☆ Cruz: Calls for "strategic" voting undermine democracy
Opp Now contributor Cristabel Cruz says people should ignore requests to vote for the lesser of two evils, and should vote their consciences instead. What a refreshing concept. An Opp Now exclusive.
Confession: I really bristle when people stick their nose in my business.
Like when my mom used to tell me what to wear.
Or my Creative Writing teacher telling me my poems were "too provocative."
And political pundits telling me I shouldn't vote for the candidates I prefer because "it's not strategic."
Meh.
The whole point of voting and democracy, at least to the Ancient Greeks in their groovy togas, was to gauge authentic popular opinion so the system could determine leaders who were truly representative.
Simply put: Democracy aims to get honest choices from its citizens, not coerced nor purchased votes. Secret ballots exist for a reason, n'est-ce pa?
All of which underscores my dismay at seeing my Democrat party friends contort themselves into knots like a game of intellectual Twister trying to determine which of their gubernatorial candidates they should support, based on polling numbers, endorsements, money raised, online gambling odds, or which "lane" they're in.
Sadly not who they like the most--but rather who has the best "chance" of winning. As determined by biased media and dubious "experts."
So for this weekend I poked around to get some global perspectives on this "strategic" voting mindset, and guess what? In Europe, especially, there's a good deal of pushback against the monopoly of the two party system. And in the US, a good deal of support for Lesser of Two Evils voting comes from our friends on the far left.
Surprise, surprise.
--Cristabel Cruz
This weekend's' new readings include::
* Sabine McGinley from the U.K. saying electoral systems should be designed to help voters express their authentic preferences, not something they have to scheme around like a twisted game of Risk.
Read more: https://www.opportunitynowsv.org/blog/why-voting-should-not-be-a-game
* Noam Chomsky unpacks the pro's and con's of strategic voting.
Read more: https://www.opportunitynowsv.org/blog/far-left-leaders-embrace-lesser-of-two-evils-voting-strategies
* Reddit thread makes the big point: if all you do is vote for the short-term result, you lose the long-term opportunity.
Read more: https://www.opportunitynowsv.org/blog/strategic-voting-as-a-system-of-control
Follow Opportunity Now on Twitter @svopportunity
We prize letters from our thoughtful readers. Typed on a Smith Corona. Written in longhand on fine stationery. Scribbled on a napkin. Hey, even composed on email. Feel free to send your comments to us at opportunitynowsv@gmail.com or (snail mail) 1590 Calaveras Ave., SJ, CA 95126. Remember to be thoughtful and polite. We will post letters on an irregular basis on the main Opp Now site.