CONCORD, N.H. — A trippy, frenzied scene unfolded Friday afternoon at the desk where dozens of candidates signed up this month for New Hampshire’s presidential primary.
Vermin Supreme, the performance artist whose hat is a rubber boot and whose campaign platform calls for mandatory toothbrushing, time travel research, an interstate rollercoaster, and a free pony for every American, filled out paperwork and forked over $1,000 in cash to have his name listed on the ballot as a Democratic candidate.
Supreme, who has run for president every cycle since 1992 in one party or another, paid his filing fee with a seemingly random assortment of small bills, which he used to fan the face of New Hampshire Secretary of State David M. Scanlan.
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“You feel it?” Supreme playfully asked the state’s top election official.
“I feel the breeze,” Scanlan replied, with a resigned sense of quiet bemusement.
Supreme’s motley entourage on Friday included a guitarist in a reptile costume, a tuba player, and several supporters who smirked and chuckled as they carried toothbrushes and stuffed ponies. There was also a MAGA-inspired performer with orange face paint who tried unsuccessfully to declare his own candidacy using a vulgar nickname.
Their time in Scanlan’s office featured chants, improvised songs, and a reading from Supreme’s 2016 paperback about people from the future warning that he “is a madman and must be stopped.”
His candidacy, an absurdist take on political satire, has historically captured a trifling sliver of the vote in New Hampshire, and no one expects the 2024 contest to end any differently. His farcical campaign may be mere entertainment, a vanity project, or perhaps sincere messaging cloaked in humor. Whatever his reasons, his name will be listed among 21 on the Democratic ballot, while another 24 will appear on the Republican ballot.
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Here’s who filed. Two withdrew. President Biden stayed away, as expected. https://t.co/RrybYZEO9j #fitn #nhpolitics pic.twitter.com/0e69VkHggB
— Steven Porter (@reporterporter) October 27, 2023
Scanlan, who has personally witnessed Supreme’s candidate filings four or five times over the years, said it’s all a testament to the virtue of New Hampshire’s low barrier to entry.
“That is part of the color that is associated with our filing period and one of the reasons why the New Hampshire primary is so important and why it should be the first in the nation,” Scanlan said after Supreme’s raucous lot left the office.
Scanlan said New Hampshire’s approach creates an opportunity for any US citizen who meets the qualifications for the presidency to get their name on the ballot.
“We do get individuals that may take advantage of that process a little bit for some notoriety,” he said. “Whether that’s serious or not, it’s up to voters to decide, I guess.”
Vermin Supreme is chatting with supporters before he files for the presidential race. He had planned to bring ponies per usual, but he said the pony handler had to go help with the emergency response to the mass shooting in Maine. #fitn #nhpolitics pic.twitter.com/szg8llqaN8
— Steven Porter (@reporterporter) October 27, 2023
Supreme may be the most obviously satirical candidate, but he isn’t the only eccentric one of the bunch. And just because someone seems atypical or even attention-seeking doesn’t necessarily mean they are insincere.
“For the most part,” Scanlan said, “the candidates that come in here to file truly believe that they have something to offer the country, and they’re willing to put that out there for the voters to decide.”
Supreme’s name will appear on the Democratic ballot alongside author Marianne Williamson, Representative Dean Phillips of Minnesota, and 18 relative unknowns. President Biden is skipping New Hampshire’s contest since he urged the Democratic National Committee to push South Carolina’s primary to the front of the 2024 nominating calendar. Even so, Biden’s supporters in New Hampshire have vowed to deliver a write-in win for the incumbent.
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In addition to former president Donald J. Trump and former vice president Michael R. Pence, who suspended his campaign on Saturday, the names on the Republican ballot will include former Governor Nikki Haley of South Carolina, Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida, former Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, Governor Doug Burgum of North Dakota, former Governor Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas, and 15 others.
Friday marked the deadline for candidates to file for the primary, which is widely expected to be held in January, though Scanlan has yet to announce the date.
This story first appeared in Globe NH | Morning Report, our free newsletter focused on the news you need to know about New Hampshire, including great coverage from the Boston Globe and links to interesting articles from other places. If you’d like to receive it via e-mail Monday through Friday, you can sign up here.
Steven Porter can be reached at steven.porter@globe.com. Follow him @reporterporter.