Nothing is Easy in the Recall

While I do understand the fact that being at the top of the ballot gives a candidate an advantage (especially with 150+ names). However, it seems to me that this system will make it more difficult for voters to find their candidate, and, more significantly, lead to longer voter times and hence lines and waiting (not that lines and waiting are foreign to Californians...).

Ironically, this system does give an advantage to people with long names...

Even the alphabet is getting an official makeover as part of the California recall election. Put the ABC's out of mind. It now goes something like this (when singing, the familiar melody is still O.K.): R, W, Q, O, J, M, V, A, H, B, S, G, Z, X, N, T, C, I, E, K, U, P, D, Y, F and L.

[...]

Using the current list of 96 qualified candidates, for example, the first name on the ballot would be David Laughing Horse Robinson, an artist from the Central Valley. He would be followed by Ned Fenton Roscoe, a Libertarian from Napa, and Daniel C. Ramirez, a Democrat from Imperial County.

Some of the race's biggest-name contenders would not show up until well down the roster. The actor Arnold Schwarzenegger would be in the 45th spot, Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante in the 43rd. Bill Simon Jr., the Republican candidate for governor last November, would be 48th, and Peter V. Ueberroth, the former baseball commissioner, 74th.

Under the rotation system, the top name on the ballot falls to the bottom in each successive district, so that each of 80 candidates on the ballot gets the best billing in one district. So keeping with the example of the 96 candidates, Mr. Robinson would drop to No. 96 in the second assembly district, also in rural northern California, and so on.

Source: How to Run a Recall Election: Begin by Juggling the Alphabet