did not qualify, we have not been able to contact anyone in Kentucky who would be willing to lend their name to this purpose. All we would need are the names and a $50 filing fee.
Maine
Here we still could qualify, with the help of 4 registered voters, by October 30th. We have actually contacted several people willing to help us in Maine, but the combination of how close the deadline is, and how many hoops the individual electors have to go through has probably put Maine out of reach. Maine is one of a number of states that require that a number of the electors must come from different congressional districts in the state. In Maine, 1 elector must be from the 1st Congressional District, 1 must be from the 2nd Congressional District, and 2 can be “at-large”. This is the first hoop. Then, each elector must not only fill out and get a form notarized, but they must take this same form to their local registrar of voters and have their registration officially verified.
Massachusetts
Here we were not able to make contact with anyone who would have been willing to be an elector for Frank, let alone go through the prohibitive number of hoops required to qualify here. Even if Frank were a resident of Massachusetts, this process would be difficult. Not only did we need to get the names, addresses and signatures of 12 registered Mass. voters on one form, but then 12 Elector Registration Certificates (1 for each of the 12 presidential electors) had to be physically taken in by each elector to their local voter registrar’s office to be signed or stamped by the voter registrar certifying that the elector is a registered voter.
Michigan
We were very close in Michigan; we just ran out of time. A friend in Michigan was able to get us 8 registered voters’ names and addresses who were willing to be electors. We needed only 9 more to complete the paperwork for Michigan, but ran up on the early September deadline.
Missouri
We still could qualify in Missouri (we have until October 24th) but we have not been able to make any contacts in Missouri, and the process is prohibitive. The presidential and vice-presidential candidate’s forms have to be accompanied by 11 notarized “Declaration of Candidacy” forms for each of the Missouri electors. 9 of the electors must come one from each of Missouri’s 9 congressional districts, and 2 can be “at large”. Even if Frank lived in Missouri, this could be difficult to achieve.
North Carolina
North Carolina is the most difficult state to qualify as a write-in candidate for President. You have to collect 500 signatures of registered voters, separated by county, deliver these signatures to the respective county boards of elections for verification (if they were collected from different counties), and then deliver the verified signatures to the State Board of Elections in Raleigh. So Frank took it on! A friend in Wilmington, N.C. was able to get a little over 300 signatures before the deadline passed. This is a prohibitive process, and would have been completely unthinkable for us were it not for the enthusiasm of a local N.C. friend.
North Dakota
Here we were not able to make contact with any residents. We needed only 3 registered voters in North Dakota to serve as presidential electors. Each of them would have had to fill out a form and have it notarized and then send it to us.
Ohio
We had support in Ohio, but were not able to get the 20 registered voters needed to serve as presidential electors for Frank. We needed names and addresses only, so this was not the issue. The challenge here, as in many states, was making the local contacts, and finding willing people. In Ohio, we could probably have done it with more time. We had 5 electors before the deadline came up at the beginning of September.
Tennessee
Tennessee, like Missouri, Maine, Arizona and Virginia, is prohibitive for the write-in presidential candidate because they require electors to be from different congressional districts in the state. In the case of Tennessee, we needed a list of 11 electors pledged to the candidate. The list had to include electors’ names and addresses. 9 of the electors have to be one from each of Tennessee’s 9 congressional districts, and 2 could have been “at large”. The filing window for this information was between August 22 – September 15. We actually had several supporters contact Frank from Tennessee, but the above requirement was too challenging. The TN elections office actually suggested that for a Tennessee resident, it might actually be more worthwhile to get on the ballot as a presidential candidate then to try and qualify as a write-in candidate. To get on the ballot, you need to get 275 signatures, from anywhere in Tennessee. For us, either option was out of the realm of possibility.
Texas
Texas requires the presidential write-in candidate to deliver forms for 34 registered voters serving as presidential electors. So we needed people! We were not able to make enough contacts in Texas to make this possible. They make this part of it fairly easy by making the form available to be filled out online and printed out. If we had been able to get the people, there was no notarization involved, so they would have just needed to fill out a form, sign it and send it to us. The impediment was getting in contact with Texas people and getting the word out in Texas.
Virginia
Here too our impediment was in reaching people in this state, and the prohibitive nature of the write-in candidate requirements. We did not have any contacts in Virginia. But again, even with a few contacts in Virginia, the process was prohibitive as it required a form listing the names of 13 Presidential Electors. 11 of the electors had to be one from each of the 11 Congressional Districts in Virginia. The other two could have been “at large”. Again, even if Frank were in Virginia, this could have been a challenge.