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Friday, October 15, 2004

vote pairing? (i.e., strategic voting)

this election looks like it is going to be real close between john kerry and george bush... if you want kerry to become the next President of the United States of America, and agree with ralph nader on most issues (other than perhaps the issue of him running for president), perhaps it might make sense to vote for nader, if you live in safe democrat state (such as Washington DC), in exchange for someone in a "swing state," who would otherwise vote for nader, agreeing to vote for kerry...

i hope that makes some sense..

lets say i live in dc and i like nader but think bush is a danger to human civilization... and lets say someone else lives in washington state and wants to vote for nader badly but also thinks bush is a lunatic.. well then we contact each other and talk about it.. and i guess agree to pair ourselves or in a sense "trade" votes (yes it is legal)..that way its a win win.. nader gets a vote where it does not matter to the final outcome and kerry gets a vote in a state where it is critical he get the votes necessary to pick up the electoral votes...

i welcome thoughts on this as its an idea i'm seriously considering.. i don't believe i have anything to lose given kerry will carry dc's 3 electoral votes overwhelmingly.. at the same time i respect nader's constitutional right to run for president and frankly agree with most of his positions.. there is nothing wrong with a person wanting to serve his fellow citizens....in fact it is commendable.... instead of kerry blaming nader perhaps he ought to work harder to appeal to those voters attracted by nader... obviously, i would respect a nader decision to drop out (i am hoping he will do so)

check out this site for more info on so called "strategic voting":

www.votepair.org

and here find their FAQ on vote pairing:

http://www.votepair.org/faq.php#saying

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