BOSTON (AP) — Voters planning to write-in the name of a candidate for president rather than casting a ballot for Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump or another candidate on the ballot may never see that vote tabulated individually.
Rules for counting write-in ballots vary from state to state.
In many states, write-in candidates end up being lumped into a single category — unless a write-in hopeful has alerted state election officials or has filled out needed paperwork ahead of time. In some states, dozens have filled out the forms needed to ensure their write-in votes are tallied individually.
Other states will tally up write-in votes only if they exceed the number for the top vote-getter on the ballot.
A few states simply ban write-in ballots for president.
