Who to vote for: Write-in or third party?

[Kersh]

I have determined that I cannot, as a faithful Christian vote for Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump. I also don't think that I can vote for Gary Johnson or Jill Stein.

So, my question is this: who here feels the same way? If so, how do you plan to vote? Can we as Christians get behind a write-in candidate? If so, who?

I have no illusions that the next President will be either Hillary or Donald. But, my prayer is that the church can get behind a third option in large enough numbers to communicate our discontent with the options that we have been presented with. My question is do we vote for to accomplish this?

 

[MoonlessNight]

At this point you have to accept that your vote is not going to anything whatsoever to affect anything. You certainly aren't going to vote for a winning candidate, but whoever you vote for will not even receive enough vote for anyone to take notice. You will have more of an impact on the political future of this country in a single water cooler discussion with your coworkers, no matter how frivolous, then you will with your vote.

I am not saying this to dissuade you from voting a write-in or an obscure third party candidate. I have done that in previous elections. But if you're going to do it, you need to be realistic about what you are doing. And what you are doing is signalling your personal support for a candidate as a matter of principle. With that in mind you should find a candidate who most closely supports your principles. Don't vote for a third party candidate who only sort of supports your principles. What would be the point of that? All you will be doing is making concessions with yourself to achieve nothing. It would be better to simply not vote for anyone for president at all.

You should also keep in mind that there are many ways to be politically active beyond voting for president. If you don't vote for president, but do vote in local elections and do let your representatives know your concerns, you will do far more good than in writing in any name in the slot for president.

So I guess what I am saying is don't agonize too long over it. If you feel compelled to signal your support in some infinitesimal way, look at the various small party candidates and pick someone who you can believe in. If you can't find anyone who meets that description, just leave the vote for president blank and don't lose any sleep over it.

 

[Gwen-is-new!]

Great ideas Moonless.

Kersh - Can you not just focus on 1 really important issue such as the Supreme Court and which candidate will put who in there? PLEASE don't waste your vote.

 

[Kersh]

Great ideas Moonless.

Kersh - Can you not just focus on 1 really important issue such as the Supreme Court and which candidate will put who in there? PLEASE don't waste your vote.

I will not be voting for Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump. Both are frighteningly bad for America.

That said, I don't think that it is throwing away my vote to use it in a concerted effort to undermine the "mandate" that the winner will bring into office with him or her. This is why I would like to know how other people, who cannot vote for Trump or Clinton are voting. Even 1% support behind a particular write-in candidate would send a strong message.

 

[MoonlessNight]

That said, I don't think that it is throwing away my vote to use it in a concerted effort to undermine the "mandate" that the winner will bring into office with him or her. This is why I would like to know how other people, who cannot vote for Trump or Clinton are voting. Even 1% support behind a particular write-in candidate would send a strong message.

This is what people say every election, and it never is. Even if you could get a write-in candidate to 1%, and you won't, no one will care. Ron Paul had more going for him in 2008 than any other write-in candidate, and he only got 42,426 votes, which wasn't even a tenth of a percent of the popular vote. This is despite the fact that he was well known, had a great deal of support, and was in the primary process with some victories there. Who are you going to find who will get the same level of support in one month?

And even if you did find someone who could get the same level of support, it would almost certainly be someone who you disagree with on many issues, so you'd have to compromise your values to vote for him. And what would you be compromising for? A tenth of a percent if you are lucky? No one is going to care about that result, or think that it detracts from the "mandate" of the actual winner.

Again, I can understand reasons to vote third party or even write in, since I have done this in the past. But be realistic about what you are doing. You aren't doing something which will have a political effect on the nation, rather you are trying to do the right thing without arguments about the consequences. That's fine, but own it. If you want to argue that your vote is going to change the nation and that's why you are doing it, you'd be better off voting for Trump or Hillary and hoping that they will change their positions on anything that you find objectionable. There's a higher chance of success of that than a write-in candidate changing the political landscape in any perceptible way.

 

[Kersh]

This is what people say every election, and it never is. Even if you could get a write-in candidate to 1%, and you won't, no one will care. Ron Paul had more going for him in 2008 than any other write-in candidate, and he only got 42,426 votes, which wasn't even a tenth of a percent of the popular vote. This is despite the fact that he was well known, had a great deal of support, and was in the primary process with some victories there. Who are you going to find who will get the same level of support in one month?

And even if you did find someone who could get the same level of support, it would almost certainly be someone who you disagree with on many issues, so you'd have to compromise your values to vote for him. And what would you be compromising for? A tenth of a percent if you are lucky? No one is going to care about that result, or think that it detracts from the "mandate" of the actual winner.

Again, I can understand reasons to vote third party or even write in, since I have done this in the past. But be realistic about what you are doing. You aren't doing something which will have a political effect on the nation, rather you are trying to do the right thing without arguments about the consequences. That's fine, but own it. If you want to argue that your vote is going to change the nation and that's why you are doing it, you'd be better off voting for Trump or Hillary and hoping that they will change their positions on anything that you find objectionable. There's a higher chance of success of that than a write-in candidate changing the political landscape in any perceptible way.

I suppose you're probably right. In any event, I would like to know who others will be writing in. However small and meaningless my protest vote is, I want it to be thought out.

 

[victorinus]

I have determined that I cannot, as a faithful Christian vote for Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump. I also don't think that I can vote for Gary Johnson or Jill Stein.

I agree
-and-
-will write in 'jeb' for president
-will vote for all the other republicans on the ballot
-
I know the trump supporters are mad and so am I
-but-
I am mad at the trump voters who have put us in this awful situation

 

[MoonlessNight]

I agree
-and-
-will write in 'jeb' for president
-will vote for all the other republicans on the ballot
-
I know the trump supporters are mad and so am I
-but-
I am mad at the trump voters who have put us in this awful situation

There's no reason to be upset.

You can still put in Jeb's name and watch him lose.

It's no different than if he had gotten the nomination.

 

[lovetogarden]

A person who cheats, lies, steals, fornicates can be sinful but not evil. An evil person is one who seeks and works to destroy the good. Modern liberalism is the devil's work. It makes the good bad and the bad good. While Trump is clearly a sinner, Hillary Clinton is evil. She fully supports the abortion holocaust and will now work to silence those who criticize it. Through her aggressive support of anti-marriage and gender ideology she has destroyed many families and individual lives and seeks to destroy many more and will ruthlessly destroy those who speak against her. She is largely responsible for the chaos in Libya and Syria while at the same time taking Saudi money for her foundation and selling them arms while they conduct a brutal war against Yemen. She views the migrant crisis in the ME as an opportunity to increase the Democrat base in the US, this despite the terrorism and multiple gang rapes going on in Europe as a result of their open borders policy. This will quickly become a public safety issue for the American people. You cannot equate the two presidential teams. Those who seek to help the evil candidate to office by attacking a sinful candidate are participating in not sin but evil. Lest we forget, Jesus forgave sinners, even those who murdered him. Some of the most prominent people in the bible were sinners. Some even murdered or were accomplice to murder, but were forgiven and later used by God to fulfill his will. Moses, Paul (Saul), and King David spring to mind. Trump is simply the conduit to wrest power away from the evil elites and political aristocracy that have taken over the country in the guise of benevolent masters and public servants while delegating the rest of us to complacent and complicit peasant class.

 

[lovetogarden]

But the choices are what they are. We need to get our head out of the sand and realize that these are our choices. An angelic figure is not floating down at the minute we can vote for. So there's no real point in talking about this. No offense.

Yep, wishing it would be different is not going to make it so. It is what it is. I suspect that if Trump is elected his administration won't look much different than the earlier administrations of the last century. America will come first and the rule of law will be restored, but first, there is going to be a lot of work to be done to undo all the damage the Left has done to this country.

 

[Kersh]

But the choices are what they are. We need to get our head out of the sand and realize that these are our choices. An angelic figure is not floating down at the minute we can vote for. So there's no real point in talking about this. No offense.

With all due respect, nobody is making you post in the thread if you don't feel like this is something to talk about. Just sayin'.

In the end, the real solution to the problem is not in voting, but in prayer. I believe that we are in the situation we are in, because God ordained it, much in the same way that He ordained that Saul would be King of Israel and that Nebuchadnezzar would invade Jerusalem. And, if that's the case, then there isn't anything we can do about it, except to pray that God will give us a way out. But, if there is any chance at all that God is giving us a way out, however unlikely it may seem, we should do whatever it takes to participate with Him in that.

And, if it is God's will that we will endure a Clinton or Trump presidency, then we'll just have to endure it. But, in the meantime, I will do whatever is in my power to avoid that outcome, even if it amounts to nothing.

 

[Kersh]

I think Drs. Mohler and Moore sum up my feelings well in the video below.:

https://caffeinatedthoughts.com/2016/07/albert-mohler-russell-moore-donald-trump-christians-voting/

 

[Kersh]

OUT OF THESE TWO and only out of them, who would you rather?

Absolutely neither. There is no lesser evil here.

I will pray for a miracle and brace myself for the reality that one of these will be our next President, as I trust in God's sovereignty over His creation and His people.

 

[Kersh]

If Hillary is elected then we will have abortion on demand. If a Christian person thinks that's remotely okay, well, I do not know what to say to that. She praises Margret Sanger who was a racist. Trump may not be perfect, but, no one but Jesus is. Hillary is not just imperfect like we all are but she is a dishonest hypocrite.

We already have abortion on demand, and that is not okay. But, abortion legislation is not the be all and end all. As the body of Christ, we need to embrace a culture of life, character, decency, and civility. We cannot have a President who threatens physical violence against those who disagree with him, who demands the deportation of millions of immigrants, who believes that women (including his own daughter) are playthings to do with as men please, who gives voice to every despicable thought that enters his mind, and who calls for the murder of non-terrorist non-combatant relatives of people he believes to be involved with ISIS. Nor can we have a President who unashamedly supports the right to kill a baby up to the moment of birth, tries to silence those who have been victimized by her husband's own filandering, who cannot be bothered to tell the truth about those who died under her watch, and refuses to exercise a modicum of discretion in her handling of sensitive information (even to the point of criminality). Neither is remotely fit to be President, but short of a miracle, one of them will be.

The body of Christ really needs to be intense prayer about this.

 

[ScottA]

I have determined that I cannot, as a faithful Christian vote for Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump. I also don't think that I can vote for Gary Johnson or Jill Stein.

So, my question is this: who here feels the same way? If so, how do you plan to vote? Can we as Christians get behind a write-in candidate? If so, who?

I have no illusions that the next President will be either Hillary or Donald. But, my prayer is that the church can get behind a third option in large enough numbers to communicate our discontent with the options that we have been presented with. My question is do we vote for to accomplish this?

What you are purposing...is to go against the will of God (who raises up government leaders).

Make no mistake, these two perspective candidates can only be where they are by the will of God. No one else is in charge of history. And, yes, we absolutely deserve one of these despicable leaders.

Democrats deserve Trump, and Republicans deserve Hilary.

I would counsel Christians in this way: Remember that even God allowed Satan to rule over men for a time. Why then, would it be wrong for us to allow one of the two that God has raised up for such a time as this? Did you think that any candidate would be righteous...ever has been, or ever will be? Did God not allow Caesar? Render therefore unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and unto God what is God's. God is in control.

 

[Kersh]

What you are purposing...is to go against the will of God (who raises up government leaders).

Make no mistake, these two perspective candidates can only be where they are by the will of God. No one else is in charge of history. And, yes, we absolutely deserve one of these despicable leaders.

Democrats deserve Trump, and Republicans deserve Hilary.

I would counsel Christians in this way: Remember that even God allowed Satan to rule over men for a time. Why then, would it be wrong for us to allow one of the two that God has raised up for such a time as this? Did you think that any candidate would be righteous...ever has been, or ever will be? Did God not allow Caesar? Render therefore unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and unto God what is God's. God is in control.

By this logic, Dietrich Bonhoeffer et al went against the will of God by opposing Hitler (and in a much more extreme way). I am simply talking about voting and praying for a miracle and accepting the outcome if God chooses not to work the miracle. How is this opposing God?

 

[ScottA]

By this logic, Dietrich Bonhoeffer et al went against the will of God by opposing Hitler.

In a manner of speaking, yes. But, does that mean that we disagree with God's choice to allow it...or we should be pleased with what He has determined? No...you are under the wrong impression. By your logic, Christ would have not gone to the cross - and you are about to pray as Peter, who swore not to see Christ killed.

All tragedy is not against the will of God - Pray, rather, for his will. And if you want to help, then fight...see His will in what is before us, and take up your sword.

 

[com7fy8]

Can we as Christians get behind a write-in candidate?

my prayer is that the church can get behind a third option

Make sure you vote about any proposals that your state might present. Whatever God has you do will help > 1 Corinthians 15:58.

 

[Kersh]

In a manner of speaking, yes. But, does that mean that we disagree with God's choice to allow it...or we should be pleased with what He has determined? No...you are under the wrong impression. By your logic, Christ would have not gone to the cross - and you are about to pray as Peter, who swore not to see Christ killed.

All tragedy is not against the will of God - Pray, rather, for his will. And if you want to help, then fight...see His will in what is before us, and take up your sword.

If I knew for certain that God intended us to have an evil leader, I'd agree with you. But, Scripture is full of godly people who prayed and prophesied for deliverance from judgment, sometimes successfully, sometimes not. Consider Moses who stood up to the most powerful leader in the world and freedom the Israelites or King Josiah who desperately tried to turn Judah from the evils of King Manassas in hopes of avoiding the judgment of exile, only to be told that it was too late. The point is that we can't, without clear and direct revelation, know whether this judgment is God's will or whether His will is for us to repent before it comes. Inot either scenario, it's not God's will that we should continue to live in sin in order to hasten judgment (which is what a vote for HTC or DJT would be).

 

[Kersh]

Anyone know anything about this guy:

https://www.evanmcmullin.com/home