By Ryan Hiles
A professor named Lawrence Lessig at Harvard Law teaches economics and ethics. He has no previous experience in government or in being elected. But Lessig, as of last week, is running for president.
Lessig isn’t running on grandiose declarations and hollow promises. He’s not pretending he knows how to stabilize the Middle East or Wall Street. He’s a different kind of candidate on purpose, because Lessig is running for the presidency as a protest candidate.
The reason, though, for the gawking at his candidacy is that Lessig has already announced that if elected, he plans to pass one piece of legislation. Comically enough, Lessig has stated that he would abdicate his office to his vice president upon its passage. This is definitely not your typical “on my first day in office” sound byte that’s become hackneyed even by politician’s standards.
Lessig is just a drop in a bucket of a larger list of candidates we all tend to forget. In the last week or so, you may have heard a bit of big political news coming from North Carolina. Recent presidential polls in the state have picked up on the insurgence of a new candidate who has younger voters ecstatic and older voters thinking they misheard you. By now, many of you should know who is being referred here, the protest candidate “Deez Nuts.”
While the “Deez Nuts” campaign is surely meant for a laugh, let’s look at the sometimes not-so-silly nature of protest candidates. Other than making us laugh, protest candidates can inspire meaningful change or reform, or at the very least awareness.
Take Jimmy McMillan, who ran for mayor of New York City on “The Rent Is Too Damn High” ticket. Not only did he bring national exposure to the plight of many low-income New Yorkers, he was also able to force his opponents to address an uncomfortable issue—rent control in NYC.
Some may also remember 2008 presidential candidate Vermin Supreme, who glitter-bombed his outspoken anti-LGBT opponent at a live debate. It’s those kind of ridiculous antics (along with wearing a boot on his head and challenging Senator Tom Harkin to a duel in a steel cage of death) that raise Vermin’s profile.
This isn’t a new phenomenon either. There was John Patrick, who from 1960 to 1980 ran for every office available in Washington state and would insist on paying his filing fees with loose change. Famed early 20th century humorist Will Rogers even made a go at the presidency in 1928. Running as a candidate for the Anti-Bunk party, he often used the slogan: “Whatever the other fellow don’t do, we will.”
Surprisingly enough there’s even a tradition of non-humans running for office as a form of protest. In 1938, citizens of Milton, Washington actually elected a mule by the name of Boston Curtis as committeeman.
More recently, filmmaker Michael Moore attempted to run a ficus tree for congress against any incumbent who was running unopposed. While that particular effort was for naught, a press release at the time mentioned the advantages of a ficus congressman: “I’ve seen a lot of politicians lie, cheat, steal and use improper syntax. I have never met one who can perform photosynthesis.”
It’s obvious to see here that some of these candidacies were more serious than others. However, what they all have in common is that the people behind them were fed up.
Some were fed up with the lunacy of the political process, some with lying politicians and some with their rent simply being too high. I think it’s worth taking a moment to appreciate and commemorate these brave warriors, from Lessig to “Deez Nuts” and everyone in between.
These valiant men and women bring to light the issues that politicians won’t.
No matter your political affiliation or ideological leanings, I think we can all agree that sometimes what America needs is a laugh.
