Tech Veteran Shugart Tries To Rally Voters

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January 12, 1999 (2:34 PM EST)

By John Gartner,

Computer-industry veteran Al Shugart, the founder of Seagate, is venturing into the political realm in an effort to give California voters the option of a "none of the above" protest vote.

The group Shugart founded, Friends of Ernest Political Action Committee (FOEPAC), wants to add the "none of the above" option to the California ballot by March 2000. FOEPAC has 150 days to collect more than 400,000 signatures, required to have the option placed on ballots in local, state, and national elections.

The "none of the above" votes would be recorded, but not counted in determining the winner of an election.

Shugart said giving people the option to vote "none of the above" sends a clear message that candidates are not acceptable and will encourage more people to vote because it gives them a way to voice their dissatisfaction. "I want to encourage more people to participate and become involved in the political process," he said.

FOEPAC has hired experienced balloting expert Bill Zimmerman and signature strategist firm Progressive Campaigns to help in the massive name-collecting effort which, despite Shugart's background in technology, will be executed through traditional means. Shugart said the Internet would not be heavily leveraged as part of the effort.

"It sounds like with the people they have involved, they can be successful in getting the required signatures," said Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Foundation, a nonpartisan organization that uses technology to provide the public with information about elections.

Alexander said Shugart's initiative could succeed because previous drives proposed that if a majority of "none of the above" votes was cast in an election, a new election would have to be held. That was deemed too costly and time-consuming by both voters and elected officials.

"Voting 'none of the above' could send a strong message to the [political] parties that the candidates they are supporting are weak and may encourage more people to run for election" said Alexander. But she said officials may have trouble separating the voters who don't approve of the candidates from those who simply don't know enough about the choices before them.

If Shugart and FOEPAC are successful in California, they plan to take their effort to other states. Nevada is the only state that now lists the option of a protest vote, having added "none of these candidates" to the ballot in 1975. Since then, the "none of these candidates" option has received the most votes on five separate occasions, according to Pamela Crowell, Nevada Deputy Secretary of State for Elections.

Shugart is on the board of directors of seven high-tech companies, including Inktomi and SanDisk, and operates Al Shugart International, a consulting and management firm. His previous political endeavors include the founding of Friends of Ernest (FOE), a watchdog organization that seeks to make U.S. government data and formulas available to the public.

Shugart also unsuccessfully tried to have his dog Ernest run for the 17th congressional district seat of California in 1996.