Another November Election Day passed by and while there have been concerns expressed over the past year about real, perceived or even outright imagined voter fraud or suppression. Two actual and glaring forms of voter suppression - the lack of a none of the above is acceptable option on ballots, along with the lack of a vote to retain option on ballots for current political office holders were ignored by candidates, commentators and the general voting public.
When voters go to the polls, they typically only see an either-or choice for each elected office - the vote for Candidate A or B scenario. Voters also routinely see the one choice candidate election - the vote for Candidate A and only A since no one else filed to run for that office scenario. The end result for the one candidate race in an unAmerican 100% of the vote which amounts to a virtual coronation. It is theoretically possible for a candidate and few close supporters to vote that person into office with the general public not being able to do anything about it until the next election cycle. If voters are lucky enough, they get a three or four candidate race but they are still only able to vote in the affirmative for the lesser of three or four evils if they want their vote to count. If they find these candidates so unacceptable, they can only skip over that particular race resulting in an undervote.
Typically, here in Kosciusko County, there are hundreds of undervotes for political offices where all participating county voters could have selected a candidate for that particular office whether it was a federal, state or countywide position but declined for various reasons while casting a vote elsewhere down their ballot.
Voters should be able to cast a none of the above is acceptable vote if they find the choices for that office to be grossly underqualified or morally repugnant because of policies and/or personality-character of those candidates and not be forced to vote in the affirmative for those candidates if they want their vote to count.
Since the state of Indiana allows straight party ticket voting, voters should be allowed the option of voting none of the above for all elected offices on a ballot or going through each particular office and slate of candidates and picking none of the above if they so choose.
If the none of the above option wins a majority of the popular vote, the candidates would be barred from that particular office until the next election cycle and a special election would have to be held with a new slate of candidates for that office or that office would have to be filled by an appointment selected by a multi-partisan board of Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians and Independents or simply the office would remain vacant and unfunded until the next election if either of the previous two options is unsuccessful.
