Voting third party is a reckless abuse of privilege
This is not the time to screw around.
No third party candidate is going to be elected president in 2020, but third party votes will count. They will be part of the margin that decides swing states like Michigan.
Voting is a unique and powerful opportunity to participate in our political system–a privilege in itself. Voting third party demonstrates another kind of privilege, though.
It doesn’t just mean that your beliefs don’t align clearly with either Trump or Biden; it means you can afford to not be heard. I can only conclude that this luxury comes from:
- Being a person whose safety is not threatened by having a president who won’t condemn white supremacy.
- Living in a community will not be among the first impacted by climate change.
- Not having an identity for which the balance of the Supreme Court is essential for maintaining rights.
- Not having the Brett Kavanaugh hearings trigger PTSD.
- Not having an identity that has been the target of the vitriolic rhetoric spewed by our current presidential administration.
- Not belonging to a demographic which is disproportionately killed and hospitalized by COVID-19.
- Belonging to a demographic for which it is statistically improbable to ever be the victim of police brutality.
and finally
- Persisting in being more interested in ideological paragon than in loving those of your neighbors who cannot claim points 1-7.
I’m as antipathetic to the two-party system as the next op-ed writer, but now is simply not the time to waste your vote on a show of stubbornly elitist virtue–not when you could be using it to show genuine support for Black lives, the health of the planet, and basic human dignity.
Voting for Joe Biden may not have that guts-and-glory, me-against-the-world feeling of voting third party, but it demonstrates a sense of humility and long-term vision.
I’m from Vermont, so Bernie’s my #1, and I’m personally much more progressive than the Biden-Harris ticket. Thinking of this election as a step, not a destination, has been key to my processing. Obviously Joe Biden is not the ideal destination for lots of voters. But he’s a step in a good direction, or–if you prefer–a step away from a bad direction.
At the very least, voting for Joe Biden is a step. Voting third party is like standing still while everyone else does hundred-yard sprints.
Voting third party may seem like a way to stand up for your ideals or heroically defy the two-party system. In practicality, though, it is not a defense of ideals but an abandonment of them.
Now, of all times, we can not afford to be standing still.
Blake • May 5, 2021 at 1:38 pm
I’m late to this article, but I have to at least respond to it, even if nobody reads my comment.
First of all, the only reason a Third-Party Candidate didn’t win the 2020 Presidential Election(and will probably never win any future Presidential Election) is because there is a mindset in the first place that no Third-Party Candidate will ever win a presidency. Has anyone ever thought that if all of the people who claim a Third-Party Candidate will never win the presidency actually voted for a Third-Party Candidate for president…that a Third-Party Candidate would be elected as president? And you’re absolutely right-Third-Party Votes did count, and will continue to count-they counted, and will count towards a Third-Party Candidate. They have no effect on whether a non-Third-Party Candidate wins a “swing-state”, or any state for that matter.
Second of all, all of us can be affected by any candidate, especially Donald Trump. There may be some groups of people who are affected more than others, but to say that some people won’t be affected is an objectively false statement. There is research that shows impoverished racial minorities are more likely to not vote in the first place, so I’m not even sure where the “privilege” sentiment is coming from. Heterosexual wealthy white people, the most privileged demographic is the United States of America(and world, really) are the most likely to show up, and vote for one of the two-party candidates.
Third of all, did you think that MAYBE people who REALLY do care about racial minorities(not just virtual signaling), the environment, etc. are voting for a Third-Party Candidate because these people think such candidate is the best to help resolve these issues? It’s not like the two-party system has done anyone favors with such issues.
With all of this being said, I did hold my nose, and I voted Democratic Down the ticket in the 2020 Presidential Election. Donald Trump was too much of an extenuating circumstance in this particular election(and before anyone loses their mind while reading my post, I voted Democratic down the ticket in the 2016 Presidential Election too). Basically, my voting decisions have been influenced by the fact Trump is arguably the worst president in the history of the USA, and the most viable way of having him get out of office is to vote against him by voting for the Democratic Candidates.
I do find it a bit odd that Abigail Ham wants things to be more “progressive”, yet, is defending a regressive two-party system in this post.
John • Nov 14, 2020 at 10:58 pm
https://www.pewresearch.org/2010/10/29/the-party-of-nonvoters/
Actually people who choose not to vote are disproportionately poor people of color. Maybe the writer is the one who needs to check her privilege before making blanket statements about things she doesn’t understand?
Couldn’t find any data on third party voters specifically, but the same concepts apply.
debunker • Nov 11, 2020 at 10:38 am
Absolute brain washed, defeatist mind set. If you want real change, stop voting in rich elitist with a 155 year old party system that turns its people on each other rather than bring them together. You’re right, “this is not the time to screw around”.
Derek Jay • Nov 5, 2020 at 10:43 am
1: Trump has condemned white supremacy countless times. That is a baseless accusation rooted in blatant misinformation.
2: Brett Kavanaugh was accused of sexual assault without any sort of evidence. In America, we believe that you are innocent until proven guilty, and Kavanaugh should be afforded that right whether you agree with his rulings or not.
3: Not sure what identity to which you are referring that is the subject of Trump’s “vitriolic rhetoric.” He just garnered the largest non-white vote of any Republican in over 60 years. He is the first President to be openly pro-gay rights for his entire presidency (that’s right, both Joe Biden and Barack Obama campaigned as anti-gay marriage in 2008). I have listed those two examples because they are the most commonly brought up by the political left, but if you have other examples, I would love the opportunity to refute them as well.
4: If you think Covid-19 is Trump’s fault, you are sadly mistaken. It was a virus that China refused to control, and when it did come to America, Trump acted quickly, much to the dismay of the political left. Fauci claimed as late as late-March that masks were unnecessary and that it was not an airborne virus, and Democrats were still holding mask-less debates and campaign events in March as well. Obviously, the whole situation was not handled perfectly because we were flying with blinders on, but he did the best he could with the information he had.
5: Show me some sort of statistical evidence that police are systemically racist. Giving anecdotal evidence is not evidence that the problem is systemic.
6: Bernie Sanders has advocated for a system of government – socialism – that has enslaved and murdered millions in the history of mankind. From the USSR to China to Venezuela to Cuba, socialism has never succeeded in any of its many attempts. P.S. the Nordic countries (Sweden, Norway, etc.) are not socialist. Their own presidents or prime ministers say that they are not socialist countries.
John Doe • Nov 3, 2020 at 9:51 pm
Or alternatively, one votes third party because they realize that neither the Republicans or Democrats have the people’s best interests in mind and that hypothetical third party voter believes we need more choices to truly benefit those in need.
Kirk Vanhouten • Nov 3, 2020 at 2:42 pm
Quite to the contrary, I might argue that the assumption one *must* vote and vote for your candidate represents a “stubborn elitism”.