3rd Party Candidate - Would you vote for 1?

[srhs]

PURELY HYPOTHETICAL:
If you lived in a swing state (knew your vote counted) and MOST AGREED with a 3rd party candidate who had little-to-no chance of winning, would you vote for that person or would you vote for your 2nd choice (being from one of the two major parties)?

[Clarity]

I did once...but won't again. Bush vs Gore vs Nader anyone? *sigh*

[kijip]

No, I am too pragmatic. :)

[maestramommy]

No. I did it once when the Gubernator replaced the incumbent during a recall election. That was enough for me.

[mamicka]

No, but I believe in the 2-party system.

[JTsMom]

Nope. Too pragmatic here, too.

[egoldber]

No, I am too pragmatic

:yeahthat: No candidate is ever liberal enough for me :ROTFLMAO: but I vote D because its the closest I'm going to get.

If we had a multi-party system where that vote actually counted as opposed to being wasted, sure.

[caribbeanmama]

:yeahthat: No candidate is ever liberal enough for me :ROTFLMAO: but I vote D because its the closest I'm going to get.

If we had a multi-party system where that vote actually counted as opposed to being wasted, sure.


My thoughts exactly. :applause:

[Gena]

Yes. This is a not a hypothetical question for me. I have done it in the past and would do it again. I am very disenchanted by the two-party system and there have been many times when a 3rd party candidate (usually the Libertarian Party) matches my views most closely.

When I was young and new voter, I thought that voting for a 3rd party candidate was a waste and I would instead vote for the major party candidate who I felt was the "lesser of two evils". The problem was, I never felt good about my vote. As I got older I discovered that voting with my conscience for the person I truly believed in made a lot more sense and felt more satisfying.

I now understand that no vote that is cast is "wasted". The only people who waste their votes are those who do not vote at all.

[american_mama]

I would vote for the third party candidate that I liked, even if he or she had little chance of winning. If it was a swing state, I might think harder about it, but in general, I don't feel that a vote is ever wasted. It's a representation of me and my beliefs, be that that Candidate X is best for the job, that Issue Y matters most, or that Parties 1 and 2 need to be shaken up by hearing from a third party. There are various ways to do that, but the bottom line is your vote.