Know Your Ballot: Presidential Candidates
Election day is tomorrow…finally. Here is a list of prior posts starting at the bottom of the St. Louis ballot:
By now most, if not all, of you know how you’ll vote tomorrow. This post isn’t intended to get anyone to change their minds, my purpose is to help the undecided and to explain the rational behind my own choice.
FOR PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT (A VOTE FOR PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT IS A VOTE FOR THEIR ELECTORS) (VOTE FOR ONE PAIR)
I should point out the ballot language is different than every other race on the ballot. “A vote for their electors” is referring to Missouri’s 10 electors in the electoral college. Nationally, there are currently 538 electors — Missouri’s 10 is less than 2% of the 270 needed to win.
This video is good, though it reinforces the two-party duopoly:
While two states (Maine & Nebraska) have proportional electors, all 10 in Missouri vote for the president/vp team with the most votes — winner take all. Since 1980 there have been nine presidential elections, with all Missouri’s electoral college votes going for the Republican pair seven times. The two times Missouri went for the Democrat was Clinton/Gore in 1992 & 1996 — two decades ago. Obama/Biden came very close in 2008, but not in 2012.
For years Missouri went for the president that was elected, but not the last two elections. Missouri has lost its previous status as a bellwether/battleground state. The only reason Clinton & Trump visited Missouri since becoming nominees was to attend the recent debate at Washington University, or raise money. Missouri is considered safe red or leaning red, depending upon who you ask.
- FiveThirtyEight lists Trump as having a 90.3 chance of winning Missouri a week ago, up from 83.3%as of 10/6/2016.
- 270ToWin lists Missouri as sold red, not even pink.
- RealClearPolitics does show Missouri as pink, but Illinois as solid blue.
It’s safe to assume all 10 of our electoral college votes will go to Trump/Pence. Still, the electoral college map favors Clinton. The following video is from August so the polling data mentioned is dated, but the electoral math remains basically the same:
Missouri voters have five pairs to choose from, the two major parties and three 3rd parties:
- HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON / TIMOTHY MICHAEL KAINE – DEM
- DONALD J. TRUMP / MICHAEL R. PENCE – REP
- GARY JOHNSON / BILL WELD – LIB
- DARRELL L. CASTLE / SCOTT N. BRADLEY – CST
- JILL STEIN / AJAMU BARAKA – GRN
Last week I voted, but I didn’t vote straight party. With many offices on the ballot I voted for 6 Democrats, 3 Greens, 1 Libertarian, and 1 Republican. The presidential race is one where I voted Green — to help them try to get 5% of the popular vote nationwide.
Just 5 percent of the national vote for the Green Party Stein/Baraka ticket can be a true game-changer for American politics. It will qualify the Green Party for recognition as an official national party, and for federal funding in the 2020 presidential race proportional to the amount of votes received — at least $8 million to $10 million. It would also secure ballot access in a number of states that automatically grant ballot status if the presidential candidate receives anywhere from 1 percent to 5 percent of the vote (varying by state). It means the party can leap over the undemocratic barriers to ballot access for independent parties in many states, and help us lay the groundwork for a truly competitive challenge to the two-party system and the corporate rule it perpetuates. — Dr Jill Stein on MSNBC
In Missouri, Illinois, and most states, voters can vote for the ticket that best represents their values. Voters in battleground states like Florida & Pennsylvania, on the other hand, have a much tougher choice as their vote will help determine the final winner.
I didn’t want to waste my vote on a major party candidate when it could help a 3rd party in four years. This is my 8th time voting in a presidential election, though my pick won’t even get a fraction of one electoral college vote — I’ve never felt better about my decision.
— Steve Patterson