Attempts to Bar Nevada Voters From Wearing Chicken Suits at Polls Lays an Egg

Protesters of a statewide ban to keep people dressed as chickens from coming closer than 100 feet to polling places are crying "fowl."

It seems Secretary of State Ross Miller's ban did not stop some peeps from flocking to vote Wednesday.

Clad in a bright yellow chicken suit, Michael Ginsburg voted at the Rainbow Library despite the ban, claiming the debate has transformed into a free speech issue rather than a jab at any one particular candidate.

"The concern is they could ban something else," said Ginsburg, an at-large board member for the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada. "I understand the chicken outfit has become synonymous with a certain campaign, which we weren't actually discussing or out in opposition to. This really just interferes with someone's First Amendment rights."

For weeks, chicken jokes have permeated the news, with pundits chiding Republican U.S. Senate candidate Sue Lowden for her remarks suggesting people could barter with doctors for medical care.

But Clark County Registrar of Voters Larry Lomax said the Election Department cannot stop someone from voting as long as they are not interfering with the process.

"This whole thing is ridiculous," Lomax said. "You've got a state with a $3 billion deficit, a country that's bankrupt, and that's what we're dealing with. We instructed our workers to let them vote. They can vote.

"Then we get them out of there as quickly as possible."

Immediately after voting, Ginsburg was escorted from the polling place.

Miller has refused to lift his ban, saying state law prohibits "electioneering" or campaigning for or against a candidate closer than 100 feet to polling places.

But he also acknowledged that local election officials have discretion when it comes to voter dress at the polls.

The law that Miller cites as giving him authority to prohibit people in chicken suits from being in polling places does not specifically mention what people can or cannot wear.

Instead, it states people cannot buy, sell, wear or display "any badge, button or insignia which is designed or tends to aid or promote the success or defeat of any political party, candidate or ballot question."

Miller said it would not be unlawful for people to show up at polls dressed as Uncle Sam or even Freddy Krueger of "A Nightmare on Elm Street" fame as long as it did not interfere with other voters.

Miller said that despite the ban, people in chicken suits are showing up at polls and standing more than 100 feet away.

"Obviously, some people are trying to get publicity out of this issue," he said. "Their protest of my ban laid an egg."

Everyone knows that the chicken suit wearer is sending a message against one particular candidate, Miller added.

"I know they aren't at the polls to vote for Colonel Sanders," he quipped.