Above Znoneofthe (né Sheldon Bergson; born 28 June 1969)[1] is a Canadian politician and perennial candidate. He changed his name to "Above Znoneofthe" with a silent "Z" so that his name would be placed last on alphabetical ballots (hence reflecting the idea of voting for None of the Above).

Biography

While a university student, Znoneofthe ran in the 1993 Canadian federal election as a candidate for the short-lived National Party of Canada in the Ontario riding of Markham—Whitchurch-Stouffville, earning about 1% of the vote.[2]

Znoneofthe re-entered politics in 2015, and legally changed his name so that it would appear on electoral ballots as "Znoneofthe, Above", adding a silent Z so that his name would appear at the bottom of alphabetical-order ballots.[1][3] Znoneofthe explained that his name was chosen for those who do not usually vote, telling CBC News that he thought "one of these days we should get ‘none of the above’ on a ballot."[1]

He first ran under his changed name in a provincial by-election in Whitby—Oshawa on 11 February 2016; however, since Ontario electoral ballots list candidates' names with their given names first, he appeared as "Above Znoneofthe".[4]

Later in 2016, during a by-election campaign in Ottawa—Vanier, Znoneofthe attempted to participate in a debate to which he was not invited, as a candidate under the None of the Above party. Audience members shouted for Znoneofthe and perennial candidate John Turmel, running under the Pauper Party, who was also not invited, to leave, but neither left until escorted off of the stage by police. Znoneofthe did appear last on the alphabetized list of candidates in the CBC News article describing the incident.[5]

He has since run in several by-elections as an independent and as a member of the None of the Above Party. He contested the 2021 Canadian federal election as a member of the Rhinoceros Party, running in the riding of Papineau against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.[6]

Electoral record

Federal

2021 Canadian federal election: Papineau
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
LiberalJustin Trudeau22,84850.30–0.82$82,530.41
New DemocraticChristine Paré10,30322.68+3.48$8,058.03
Bloc QuébécoisNabila Ben Youssef6,83015.04–0.96$3,928.18
ConservativeJulio Rivera2,1984.84+0.6$9,640.70
GreenAlain Lepine1,4483.19–4.18$4,443.78
People'sChristian Boutin1,0642.34+1.71$0.00
RhinocerosAbove Znoneofthe4180.92+0.21$0.00
Marxist–LeninistGarnet Colly1150.25–$0.00
IndependentRaymond Martin1020.22–$0.00
IndependentBéatrice Zako970.21–$0.00
Total valid votes/expense limit 45,42398.07-0.12$107,828.60
Total rejected ballots 8941.93+0.12
Turnout 46,31763.51–3.66
Eligible voters 72,931
Liberal hold Swing –2.15
Source: Elections Canada[7]
Canadian federal by-election, October 26, 2020: Toronto Centre
Resignation of Bill Morneau
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
LiberalMarci Ien10,58142.0-15.4$116,839
GreenAnnamie Paul8,25032.7+25.6$100,008
New DemocraticBrian Chang4,28017.0-5.3$71,222
ConservativeBenjamin Gauri Sharma1,4355.7-6.4$0
People'sBaljit Bawa2691.1–$22,752
LibertarianKeith Komar1350.5–
IndependentKevin Clarke1230.5–
FreeDwayne Cappelletti760.3–$1,570
No affiliationAbove Znoneofthe560.2–$0
Total valid votes 25,205100.0–
Total rejected ballots 1180.5-0.2
Turnout 25,32330.9-35.2
Electors on lists 81,861
Liberal hold Swing -20.5
Elections Canada[8][9]

Ontario

Ontario provincial by-election, February 27, 2020: Ottawa—Vanier
Resignation of Nathalie Des Rosiers
Party Candidate Votes%±%
LiberalLucille Collard10,40452.22+9.36
New DemocraticMyriam Djilane5,03125.25-4.42
Progressive ConservativePatrick Mayangi2,32911.69-9.69
GreenBenjamin Koczwarski1,7098.58+4.50
IndependentJulie Fiala1880.94
LibertarianKen Lewis1290.65-0.04
None of the AboveAbove Znoneofthe950.48-0.38
Ontario AllianceJ. Justin O'Donnell380.19
Total valid votes 19,92399.45%
Total declined, rejected and unmarked ballots 1100.55%
Turnout 19.89-27.33
Eligible voters 100,190
Liberal hold Swing +6.89
Ontario provincial by-election, February 11, 2016: Whitby—Oshawa
Resignation of Christine Elliott
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeLorne Coe17,05352.92+12.27
LiberalElizabeth Roy8,86527.51−3.99
New DemocraticNiki Lundquist5,17216.05−6.99
GreenStacey Leadbetter5291.64−2.63
None of the AboveGreg Vezina2610.81–
IndependentAbove Znoneofthe1400.43–
LibertarianAdam McEwan1090.34–
People's Political PartyGarry Cuthbert520.16–
FreedomDouglas Thom340.11−0.44
PauperJohn Turmel110.03–
Total valid votes 32,226100.00
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots 610.19
Turnout 32,28728.94
Eligible voters 111,566
Progressive Conservative hold Swing +8.13
Source(s)
Elections Ontario (12 February 2016). "Return from the Records, 2016 By-election Whitby—Oshawa (100)" (PDF). Retrieved 18 February 2016.

As Sheldon Bergson

1993 Canadian federal election: Markham—Whitchurch-Stouffville
Party Candidate Votes%±%
LiberalJag Bhaduria35,90946.50+14.69
Progressive ConservativeBill Attewell19,69525.51-27.59
ReformJoe Sherren17,93723.23–
New DemocraticJack Grant1,6922.19-6.80
NationalSheldon Bergson9731.26–
Natural LawStephen Porter4690.61–
IndependentPaul Wang4580.59–
AbolitionistDean Papadopoulos850.11–
Total valid votes 77,21899.30
Total rejected ballots 5450.70
Turnout 77,76370.25
Eligible voters 110,696
Liberal gain from Progressive Conservative Swing +21.14
Sources: Canadian Elections Database,[10] Library of Parliament[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Reilly, Katie (30 January 2016). "Man Legally Changes Name to 'Above Znoneofthe' to Appear Last on Ballot". Time. Archived from the original on 29 September 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  2. 1 2 "History of the Federal Electoral Ridings, 1867–2010". Government of Canada. Library of Parliament. Archived from the original on 6 October 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  3. ↑ "Man changes name to Above Znoneofthe for Ont. byelection". CTV News. 29 May 2017. Archived from the original on 29 September 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  4. ↑ Elections Ontario (12 February 2016). "Return from the Records, 2016 By-election Whitby—Oshawa (100)" (PDF). Retrieved 18 February 2016. Alternate Link Retrieved 8 November 2021.
  5. ↑ "Police escort 2 uninvited candidates out of Ottawa-Vanier byelection debate". CBC News. 11 November 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  6. ↑ "September 20, 2021 General Election Results Validated by the Returning Officer". Elections Canada. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  7. ↑ "September 20, 2021 General Election Results Validated by the Returning Officer". Elections Canada. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  8. ↑ "Toronto Centre: October 26, 2020, by-elections — Poll-by-poll results". Elections Canada. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
  9. ↑ "October 26, 2020, By-elections: Official Voting Results". Elections Canada. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
  10. ↑ "1993 Federal Election: Markham—Unionville". Canadian Elections Database. University of Calgary. Archived from the original on 9 October 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
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