Another four years has come and tomorrow we will be asked to run to the polls to pick who will be the next President of the United States. The ever important choice between the guy who seems kind of ok and the guy we hate. Neither candidate really speaking to all the issues that matter to us, neither candidate actually making us feel like he or his party really gives a damn about John Q. Public, but that is the nature of our political beast at this moment. Many people will take this as an opportunity to not waste their expensive gas, driving their exhausted-from-political-ads self to a polling site, to then wait in line for God only knows how long to push a couple of buttons on a glorified ipad, choosing the better of two evils. To them I say don't give up. Don't give up and think that by you not voting its not going to matter. Don't justify staying away from the polls because you don't like either candidate and don't want either of them to be president. There are other people on the ballot.
Third party candidates, though ignored (especially due to the blitzrieg of ads, posters, billboards, calls, and merchandise produced for the two main candidates during this particular election season) can still matter. All third party candidates need is 5% of the popular vote and their party will be eligible for government funding in the next campaign in 2016. In 2008 everyone was so polarized between Obama and McCain that the third party candidates did not get 5% of the vote, leaving great presidential candidates like Jill Stein (Green Party) and Gary Johnson (Independent Party) with no help in 2012. If either Stein or Johnson had had federal funding, I feel more people who feel stuck voting for either Obama or Romney, would have had a candidate they actually stand behind. Both candidates care more about the American people than either front runner for the major political parties, and have been fighting tooth and nail this entire campaign to have people hear their messages and win their votes. Gary Johnson has stated in many of his speeches that voting for a third party candidate is not a wasted vote, and its not. It could mean that we could start the end of a two party regime holding us hostage to vote for one of two bad choices. If we want to really change our political system and start having real races in the future, we need our third parties to be able to step up and challenge the two party system that is running down the country at this moment. The only wasted vote is a vote that was never cast.
In 1992, even though Ross Perot (Independent) did not have the 5% electoral vote to be invited and allowed to speak in a presidential debate. Clinton and Bush invited him anyway, and allowed him debate. What are the current Republican and Democrat parties so afraid of that they made sure to not show Jill Stein or Gary Johnson the same courtesy? I think they know that the American people are getting tired of the same song and dance, and are worried that a third party candidate could actually have a shot at winning. If not winning the presidency, then at least knocking one of the two main players out of the running, and heaven forbid we have that.
So please, if you are still undecided and do not think you could vote for either candidate, don't stay home tomorrow. Instead give your vote to a third party candidate and let the government see that we need better more parties to choose from and better candidates for our future.
http://www.jillstein.org/
http://www.garyjohnson2012.com/
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