Finding a candidate that is in line with your views can be difficult when you feel as though you only have two options. Where else in our lives have we been pigeonholed into only two options? Not a lot in a world of endless opportunities. Our government and voting shouldn’t be the equivalent of wanting a Diet Coke at a restaurant and having the waitress reply “is Pepsi okay?” Third-Party candidates might be where your (and quite possibly everyone’s) future of voting is waiting – if we only have the courage to believe in and understand them.
So Many Issues, So Little Time
There are far too many political issues out there for them to fit into bucket A or bucket B. With relying on only a Republican or Democratic candidate, you will find yourself bending and breaking to decide where you fit in. Imagine if you went into a Starbucks and could only have a black coffee or tea. Those are your only choices, no flavors, no syrups, no milk. It feels pretty restricting, so why are people tolerant of being funneled into one or the other with our voting rights? Take some time to read and learn about the Third-Party candidates and see if you find someone who is more in-line with your ideas and feelings.
Bigger Isn’t Always Better
Watch any nationally broadcasted presidential debate and you’ll get to hear a couple big hot topic issues being argued. They are always the usual suspects, gun control, reproductive rights, and national security. There are so many other aspects of our daily lives that are impacted by way more than these big ideas. Take into account the complete package of your day to day life when you put yourself behind a candidate. Third-Party candidates will be a little more focused on issues that will directly have an effect on you, rather than trying to stick their heels in the sand on what their party has stood for historically.
Break the Stigma
Nothing is more politically sad and a violation of your voting rights than saying you are voting for someone because they are the “lesser of two evils.” This is a notion we should break, especially when there are other options out there. Yes, there are two major political parties, but who decided those are the two that get the most attention? We do. Things will never get any better than “the lesser of two evils” if we don’t have the courage of our conviction to support other candidates. It might not be a groundbreaking game-changer in the next election, but over time, election by election, our country has an opportunity to slowly change the course of history and not be held hostage in representation of our views.
Your Vote, Your Choice
Small-minded people will tell you voting Third-Party is “throwing your vote away.” Absolutely not. Everyone was given one vote in the election and you should be able to exercise that vote however you see fit – despite what anyone else thinks. Don’t think of your voting for an alternative candidate as letting someone else win. This goes back to setting the wheels in motion for change. If we never shed any light on other alternatives, how will we ever get those other options available for the masses? We truly hold the future of voting in our hands at every election. Think about the next 200 years of our country, instead of the next 4.
You will truly be voting for a change in government when we all start highlighting other possibilities instead of letting two options run our lives. Take some time to educate yourself on alternatives and you might surprise yourself to find there is an ideal candidate for you out there, without any compromise.