ST. PETERSBURG — A new survey found a surprising number of undecided voters admitted they selected whichever candidate appeared next to the letter C on the ballot, citing a long-held belief that "C is statistically the safest answer when you have absolutely no idea what's going on."

"I remember learning somewhere that C was usually right on multiple-choice tests," said local voter Kevin Wallace after leaving his polling place. "I figured elections probably worked the same way."

Surveyors said the phenomenon, known as "Standardized Test Voting," had become more understood by researchers but has always probably been the case.

"I eliminated the ones I knew were wrong," Wallace explained. "Then it was basically down to B or C."

Election workers said several voters were observed quietly mouthing, "When in doubt... C," before feeding their ballots into the scanner.

One first-time voter admitted she felt relieved when her preferred candidate happened to be listed beside the third bubble.

"It just felt correct," she said. "I finally knew one."

Political scientists stressed that ballots are not multiple-choice exams and that candidate placement has no relationship to correctness but preference.

Several voters responded by asking whether the questions were weighted or on a Bell Curve. "So if most of us just pick C, then I'll probably be in the clear, right, even if I'm wrong? And when will I get the test results, and where to look for those results, exactly? Is there a city cork board that posts the results of the test, or do they email them back?"

Others reportedly searched the ballot for trick wording such as "Select all that apply."

One voter said he became suspicious after noticing five candidates listed.

"I spent five minutes looking for 'None of the above,'" he said. "Then I remembered that's usually how I feel after every election."

Poll workers reported another common question came from voters asking whether they would lose points for changing an answer. "I erased one bubble because I started overthinking it," one resident admitted. "That's usually when C becomes the right answer. Old faithful, the C bubble."

Election officials said they have no plans to change ballot formatting but confirmed next year's sample ballot will no longer include the phrase "Fill in the bubble completely," after several voters reportedly asked whether partial credit was available and if that had something to do with homestead tax exemption.

"I wasn't expecting to ace this thing," one voter said. "I just need to pass and get a sticker that says I took this exam."

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