Despite the deepest wishes of some Annapolis voters, the next mayor will not be “Yo Mamma,” nor will it be God or Donald Duck. The next Ward 1 alderman won’t be Pee Wee Herman, and Donald Trump won’t be representing Ward 4.
These are just a handful of the nearly 600 write-in votes cast in the Nov. 2 Annapolis general election.
While none of the nine city races were close — the closest margin was more than 200 votes — casting a write-in vote is an important function of the city’s electoral process that can sometimes provide an opportunity for an outside candidate to ascend to elected office. Two City Council members in the past 25 years have won a write-in campaign — Cynthia Carter in 1997 and DaJuan Gay in 2019.
Some write-in votes are silly, absurd or symbolic. Others are serious, a plea for new leadership or a nod to someone who once held office or others who should consider a run in the future.
The Capital obtained the full list of write-in votes. Here is what we found.
The mayoral race between Mayor Gavin Buckley and his Republican challenger Steven Strawn was not particularly close; more than 4,500 votes separated them when all the ballots were tallied, according to final official election results.
But more than 100 voters wrote in other mayoral candidates.
After losing reelection in 2017, former Republican Mayor Mike Pantelides considered running for a second term but eventually opted against it. He still received 16 votes — make that 17 if you want to count a vote for “Nick Panteledes” from a Ward 7 resident — the most of any other write-in. Pantelides’ father, John, also received a vote.
Other former mayors who received votes included Richard Lazer Hillman (and his wife, Lisa) with one, Ellen Moyer with one and Josh Cohen with three. John Astle, a former state senator and delegate who twice ran for mayor and lost, got five votes.
Some voters thought City Council candidates might be better suited as mayor.
Ward 2 Republican Scott Gibson received five mayoral votes, the most of any candidate. Elly Tierney, a Ward 1 Democrat who ran unopposed, received four. Rob Savidge, another unopposed Democrat in Ward 7, totaled three. Fred Paone, the retiring Ward 2 Republican, received two. Ward 8 opponents Rock Toews and incumbent Ross Arnett each tallied one.
Former council members Jared Littman, John Hammond and Shaneka Henson received two, three and five votes, respectively.
Other voters opted for prominent Annapolis figures like Police Chief Ed Jackson and Historic Annapolis President Robert Clark.
A Ward 7 voter threw their support behind Mike Brey, which may be a reference to the Notre Dame men’s basketball coach.
The most write-in votes were cast in Ward 4 with 211. Toni Strong Pratt, the lone candidate to formally apply to be a write-in candidate in Ward 4, received 186 votes. Ten people voted for her for mayor.
Keanuú Smith-Brown, a Democratic primary candidate in Ward 3, received 27 votes.
Wards 5 and 6 tied for the fewest write-ins with two apiece.
In Ward 1, which had the second-most write-ins with 142, Larry Claussen, Tierney’s Republican opponent in 2017, received eight votes. Joe Budge, the former alderman unseated by Tierney, tallied three votes.
Eileen Leahy, chair of the Board of Supervisors of Elections, received two votes. Herb McMillan, a former city alderman and state delegate who is now a candidate for Anne Arundel County executive, also got a vote. One Ward 3 voted for “Ehrlich, R.,” likely a nod to former Republican Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.
Some voters, however, got creative by writing in cartoon characters like Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. A few opted for stars of the big screen like John Wayne and Burt Reynolds. Musical act Run-DMC totaled one vote. Television characters Pee Wee Herman and Elmo each tallied a vote.
Other fictitious people got some love. President Jed Bartlet from the early-2000s political drama “The West Wing” got a Ward 7 voter’s support for mayor. Another Ward 7 resident tapped John Galt, a character from Ayn Rand’s 1957 novel “Atlas Shrugged,” for alderman.
Some opted for the insult, “Yo Mamma,” or the morbid, “Sweet Meteor of Death.” Still others expressed specific opposition to a candidate — “Not Her” — or support for “Anyone Else,” or a particular party, “Republican,” and the especially emotive, “:( Anyone But These 2? from a Ward 8 voter.
Some voters decided to dispense with this astral plane entirely with one Ward 3 resident casting votes for “God” for mayor and “Jesus” for alderman.
The cryptic, “Stop Calling Me!” got the nod from a Ward 3 voter.
Former president Trump received three votes for alderman. His predecessor, former President Barack Obama, received two votes for mayor. President Joe Biden didn’t receive any votes, but a cheeky Ward 1 resident wrote in “Let’s Go Brandon,” a political slogan that’s gained popularity as a stand-in for an expletive aimed at Biden.
Some voters chose to write in candidates from other wards. Ward 5 Republican Monica Manthey grabbed a vote apiece in wards 3 and 7. Strawn got a vote for alderman in Ward 4 and two more in Ward 1.
For the record, the actual winners in the election were Gavin Buckley for mayor, Elly Tierney in Ward 1, Karma O’Neill in Ward 2, Rhonda Pindell-Charles in Ward 3, Sheila Finlayson in Ward 4, Brooks Schandelmeier in Ward 5, DaJuan Gay in Ward 6, Rob Savidge in Ward 7 and Ross Arnett in Ward 8. They will be sworn into office on Dec. 6.
