Stanford professor Jon A. Krosnick conducted a recent series of studies on the 2000 presidential elections in Ohio, North Dakota, and California. These three states all rotate ballot order, allowing researchers to measure how many people vote for a candidate when his name is first on the ballot versus lower down. They found significant benefits for whoever came first, whether Bush, Gore, Buchanan, or Nader. The largest effect was an incredible nine-and-a-half-point advantage for Bush in California, and the average benefit across all candidates and states was 2 percent.
