Robin Ficker is perhaps the most famous Republican in Montgomery County still trying to run for office. Yet, his voting percentage was actually below little-known Mark Fennel's in the 2008 special general (33.44%). In November 2008, 35,270 District 4 residents voted for the Ficker Amendment (51.3%). But less than one-tenth of them voted for Ficker in this election. Apparently, the popularity of the anti-tax issue did not translate into personal popularity for Ficker.
Ficker's name recognition, while significant, is offset by his baggage. Check out the results of a simple Google search on his name.
Other than the heckling articles and his website, the first page of search results contained his Just Up the Pike profile and two MPW posts: our questioning his residency and our description of his history in politics. Both of those posts have received several dozen direct visits every day over the last several days. Special election voters tend to be exceptionally well informed about candidates and they may very well have considered that information in the voting booth.