Have you decided?

Election Day is Tuesday.  Have you decided for which Presidential candidate you’re going to vote?  In all likelihood, you have.  I must confess, I have not made up my mind yet.  I do know, however, who I’m not going to vote for.  I’m not going to vote for Barack Obama.  I’m not going to vote for John McCain, either.  So, who’s left, then?  Well, let me explain.

First of all, this blog has been online for only one week now, and so far we have three authors, one who lives in Pennsaylvania, one who lives in Maryland, and one who lives in Delaware.  I’m the one who lives in Delaware.  Delaware is not a battleground state.  The most recent statewide poll in Delaware showed Obama 63%, McCain 33%.  Now, I realize that poll numbers can be off, way off, but even if that poll is off by 10 percentage points or more, Obama’s going to win the State of Delaware and our three electoral votes, especially with Joe Biden of Delaware as his running mate.  The way I see it, I’m free to vote for anyone I choose, even if it’s someone who has no chance of winning.

We hear a lot during national elections about the lesser of two evils philosophy of voting, and, I have to admit, if you live in a battleground state, such as Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, etc., that philosophy has merit, because you actually have a chance of affecting the outcome of the election.  If, however, you live in a state where the outcome is not in doubt, you are liberated in a way, free to vote for whomever your heart desires.  Wait a minute, you say.  Wouldn’t that be wasting your vote?

I don’t see it that way.  Let’s say that I, as a Delaware resident, voted for Obama.  What purpose would that serve?  It would make Obama’s substantial lead a tiny fraction of a percent larger than it already is.  In other words, I would be wasting my vote.  What if I voted for McCain, who I consider to be the “lesser of two evils”.  What purpose would that serve?  Obama would still win the State of Delaware by a large margin.  Again, I would be wasting my vote.

So, may I suggest to you that if you live in a state where one candidate has a commanding lead in the polls, consider voting for a third-party candidate.  If you feel compelled to vote for one of the big boys anyway, go right ahead.  But, let me ask you this.  Do you really like either one of these candidates?  Do you really want either one of these men to be President?  If so, I believe there may be some medication for your condition.  If not, and if you don’t live in a battleground state, why not join me in voting for someone who has absolutely zero chance of winning!  It’s really quite liberating.  I’ve done it before.

Now, there are quite a number of third-party and independent candidates running for President this year.  I”m going to list four of those candidates here.  I’m only listing four, because they are all on the ballot in a majority of states, and I don’t feel like linking to the campaign websites of twenty-some people.  However, if you’re interested, I found this site here listing everyone who has any kind of ballot access, even if it’s only write-in access in one state.  So, here are the four.

Constitution Party – Chuck Baldwin / Darrell Castle

Libertarian Party – Bob Barr / Wayne Root

Green Party – Cynthia McKinney / Rosa Clemente

Independent – Ralph Nader / Matt Gonzalez

So, if you decide to join me and vote third party, check out these campaign sites.  As for me, not that it matters, but I’m deciding between Chuck Baldwin and Bob Barr.  One of them will be getting my vote on Tuesday.  Not Obama.  Not McCain.