Irony alert: Write-in candidate spells own name wrong

last updated 8 January 2015

The irony: Sen. Lisa Murkowski is not letting her defeat to Joe Miller in the Republican primary get in the way of her re-election bid. Rather, she has decided to try and make political history by running and winning as write-in candidate. "You've got to learn how to spell my name," Murkowski jokily told reporters, echoing the imperative now faced by her supporters. "But that's not as tough as it sounds." Sadly, her own campaign team could apparently use a lesson or two: In the small print at the end of a newly produced online ad, they spelled her name "Murkwski."

The reaction: When your best hope on election day rests on "stupid, lazy voters remembering your name," says Dan Amira at New York, "it's probably best to spell your name correctly in your own ads." But she shouldn't worry too much, says Sheila Toomey at the Alaskan Daily News. Alaskan voters will have some leeway on the spelling front — even "Lisa M" will be acceptable. Still, says Amanda Paulson at the Christian Science Monitor, this was an "inauspicious start" for a campaign already facing long odds against Sarah Palin-backed Miller.