Clinton, Trump not only choices.
With national polls suggesting many voters believe one presidential candidate is too crass and the other too slippery, some may be looking for another option on their Nov. 8 ballot.
In Washington, they have five. In Idaho, six.
The differences between the two states’ electorates and their rules to qualify for the ballot mean that this year only one candidate, Libertarian Gary Johnson, is listed the same way on both states’ ballots.
Probably the best-known of the minor-party candidates, Johnson, the former governor of New Mexico, is running with former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld as his running mate. With between 5 percent and 10 percent of support in most polls that include more than Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton, Johnson didn’t meet the minimum level of support to appear in the presidential debates. That level was set by the Commission on Presidential Debates, which is controlled by the two major parties.
Neither did Jill Stein, appearing as the Green Party candidate on the Washington ballot and an independent in Idaho, who is polling between 2 percent and 5 percent in some polls.
One other name appears on both states’ ballots: Darrell Castle is listed as the nominee of the Constitution Party in Washington but as an independent in Idaho, because that state’s Constitution Party selected Scott Copeland as its nominee based on his winning the state party’s primary in March.
In keeping with the overall political makeup of the two states, Washington has two additional presidential candidates more liberal than Clinton or Stein: Alyson Kennedy of the Socialist Workers Party and Gloria Estela La Riva of the Socialism and Liberation Party. Idaho has two additional conservative candidates, Rocky De La Fuente, running in some states on the Reform Party and in others on the American Delta Party but listed as an independent in Idaho, and Evan McMullin, a former congressional Republican staffer running as an independent in several Western states.
Plus, there’s always the write-in option/ Jim Camden , SR. More here.
* This story was originally published as a post from the blog "Huckleberries Online." Read all stories from this blog