I don’t do this often, but for once, I can’t keep my mouth shut.
Most of us live in solidly red or solidly blue states. For example, I live in New Jersey. It’s going blue in November, thanks to Newark, Trenton and Camden. My vote is effectively canceled out by our good Democratic friends in the big cities, so in the end, it statistically doesn’t matter who I vote for in this state. Its electoral votes will go to Obama.
Admittedly because I believe most of the ideals of the Libertarian party, I’m voting for Bob Barr anyway. You’ve probably seen him on The Colbert Report. He’s the most prominent 3rd party candidate.
Problem is, we have a LOT of “third parties” around here, mostly because they don’t get enough airtime, and they’re not included in the nationally televised Presidential Debates. Why not? Because they specifically exclude any candidate from the debate unless they meet the following criteria:
- They’re eligble under the Constitution to be president. That’s OK, they should be.
- They have ballot access in enough states to mathematically win the presidency via the Electoral College. That’s OK, too.
- They have to poll at a minimum of 15% nationally.
Now how do they expect parties that AREN’T “red” or “blue” to poll 15% nationally if they don’t receive the same nationwide coverage for their candidates? We’re not kooks, you know. Matter of fact, Zogby International did a nationwide survey (also reported in the LA Times), and guess what? 69% of unaffiliated Independent voters (meaning not registered as any one party) are in favor of allowing Bob Barr into the debates. And the younger the voter, the more likely they were to want to hear another opinion. Naturally, only 39% of surveyed Democrats and 41% of surveyed Republicans were in favor. Overall, 55% said they wanted a third voice in the debates.
It’s a loaded system set up in favor of the Democrats and the Republicans. How do we fix it?
We all drop the idea of being “spoilers” or saying “my vote doesn’t count” or anything like that. We come together and realize the only way we can effect any change is to get behind something and push. The last time that happened, Ross Perot got into the debates. And he opened everything up, and the reds and the blues got scared.
Then in 2000 they added the “15% polling” clause into the debate requirements. They were scared of Ralph Nader that time. He was the first “big” third party candidate since Perot, and they didn’t want their precious boat rocked.
Every vote counts. Right now, the Libertarian party is polling at 3% according to CNN and 6% according toZogby. Once a third party, ANY third party, reaches 15%, they don’t just get access to the debates. They could even get access to federal matching funds, which you receive by getting 5% or more of the popular vote in a previous election. 15% in opinion polls and 5% in popular vote, and then you can finally see and hear change that would ACTUALLY make a difference in this country.
Red state? Blue state? If your state’s not “in play,” help the country out.
Your vote counts.
Vote for real change. Vote Libertarian.
