What is wrong with people who vote green party in close elections?

[Facetious]

Seriously. Webb would be winning easily if it weren't for this stupid Green party asshole stealing 20k votes. Voting for the Green party is basically the same as not voting, in terms of moving our country in a better direction. I understand the stupidity of a 2 party system, but voting Green party and getting a Republican elected is not going to solve the problem.

[DoTheFandango]

Didn't they have voting issues in Virginia with the new Diebold machines? This is something to look into.

[Ignominy]

I repeat: lol voting

[Suh]

we got the same problem in U.K, as much as i hate labour, i hate conservative even more and in the last election alot of people voted for lib dem that would have voted labour previously but wanted to send labour a message, basically spliting labours base (the cons have got that sexy upper middle class base to feed off for many a winter) and giving the cons a free win in alot of places.

FUN FACT NUMBER 352:-where im from has the most green voters anyway in the U.K, i think...oh, someones gonna internet research slap me

i just woke up so sorry if that made no sense

together - the fray

[Dameon Angell]

Split voting has always been a problem since Teddy Roosevelt went Bull Moose. Problem is there is no credibility in the other parties, so you're suck with the two major players.

[Vykromond]

I have great respect for anyone who votes for a third party candidate in a contested race. Voting is about supporting the candidate you feel should have the position, not playing some sort of 'meta-game' of who you should best vote for so that your least favourite candidate can lose.

[genocidal]

A couple of my teachers in high school voted for Nader in the Gore-Bush 2000 election. They are pretty liberal and normally vote Democrat but felt that neither candidate was up to their standards so used their vote more as a way to express distaste for the choices. Given Nader's strong showing in that election it's fair to say that other people felt the same.

Still, though, I live in Florida which was the tiebreaker so I can't say I personally agree with their decision but I respect it. Who can say what the country would look like now if nobody in Florida had voted for Nader and Gore had won? I'd hope it'd be a lot better but they clearly felt that it wouldn't have made much difference - especially with what hadn't yet happened at the time (9/11).

[Vykromond]

But even with Florida, saying that if Nader hadn't run Gore would somehow have won only confuses the issue. It's just as likely that the people who voted for Nader would not have voted at all if there were only the two options on the ballot.

[genocidal]

That's quite true and I have no problem with how anyone wants to use their vote, nor do I blame them. I didn't mean to berate their position but that's just how I personally feel I will use my vote: lesser of two evils. Perhaps I'm just more cynical with my vote.

The same could be said of the '92 election but I still give Perot credit for the US having elected the best President of the last 50 years (EDIT: Since Truman).

[geekbot]

I understand the stupidity of a 2 party system, but voting Green party and getting a Republican elected is not going to solve the problem.

I voted Green instead of Republican. Does that make me smart or stupid? Or does that mean I canceled a Green voter who would have voted Democrat? Or does my vote only count if the election is won by only one vote? Or maybe I should just vote for who I want to win...oh, yeah, I did.

[Facetious]

I voted Green instead of Republican. Does that make me smart or stupid?

I think it makes you doubly stupid?

I don't know, if you read over the Green party platform, it's just hopelessly unrealistic. I feel like most Green party voters aren't voting because they really think the Green party is the right idea, but they're doing it to make a point that they don't like the other two parties and they want a third party. It's not a lot different than voting Democrat because you like the Republicans less, except that voting Green is meaningless. I also feel that people who go out of their way to vote Green would definitely vote Democrat if there were two options. If you even know who the Green party is, you are at least somewhat politically aware.

[Vykromond]

Anyway, Webb won.

[Facetious]

Maybe.

[DoTheFandango]

Anyway, Webb won.

Hopefully. A split government is possibly the best thing anyone could hope for right now.

[Mantra-Slider]

the party I usually vote for only gets like around 5 % of the total votes and is always one of the absolute smallest to get places in the swedish parliament (altho growing every year, not the smallest anymore! ). But I guess its completley different with a two party system.. I agree that it does sound a bit stupid to not vote democrat if its the only chance to remove bush or to damage his power, but at the same time I do think I still would have voted for whatever party I felt represented me the most, even if I knew it would be worth shit to the outcome of the election.