DAVID HARDEN/Arizona Daily Wildcat Senior Carl Rahmani made a run at governor but lost the race this November to Janet Napolitano. Rahmani received 29 votes in the election.

When student Carlton Rahmani decided to run for governor less than two months ago, he vowed to stick out his campaign to the end.

And although history senior garnered only 29 votes, or 0.0027 percent of the total, he did get only one vote less than all four of the other write-in candidates' votes combined.

In comparison, write-in candidate L.D. Talbow received only a single vote, according to official results released last Thursday.

"I came in fifth place out of (nine) candidates and I relish in that fact," Rahmani said. "The way I see it, Matt Salmon might have gotten a half-million more votes than me, but we both lost."

The 28-year-old Rahmani began his campaign after becoming disillusioned with Arizona politics.

Rahmani, who pledged to support mom and pop businesses and small companies, but describes himself as a Republican, decided to run on a platform he calls a combination of progressivism and conservatism, with education and the environment also playing key roles.

One of his main ideas involved a "beer-or-a-brain tax," which would have helped fund higher education in Arizona by taxing citizens the price of one beer per month.

Solar power was also an important part of Rahmani's campaign, as he proposed giving low-interest loans to any homeowner who agreed to use solar power.

However, it was not enough to propel him to victory, though Rahmani did say he supported the election of Democratic candidate Janet Napolitano.

"At one point, I was hoping Mahoney was the favorite," he said, adding that he now believes Napolitano to be the best choice.

In fact, Rahmani even encouraged his supporters to vote for Napolitano, although he eventually ended up voting for himself a few weeks after

he seriously considered ending his campaign.

"I really didn't want Matt Salmon to win," he said.

Jerry Diaz, who estimated he spent 10 to 12 hours a week working on the Rahmani campaign, also voted for his friend, despite the fact that he supported Napolitano over Salmon.

"We were very unhappy with Salmon's views and issues," Diaz said. "I like to think we helped (Napolitano) a little."

Diaz said he did not regret his decision to act as a sort of campaign manager for Rahmani.

"I learned a lot about the political process itself," he said.

Rahmani agreed.

"There are things I wish I had done differently, but I don't regret the decision to run," he said. "If you want to learn about politics, then run for office. It is a real learning experience."

Maricopa County was Rahmani's stronghold, as he garnered 14 votes in the Phoenix area. In Pima County, seven people voted for him, and his remaining eight votes were spread throughout the state.

What hurt him, he said, was that a lot of his supporters couldn't remember how to spell his name, particularly his friends in the U.S. Marine Corps reserves in Maricopa County.

"I would have been surprised if I got 100 votes and elated if I got 1,000," Rahmani said.

Now, Rahmani said he is just trying to return to a sense of normalcy and concentrate on things like school.

However, there is always the 2006 election.

"If I'm in the state in 2006, I might run again, depending on how Napolitano does," Rahmani said. "But I have hope for her."