How many here voted third party in 2020?

I generally don't vote third party. They just don't field strong candidates, even the 2020 election they were worst then Biden.

I wanted Trump out of office, and the Democrat candidate was the only one who had a chance of accomplishing that.

Another Solidarity party supporter.

Let me know when your party lowers itself to doing the boring work of building a base, getting state or local office holders, and quits wasting its time of presidential campaigns.

Desk trauma said:

Another Solidarity party supporter.

Let me know when your party lowers itself to doing the boring work of building a base, getting state or local office holders, and quits wasting its time of presidential campaigns.

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It's our obsession in this country with the presidency. It's about the prestige more than actual effectiveness. Even at the federal level it doesn't matter who the President is if there is an active congress working to direct him. But the presidency is more prestigious, so that's what people go for.

Third-Party voting won't really take hold and become popular until we change to ranked-choice voting or something like it. Our First past the post system we have now favors the 2 party system and makes voting for third parties a wasted vote.

Third party need to focus on local elections to build a base and show they can govern and that their policies work.

Otherwise it is just a protest vote that is wastied.

I didn't vote 3rd party. But I didn't vote for either Trump or Biden. I wrote-in Pete Buttigieg for Pres. and Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth for VP.

Of course not. Third party voters fundamentally misunderstand the role of their vote in the general elections. You’re only ever spoiling the election for your preferred first party candidate when you vote third party.

Jesse Dornfeld said:

I know I am a minority here. I couldn't stand to vote for either Trump or Biden so I voted for Brian Caroll in 2020. They are socially conservative and fiscally liberal. They are a Christian party called the American Solidarity Party.

Read about this party here.

American Solidarity Party

The American Solidarity Party is a Christian democratic party promoting human life, social justice, environmental conservation, and international peace.

www.solidarity-party.org

However, I am asking who here voted Third Party in 2020. Please answer the poll question.

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I voted for Carroll too! Glad he made it onto the ballot in my state (I gathered a few signatures for him).

Desk trauma said:

Another Solidarity party supporter.

Let me know when your party lowers itself to doing the boring work of building a base, getting state or local office holders, and quits wasting its time of presidential campaigns.

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They have been trying that. But it isn't a "waste" to spend time on presidential campaigns because that's the main way you can actually get attention and build that base to begin with. Presidential campaigns seem to be how most people find out about third parties.

The IbanezerScrooge said:

Third-Party voting won't really take hold and become popular until we change to ranked-choice voting or something like it. Our First past the post system we have now favors the 2 party system and makes voting for third parties a wasted vote.

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I'm not sure ranked choice would suddenly make third parties viable, but it certainly couldn't hurt, and it's definitely an upgrade on first past the post (though legitimately, it's difficult to think of voting systems worse than first past the post). Approval voting is another decent option, and while I prefer ranked choice voting to approval voting on the whole, it is true that the main criticisms of ranked choice voting I've seen (being more confusing than the current system and potentially taking longer to figure out the winner for because you need all the ballots in if no one has a majority) vanishes when it comes to approval voting. It's basically just a straight upgrade to our current system.

But I agree that one of the big issues is first past the post voting. It really needs to be replaced with something else--whether it's ranked choice, approval voting, proportional representation, or something else, it'd still be better.

JSRG said:

They have been trying that.

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Wake me when the get their first seat.

My vote for president is irrelevant, because my state is about 65% Republican.

Why did I vote Democratic instead of a choice like libertarian? Because I want the Republican representatives to realize the full extent of the people who oppose them and why. The more support they have, the worse they will be.

It's not good to live in a state where there isn't any significant opposition. The Republicans tend to be more extreme, and there are some in our state legislatures who are dangerous extremists.

When I vote for Democrats, I think about the woeful motley crew of people who are going to allegedly represent me and send them a message. "Your ideas are wrong. You don't represent me. You have to do better."