01100101

So my friend Kelly in California called me up the other day. She said, “Speaking of candidates statements, you should hear what this guy in my district down here did.” She knew the difficulty I had trying to get my candidate’s statement put into the voter’s guide as well as the fact I am not accepting donations and trying to stay under the $5000 Federal Elections Guideline spending limit for forming a committee. She went on to say how this one candidate in particular only has a binary code of “01100101” on his statement. She was curious what it meant, so she googled it. It took her to a page on his website where he explains the trouble he has in California with the voter’s guide. And if you think Oregon is outrageous with its fees, check out what he says about California’s election system. This is from his website:
Jason Hanania
Why “01100101”?
Learn more about my Candidacy
What taxpayers don’t know about Voter Guides…
The “Official” Voter Information Guide, issued by the State of California, is paid for by you, the taxpayers, and mailed to every registered voter. Every candidate, and their “Candidate Statement”, should be included for purposes of educating voters. But this is not the case. The State charges candidates $25 per word – and a minimum of one word is required.
U.S. Senate candidates must pay over $6,000 for a full paragraph Candidate Statement. This is in addition to a $3,500 Filing Fee. By purchasing an entire paragraph for $6,000, candidates who do not accept campaign donations cannot stay under the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) cap of $5,000 in campaign expenditures.
Exceeding $5,000 requires formation of a Campaign Committee, appointment of a Treasurer, and substantial financial paperwork. This politician-created process creates an advantage for candidates who accept campaign donations. Their full-paragraph Candidate Statements actually make a statement. If a Candidate Statement only contains a few words, the candidate appears lazy and unprepared, at best.
Speaking as an attorney, campaign donations have become a legalized form of bribery. I do not accept campaign donations. My total campaign expenditures will be well under the FEC cap of $5,000.
Speaking as an engineer, my 2016 Candidate Statement was “01100101”. In computer programming, the binary code “01100101” translates to the letter “e”, as in “evoting candidate”. This optimally met the State’s “one word minimum” requirement and was cost effective. The novelty of “01100101” may also have motivated you to visit my website.
The Voter Information Guide is critical to democratic process because it educates voters about their voting options. It should be neutral. As long as the Voter Information Guide is taxpayer funded, the State should not discriminate based on wealth (campaign funding). Every candidate should be listed, including a full paragraph Candidate Statement. There are 21 candidates in your “Official” Voter Information Guide – but there will be 34 candidates on your ballot.
I wish Jason Hanania the best of luck. He is smart, frugal, and he is fed up with the system. I think those are great qualities for any candidate, no matter what the position My name is Brian Heinrich and I am running for US Congress,