Voting for neither one

[Bright Star]

Let's say you have two people running for public office. They go on the air for weeks on end with one negative thing after the other. You don't like either one of them cause one seems like he wouldn't know what he'd be doing & the other seems too creepy for words. Now, when you go vote, can you NOT vote for either one of them?
Seems to me that if you have 2 bad choices then it's like having no choice at all.

[Millahtyme1983]

You can, it's called "blanking" and it's a way of saying that you do not like the choices. Another alternative is the write in which as the name implies you write in whomever you want.

Some might say it's throwing your vote away but one thing potential candidates look at is how many blanks and write-ins there were in the last election, if say in a race for state rep the guy that won did it with 53% of the vote but there were a 10% showing of blank ballots it indicates that he is not as popular as the vote would make him seem, and most of his votes were possibly just people voting against his opponent (blanks are not counted in the tally, so his opponent would have 47%) Because of this he could theoretically be taken down if a strong candidate were to face him in the next election. So by blanking your not throwing your vote away since either way one of them is going to win whether you vote for them or not, by blanking you are letting them know that they are venerable. That is the theory anyway.

[Ipecac Drano]

There is always a better choice. People who say that they're not going to vote because "all politicians are crooks" or some other variant are just too lazy to do a little research to see which one is telling the truth.

If one doesn't vote, one shouldn't complain.

[MadMike]

Another alternative is the write in which as the name implies you write in whomever you want.

I only ever did that once. It was for township commissioner. The guy who currently held the position was the same asshole who, years ago, had bought the building I was renting, and then kicked me and my then-5-year-old son out right before Christmas, because his wife wanted it for themselves, and apparently didn't care who they were kicking out.

I went in to vote, intending to vote for whoever was running against him, but wouldn't you know it? He was running unopposed. So I wrote in "Bart Simpson."

I only wish I had known he'd end up running for office when he kicked us out. I would have saved the letter he sent me, and gone to the paper with it. I'm sure everyone would just love him if they knew he had kicked out a single dad and his young son out of their home right before Christmas. Unfortunately, by the time I found out he was running for office, I had thrown the letter away.

Oh well, karma can be a real bitch, and I hope the fucking roof falls in on his head.

[Andara Bledin]

There is always a better choice. People who say that they're not going to vote because "all politicians are crooks" or some other variant are just too lazy to do a little research to see which one is telling the truth.

Nice blanket statement, there.

Sometimes, all available options suck. At that point you either go with a write-in, vote for the least of available evils, or you leave that post unvoted to indicate your displeasure with all options.

^-.-^

[Ipecac Drano]

Sometimes, all available options suck. At that point you either go with a write-in, vote for the least of available evils, or you leave that post unvoted to indicate your displeasure with all options.

So, you agree that there is the option of The Least of Available Evils? Really, I have yet to see two candidates that I cannot choose between. I always manage to find some tipping point between them.

[bhskittykatt]

If there's an independent candidate, see if you like them. Otherwise, cast a blank ballot.

If you don't vote, you lose all complaining rights, IMHO. I take my voting responsibility seriously. If you don't like the candidates, send a blank vote, or a write-in. At least that way, you've sent your message and you've earned the right to complain.

[Andara Bledin]

So, you agree that there is the option of The Least of Available Evils? Really, I have yet to see two candidates that I cannot choose between. I always manage to find some tipping point between them.

There will always be a lesser evil, but that is irrelevant to my statement and others' comments.

Just because one candidate might not be as evil as all the rest, that doesn't mean that they're automatically "good" enough to deserve a person's vote.

^-.-^

[Ipecac Drano]

There will always be a lesser evil, but that is irrelevant to my statement and others' comments.

Just because one candidate might not be as evil as all the rest, that doesn't mean that they're automatically "good" enough to deserve a person's vote.

And by sitting back, you run the risk of letting the Even Worse win the election.

[crashhelmet]

The problem with write-ins is that while it might make a statement, it's still worthless. The only thing it might do is convince the losing party that they need a better choice for candidate for the next elections. The winner is only concerned with the fact that they won. They don't care buy how much, only that they won.

CH

[Sleepwalker]

It means that you didn't vote. It doesn't matter if most people don't vote, only the people who DO vote matter. If there are ten voters, and 7 walk away in disgust, and two vote for you, you've won.

[Rapscallion]

I remember that Australia used to have a law declaring that everyone had to vote on pain of a $50 fine.

There are times when I'd cheerfully ask if I could get a lifetime membership to that for one lump sum.

http://news.icanhascheezburger.com/2...ch-of-tyranny/ sums up a fair amount of my views on the electorate and the elected.

Rapscallion

[Andara Bledin]

Be the change you want to see. If you don't vote, then obviously you have no interest in changing anything. *shrug*

^-.-^

[MadMike]

Be the change you want to see. If you don't vote, then obviously you have no interest in changing anything. *shrug*

Unfortunately, some people think that nothing's going to change, no matter who you vote for.

I have to admit, I'm not so sure they're wrong.

[Andara Bledin]

Unfortunately, some people think that nothing's going to change, no matter who you vote for.

I have to admit, I'm not so sure they're wrong.

Maybe, maybe not.

But if they don't even make the attempt, it's a self-fulfilling prophecy.

^-.-^