Alvin Greene & South Carolina’s silly Senate Race (links)

Gail Collins at The New York Times put it most succinctly:

Greene, an unemployed 32-year-old, is currently the most famous Democratic candidate in South Carolina. He just won the nomination to run against Senator Jim DeMint in November, overcoming major obstacles such as not having campaign staff, campaign funds, a campaign Web site, cellphone or personal computer. And then there’s the felony charge pending for allegedly showing a University of South Carolina student a pornographic picture. [read more]

• South Carolina silly |sili| adjective ( -lier , -liest ) having or showing a lack of common sense or judgment; absurd and foolish. #
• Experts review S.C. Senate ballots http://politi.co/bQ2A3r #
• “In Spartanburg County, Ludwig said there are 25 precincts in which Greene received more votes than were actually cast” #
• S.C. Democrats ask: Where did Alvin Greene get money to file for Senate primary? (WaPo) http://bit.ly/dkTjC5 #
• Rod Shealy (wiki) http://bit.ly/cHL2RU South Carolina has done this before, planting political plants. #
• SC Democratic Primary Getting Weirder By The Hour (538) http://bit.ly/bvBShu #
• DeMint’s Standing (Public Policy Polling, May 27) http://bit.ly/9rVgOi “a race worth keeping an eye on” #
• S.C. Voting Machines Banned in Other States http://bit.ly/d6jWX1 #
• South Carolina Votes First, Asks Questions Later http://nyti.ms/9tlDD5 “Maybe voters thought it was the singer, Al Green.”

Some Suspect Foul Play in S.C. Primary (Newsweek)

Krosnick says that work he has done on the name-order effect (the bump a candidate receives from being higher up the ballot) shows it to be on the order of 3 percent, which means it is unlikely to account for Greene’s win. [read more]