Honest question, please dont yell at me, is there any point in voting in my primary?>
@NiveusLepus I thought about voting for Bernie as a Republican write in, but you know, practically speaking there is no point.
@NiveusLepus consider this, out of the pool of candidates, is there one who fills you with hope? If so, get out there so they have a chance to be there again in November.
Think of all those frustrating fools in your neighbourhood who annoy you and yours. this is your chance to hack them off
@Mauve_matelot I don't feel a lot of hope when it comes to the government, but one side frightens me less.
@NiveusLepus @Mauve_matelot Yes, because the stakes are quite high, and there are enough people naive enough to vote for third party candidates. And because you better vote while you still can.
@Notokay @NiveusLepus I hope each of you makes it to the voting station and maybe arrange to go with someone so it's not a chore.
@Mauve_matelot @Notokay It's all mail in, here in washington
Be sure to use the secrecy sleeve!
@NiveusLepus Sure. It'll give you the moral high ground to bitch about the candidate you didn't vote for if/when they're in office! 😆 I'm mostly kidding. I vote at every opportunity that I'm given. I don't follow politics (esp local) as closely as I should, but voting the ballot for every election is a prod for me to do the bare minimum and read up a bit on who will hold the offices and where they say they stand on issues.
@Ironworker229 All good points, but this is specifically the primary. So its just whos going to be on the ballot, but we already know whos going to be on the ballot.
@Ironworker229 I think what irks me is that it wants me to declare myself a democrat or a republican, and to be honest, I'm neither.
I identify as a mountain hare, personally. ^_^
@NiveusLepus Oh yeah. I totes get that. I'm in CA. Biden will win the primary here. I'd still like to convey my support by upping the numbers. I think more votes means easier fundraising for the not-fascist, so I'm happy to do my part.
@Ironworker229 @NiveusLepus as a British Cosonaut, I am a floating voter, and have done tick box exercises about what is important to me, so the way i vote changes some times I vote Labour, other times lib dem, occasionally green party and a few times I've Spoilt my voting slip as a protest.
I've never voted Tory.
@Mauve_matelot It seems like all we can do here to even get off the couch and choose 1 out of 2, with pretty clear lines between them, especially lately. @NiveusLepus
@NiveusLepus @Ironworker229 That tick box doesn't mean you identify as Dem or Rep. It just says which primary you chose to vote in.
@NiveusLepus
Absolutely.
The primary is where you get to say what you want without worrying about strategy (much, anyway).
And are you talking about WA's presidential primary? Because why would you pass up such an easy opportunity to tell RFK Jr. and Marianne Williamson to go fly a kite? Plus Biden could use the juice.
If you mean the Republican primary--how often do you get to say you wrote in "Liz Cheney" rather than vote for Trump?
Primaries are full of hope. Generals are grim duty.
@NiveusLepus abstractly it’s about participating in the system. Not voting allows people to not only divorce themselves from the bad choices made in primaries. It also guarantees that the primary system never changes. But from a personal perspective, the biggest reason to vote is because every once in a while it matters and you and you don’t want to touch missing out. #fomo
@NiveusLepus I always vote in every election, primary local dog catcher. I look at it as a memory muscle it is a way to stay active in your government.
Local and state candidates become federal candidates. Always vote, especially in primaries, locals, and off years.
Heck, just vote. 😊
Yes. Always. Even if there's only one candidate.
By voting you endorse a person, an idea, a governing approach to making things better ...
... and/or making them less worse than they would otherwise be, tbh.
More, turning out shows the candidates you care about how your city/state/country is run.
And this seems harsh to some, I know, but if a person doesn't perform the least they can do to make things better, I really don't want to hear their complaints about how fucked up things are.
Your vote matters even if it does nothing more than contribute to the political zeitgeist. Even the most venal, phoning-it-in elected official pays attention to what will get them reelected.
@NiveusLepus
I didn't vote in 2016 because I couldn't bring myself to support either candidate. I will never, never, make that mistake again. I now vote even if there is no reason, even if it's just to choose the lesser of two evils. Sad, but that's where we are anymore. I guess it's to reinforce the habit.
@NiveusLepus others have done a good job of explaining.
The other piece is that our ancestors fought to have the people be able to choose potential general election candidates, not elites in a smoke-filled room.
Is the primary system flawed and needs tweaking? Yes. But is it better than the alternative? Yes.
Voting isn't just about the national candidates. You'll have local measures on the ballot, and in some cases if a candidate gets over 50% in the primary, they don't go to the general.
@NiveusLepus
yes
you are in washington state
only the 2 people
with the highest number of votes
move on to the general election