Get me off the ballot!

The first goal of any serious campaign for national office is to get your candidate's name on the ballot. Everyone wants to be on the ballot. If you're not, you have to run a write-in campaign and write-in candidates never win in major races.

So, it's funny to me that in the mid-terms, Republicans who have been plagued by scandal are trying to get themselves off of the ballots.

Congressional resignee Tom Delay is on the ballot in the current Texas race, and he's been wanting off for a long time. He resigned his post because he's been indicted over campaign finance issues that connect him to discgraced Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff. He actually went to court to get his name taken off the ballot and he lost. His Replublican replacement now has to run as a write-in candidate. Delay, his party's fairly chosen nominee, can't get his name off of the ballot.

Now, Florida Congressman Mark Foley can't get his name off of the ballot either. He just resigned in the face of allegations that he has innapropriate Internet contact with a teenage congressional page. His name will also appear on the ballot in the next election. Votes for him will go to whoever his party chooses to run in his steed, but his named will be there.

I'm making no comment here about the guilt or innocence of either Delay or Foley. I only want to point out that a party in ascendence wants to get the names of its candidates on the ballot. This year, two people want their names off. They're both Republicans. Bad sign for them. Their candidates want off when every serious candidate wants to get on.