News reports said that former Attorney General and Republican candidate for governor Jim Ryan wanted the coveted last spot who vastly out-polled my Libertarian Party candidacy but succumbed to serial liar Rod Blagojevich chickened out today.

Again.

As I have shared previously, when I was in grad school at the University of Michigan, I found a paper than analyzed the impact of ballot order on election results.

The researchers looked at paper ballots for a Michigan city near Detroit. In races of six or more, first place was worth an extra 10%. Second and last place on the ballot were worth another 5%.

There are seven people running for the Republican nomination for governor.

Worst place on the ballot was next to last.

That’s where Jim Ryan ended up.

He blinked at 4:18 PM this afternoon.

Andy McKenna filed seven minutes later.

We won’t know who gets the justifiably coveted first place on the ballot until the lottery, but we know that McKenna didn’t blink and file before any other GOP gubernatorial candidate.

Inexplicably, political consultant Dan Proft filed even earlier than Ryan at 3:26.

Mayor Richard Daley is half right.

Blagojevich is a bird.

That bird is a chicken, however, not a cuckoo.

Here’s the whole cartoon, drawn to point out that both Ryan and Blagojevich were chickens.

The two conspired to hold debates where they could dictate who was included.

And excluded.

The specific inspiration for this cartoon was when the two refused to take part in the Illinois League of Women Voters debate. The LVW rules said that any candidate who had received at least 5% in a non-candidate poll could take part.

I received just over 5% in the Daily Southtown poll, which was taken in early September, 2002.

Mayor Richard Daley is half right.

Blagojevich is a bird.

That bird is a chicken, however, not a cuckoo.

Here’s the whole cartoon, drawn to point out that both Ryan and Blagojevich were chickens.

The two conspired to hold debates where they could dictate who was included.

And excluded.

The specific inspiration for this cartoon was when the two refused to take part in the Illinois League of Women Voters debate. The LVW rules said that any candidate who had received at least 5% in a non-candidate poll could take part.

I received just over 5% in the Daily Southtown poll, which was taken in early September, 2002.