Evan McMullin 2016 presidential campaign

The 2016 presidential campaign of Evan McMullin was launched on August 10, 2016. McMullin ran as an independent presidential candidate, but also received the presidential nominations of Better for America, Independence Party of Minnesota, Independent Party of Florida, and South Carolina Independence Party.

McMullin campaigning in Provo

Evan McMullin for President
Campaign2016 presidential election
Candidate
AffiliationIndependent
Better for America
StatusAnnounced: August 8, 2016
Lost election: November 8, 2016
Headquarters770 E South Temple
Salt Lake City, Utah 84102
Key peopleJoel Searby (campaign manager)[2]
ReceiptsUS$1,644,102.20
Website
http://evanmcmullin.com/

Background

The controversial candidacy of Donald Trump for the Republican Party nomination caused the creation of the Stop Trump movement, which sought to stop his nomination or find a candidate to oppose him.[3] After months of unsuccessful searching, Evan McMullin decided to run as a conservative alternative candidate based on Trump's divisive comments on a variety of issues, calling him a potential threat to the Republic.[4]

Campaign

On August 10, 2016, Evan McMullin, the former chief policy director for the House Republican Conference and a former CIA operations officer, announced that he would run for the presidency of the United States as an independent.[5][6] Kahlil Byrd, who served as the CEO of Americans Elect, formed a SuperPAC to support McMullin's candidacy.[7]

McMullin received support from multiple anti-Trump Republicans including former Washington Senator Slade Gorton, former Secretary of State of Washington Sam Reed, and former Utah Lieutenant Governor Greg Bell.[8][9]

On October 6, McMullin selected Mindy Finn, who had supported Marco Rubio during the Republican presidential primaries, to serve as his vice-presidential running mate.[10] Although McMullin had selected Mindy Finn to serve as his vice-presidential running mate she did not appear on the ballot in any states. Instead Nathan Daniel Johnson, who was originally intended to serve as a placeholder candidate, appeared on the ballot alongside McMullin.[11]

While McMullin was not on enough state ballots to win an outright majority in the Electoral College (barring carrying other states by write-in), had he carried any state he could theoretically have prevented any candidate from amassing the 270 votes necessary to win the presidency. In that event, the United States House of Representatives would meet to elect the President, and would be bound to choose from the top three presidential candidates in terms of electoral votes. Barring another third-party candidate taking more electoral votes or an organized bloc of faithless electors larger than McMullin's choosing another candidate, the House would presumably have been bound to choose between Clinton, Trump and McMullin.[12]

Ballot access
Evan McMullin ballot access in the 2016 presidential election
  On ballot
  Write-in access
  No ballot access

Although the filing deadline to get onto the ballot had passed in multiple states by the time McMullin announced his campaign he stated that he hoped he could appear on the ballot in all fifty states.[13][14] He submitted around 2,000 signatures in Utah and 1,083 were validated, more than the 1,000 required.[15] McMullin failed to appear on the ballot in Tennessee as he only collected 129 of the 275 signatures required.[16] He failed to appear on the ballot in Wyoming after submitting 5,500 signatures, but less than the 3,302 signatures required was validated.[17]

McMullin threatened to sue Texas over its May petition deadline, but did not. Texas election officials initially sent a letter to McMullin telling him that he was not certified as a write-in candidate, but the Secretary of State of Texas later reversed his decision and allowed McMullin as a write-in candidate.[18][19][20]

Better for America successfully petitioned for the purpose of the presidential election in Arkansas and received official party status in New Mexico.[21][22] On August 22, Better for America announced that it would end its ballot access petitioning and later selected to give its presidential nomination to McMullin and vice-presidential nomination to Nathan Johnson on August 24.[23][24]

The Independence Party of Minnesota selected to give its presidential nomination to McMullin and petitioned to appear on the ballot as "Independence".[25][26] McMullin was given the presidential nomination of the ballot qualified Independent Party of Florida, but the Secretary of State of Florida refused to place him onto the ballot on the grounds that the party wasn't recognized by the Federal Election Commission or affiliated with a national party.[27] He also received the presidential nomination of the Independence Party of South Carolina.[28] McMullin filed in Louisiana under the party label "Courage Character Service".[29]

Ballot access: a combined total of 84 electoral votes in these states: Arkansas,[30] Colorado,[31] Idaho,[32] Iowa,[33] Kentucky,[34] Louisiana,[35] Minnesota,[36] New Mexico,[37] South Carolina,[38] Utah,[39] Virginia[40]

Write-in: a combined total of 366 electoral votes in these states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Washington, Washington, D.C., West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming[41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49]

Results

McMullin received no votes from the Electoral College. In the national popular vote count he placed fifth with 732,273 votes (0.53%).[50] Of those 732,273 votes 510,002 votes came from states he appeared on the ballot in while he received 221,267 write-in votes.[51] He broke write-in vote records in Arizona, Delaware, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin.[52]

McMullin received votes from at least three sitting United States Senators: Jeff Flake, Lindsey Graham, and Mike Lee.[53][54][55]

Endorsements
Main article: List of Evan McMullin 2016 presidential campaign endorsements

Polling

In late August 2016, polling nationwide and in most states placed McMullin in the 1-2% range.[56][57] Late October polls in Idaho showed McMullin with about 10% of the vote,[58] while during the same period in Utah polls showed him with between 20% and 30% of the vote.[59]

See also

Notes
  1. Mindy Finn did not appear on the ballot with Evan McMullin. Instead Nathan Daniel Johnson appeared alongside McMullin on all eleven states.[1]

References
  1. "Mindy Finn, Running Mate of Evan McMullin, Interviewed". Ballot Access News. July 5, 2017. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  2. "Centrist Project Meets in Chicago, Hopes to Win Support for Independent Candidates for U.S. Senate in 2018". Ballot Access News. April 1, 2017. Archived from the original on September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  3. Isenstadt, Alex (March 18, 2016). "Anti-Trump forces contemplate the end". Politico. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
  4. Walshe, Shushannah (August 8, 2016). "Former CIA Officer Evan McMullin Launches Independent Presidential Bid". ABC News. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
  5. "Politico Story About William Kristol's Attempt to Get Conservative Independent David French Into the 2016 Race in Late May". Ballot Access News. July 19, 2017. Archived from the original on September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  6. "Former CIA Officer Evan McMullin Launches Independent Presidential Bid". ABC News. August 8, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  7. "Americans Elect Leader from 2012 Forms SuperPAC to Help Evan McMullin Campaign". Ballot Access News. August 8, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  8. "Two Prominent Washington State Republicans Support Evan McMullin". Ballot Access News. November 2, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  9. "Presidential candidate Evan McMullin running to win, start new conservative movement". Deseret News. October 14, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  10. "Evan McMullin Chooses Vice-Presidential Running Mate". Ballot Access News. October 6, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  11. "Whoops: Independent candidate appears to have accidentally picked a running mate". Politico. September 7, 2016. Archived from the original on September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  12. "Independent Evan McMullin's Path to the White House Includes Strategy Not Used Since 1824". ABC News. August 22, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  13. "Evan McMullin Says He Has a Chance of Being on Ballot in 50 States". Ballot Access News. August 9, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  14. "Independent candidate McMullin: We hope to compete in all 50 states". Politico. August 9, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  15. "Evan McMullin Has Enough Valid Signatures in Utah". Ballot Access News. August 15, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  16. "Independent McMullin fails to make Tennessee ballot". Politico. August 22, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  17. "Evan McMullin Wyoming Petition Lacks Enough Valid Signatures". Ballot Access News. September 8, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  18. "Evan McMullin Will Sue Texas over May Petition Deadline". Ballot Access News. August 10, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  19. "Fighting to get on the presidential ballot in Texas". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. August 28, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  20. "Texas Secretary of State Reverses Decision that Evan McMullin Didn't Qualify for Write-in Status". Ballot Access News. September 16, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  21. "Better for America Petition in Arkansas is Valid". Ballot Access News. August 10, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2016.
  22. "Better for America Qualifies for Party Status in New Mexico". Ballot Access News. September 8, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  23. "Better for America Ends its Ballot Access Petitioning". Ballot Access News. August 22, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  24. "Better for America Formally Nominates Evan McMullin for President". Ballot Access News. August 24, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 9, 2016.
  25. "Minnesota Independence Party Becomes State Affiliate of the Alliance Party". Ballot Access News. May 6, 2019. Archived from the original on September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  26. "Evan McMullin Petition in Minnesota Uses Ballot Label "Independence"". Ballot Access News. August 14, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  27. "Florida Independent Party Nominated Evan McMullin for President, but Florida Won't Put Him on Ballot". Ballot Access News. September 14, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  28. "South Carolina Independence Party Nominates Evan McMullin for President". Ballot Access News. September 7, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  29. "Two More Presidential Candidates, Evan McMullin and Chris Keniston, File in Louisiana". Ballot Access News. August 19, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  30. "Better for America Petition in Arkansas is Valid". ballot-access.org. August 10, 2016.
  31. "Independent candidate Evan McMullin gets on first state ballot". The Hill. August 11, 2016. Retrieved August 28, 2016.
  32. Sande, Rachel (August 23, 2016). "Independent Presidential Candidate Evan McMullin on Idaho Ballot". East Idaho News. Retrieved August 24, 2016.
  33. "Evan McMullin, Independent Candidate for President, Makes Ballot in Iowa". Heat Street. August 17, 2016.
  34. Winger, Richard (September 10, 2016). "Kentucky Secretary of State Says Evan McMullin and Rocky De La Fuente Petitions are Valid". Ballot-access.org. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
  35. Kelly, Caroline (August 19, 2016). "McMullin qualifies for Iowa, Louisiana ballots". Politico. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  36. "Minn. Secretary of State Candidate Filings, U.S. President & Vice-President". Retrieved August 25, 2016.
  37. "New Mexico ballot to include alternative to Trump, Clinton". Desert News. September 12, 2016. Retrieved September 12, 2016.
  38. Winger, Richard (September 7, 2016). "South Carolina Independence Party Nominates Evan McMullin for President". Ballot Access News. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  39. Strauss, Daniel (August 15, 2016). "Never Trump conservative candidate qualifies for Utah presidential ballot". Politico. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
  40. Strauss, Daniel (September 2, 2016). "Never Trump conservative McMullin makes Virginia ballot". Politico. Retrieved September 14, 2016.
  41. McMullin, Evan. "34 States and Counting". Evan McMullin for President. Rumpf, Sarah. Archived from the original on October 19, 2016. Retrieved October 2, 2016.
  42. "Arizona Secretary of State election Information". Arizona Secretary of State.
  43. "California 2016 General Election". thegreenpapers.com. 2016. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
  44. "Delaware Write-In Candidates 2016 General" (PDF). Delaware State Elections.
  45. "New York Has Approximately 30 Declared Write-in Presidential Candidates; List Still Isn't Final". ballot-access.org. Ballot Access News. October 20, 2016. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
  46. "Six Write-in Presidential Candidates File to Have North Dakota Write-ins Counted". ballot-access.org. Ballot Access News. October 20, 2016. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
  47. "Texas Certifies McMullin as Write-In Candidate for President". Texas Tribune. September 16, 2016. Retrieved September 16, 2016.
  48. "Official List of Write-In Candidates for the 2016 General Election" (PDF). sos.wa.gov. Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved October 18, 2016.
  49. "Commit to vote for Evan McMullin on November 8". Evan McMullin for President. Archived from the original on November 3, 2016. Retrieved November 1, 2016.
  50. "2016 presidential election results". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  51. "Evan McMullin Received a Greater Share of His Votes via Write-ins than Any Other Significant Presidential Candidate in U.S. History". Ballot Access News. January 3, 2017. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  52. "Bernie Sanders, Evan McMullin, and Jill Stein All Set New Records for Write-in Totals in Various States". Ballot Access News. December 22, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  53. "Sen. Flake Aims To Work With Trump On A Fix To Obamacare". NPR. November 30, 2016. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
  54. Wang, Amy B (November 8, 2017). "Sen. Lindsey Graham: 'I voted Evan McMullin for president'". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
  55. Harrie, Dan (November 9, 2016). "Utah Sen. Mike Lee voted for McMullin in protest of Trump". The Salt-Lake Tribune. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
  56. "Clinton National Lead Steady". Public Policy Polling. August 30, 2016. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  57. "Presidential Race Up for Grabs in Florida". Public Policy Polling. September 7, 2016. Retrieved September 9, 2016.
  58. "Emerson College Poll: Idaho Shows "Mormon Corridor" is Closed to Trump. GOP Incumbent Mike Crapo Has a 33-Point Lead in the Senate Race" (PDF). Emerson College Polling Society. Real Clear Politics. October 25, 2016. Retrieved October 26, 2016.
  59. "Utah: Trump vs. Clinton vs. Johnson vs. Stein vs. McMullin". RealClearPolitics. October 28, 2016. Retrieved October 28, 2016.
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