Jesus for mayor: Check out the names Wichita voters wrote in
Lyndy Wells may have been the most recognized write-in candidate in this year’s Wichita city election, but he wasn’t the only one to receive votes.
Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Jesus Christ, Rocket J. Squirrel and Sir Fuzzy McWigglebottom all got write-in votes for Wichita mayor.
So did Castro, Steve Penisgraft, Anyone Else and Not My President.
Sedgwick County election officials completed canvassing Monday and posted official results for the Nov. 5 election, which included several pages of write-in candidates that ranged from silly to serious.
Brandon Whipple was the official winner in the Wichita mayor’s race, receiving more than 46 percent of votes compared to incumbent Jeff Longwell’s 36 percent.
Wells, a retired public affairs director for Intrust Bank who launched a write-in campaign in mid-October, garnered the most write-ins — 8,426, which amounted to nearly 17 percent of votes cast. (He also received votes for mayor of Bel Aire, Goddard, Clearwater and Derby, races in which he was neither running nor eligible.)
Wells likely would have received more votes, but some Wichita voters have a hard time remembering and spelling: The list of write-ins included Lynda Wells, Libby Wells, Bryndy Wells, Landry Wells, Lyndy Wall, Wendy Wells, Lindy Bell, Landy, Lyle, Lanny, Liddy, Langly and Windy.
One voter wrote in Lyndy Whipple. Talk about indecisive.
Wichita Eagle reporter Chance Swaim, who published several big stories leading up to the election, got four write-in votes — enough to renew my faith in the public’s appreciation for local journalism.
Swaim was appropriately humbled by his top 10 finish in the mayoral race.
“I have zero political aspirations and no idea who voted for me,” he said. “My family swears they didn’t. My fiance didn’t vote for me, either, so it’s a complete mystery.
“With that said,” Swaim added, “I want to take a second to acknowledge my fellow write-ins who didn’t quite make the cut: Lymon Something, Anyone Else and my good friend Cannot Remember.”
Election Commissioner Tabitha Lehman said write-in votes often offer a glimpse at popular culture. Several years ago, for example, fans of “Napoleon Dynamite” used their write-in option to vote for Pedro. More recently, “Deez Nuts” got several votes, presumably in honor of the viral video.
This year, the write-in votes for Wichita City Council’s District 2 seat included “Epstein Didn’t Kill Himself,” a political meme related to millionaire sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in jail in August while awaiting trial.
Several current or former elected officials received write-in votes for Wichita mayor, including former mayors Bob Knight and Carl Brewer, and former mayoral candidates Mark Gietzen, Amy Lyon, Ian Demory, Marty Mork and Brock Booker.
Because write-in results did not determine the outcome of this election, Lehman and her staff were not required to pore over the various spellings or submit them to the Sedgwick County Commission for a final verdict.
Had it been a closer race, the commissioners, in their role as the county Board of Canvassers, would have had to decide which spellings of Lyndy Wells — Landy? Linda? Windy? — would have counted for his totals.
“It’s always interesting and kind of fun” to see the list of write-ins, said Lehman, the election commissioner.
Not so fun, she said, is when voters scribble vulgarities, because election workers are required to read them aloud and write them into the record during the verification process.
“People write all sorts of things, and that’s . . . democracy.”
This story was originally published November 19, 2019 at 5:03 AM.
