by Paula Love

Created on: April 28, 2009

Each week after the performances of American Idol are finished, viewers call toll-free numbers to vote for their favorite contestants. The competitor with the fewest number of votes is eliminated. It seems straightforward and simple, but controversy over the voting method has existed from the beginning of the show.

The first voting controversy came during the top four performance in season one. Early front-runner Tamyra Gray, who had never been in the bottom group, was voted off ahead of rocker Nikki McKibbin, who had already been in the bottom group five times. All three judges were displeased and viewers were outraged. It has been suggested that Tamyra fans thought she was safe enough that they became complacent and did not vote as much. Nearly every season since has an early "shocker" elimination, and it seems to be run of the mill now rather than outrageous.

In season three we witnessed another early shocker elimination when Chicago native Jennifer Hudson, one of the much lauded three divas of the competition, was voted off in seventh place. Although it was likely another case of voter complacency, it was noted that severe thunderstorms in the Chicago area knocked out power and phone lines, preventing a big part of Hudson's fan base from casting their votes.

One of the most talked about early eliminations happened in season five, when highly praised rocker Chris Daughtry was eliminated in fourth place. Many fans claimed that their votes for Daughtry were re-routed to Katharine McPhee's phone line after hearing her thank you message instead of the expected Daughtry message. While the early eliminations may expose possible flaws in the voting system, it hasn't seemed to hurt the careers of the contestants eliminated. Aiken, Hudson, and Daughtry have gone on to have successful careers in the entertainment business.

Season two's finale between Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken caused another voting controversy. Out of 24 million votes, only 130,000 separated the winner and the runner-up, leaving a margin of about one-half of one percentage point. Chatter in the telecommunications industry led to speculation that the phone systems were overloaded and up to 150 million calls were dropped. Studdard was declared the winner, but Aiken has enjoyed more post-Idol success regardless of the controversy.

Also during the second season, a phone scam operation centered in Salt Lake City, Utah convinced viewers they could vote for their favorite contestants via 1-800 numbers rather

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