Name Order

A concern for the order in which candidates’ names appear on a ballot is founded on a presumption that uninformed or ambivalent voters will choose a candidate based on the candidate’s ballot position when other common identifiers are not available. This is one of many theoretical assumptions about the political behavior of voters. It hypothesizes that the number order of a candidate’s name on the ballot may influence a voter’s decision during certain races. Voters most likely to be influenced by name order tend to be more uninformed or ambivalent, but nonetheless compelled to vote either because of compulsory voting or because of personal pressure that it is their democratic duty to vote. Also, such races generally lack information about the candidates or their offices, ...