So far in my lifetime, I have always voted Democrat, and most likely always will. However, if a Republican came along who had ideals that matched my own, I would vote for them.
I doubt that it will ever happen, but I leave my mind open to the possibility.
The thing is, I vote for Democrats only grudgingly: I’d much prefer to be voting for someone with a progressive agenda that would move the US toward a more Scandinavian model of the relationship between the public and private sectors. I’m significantly to the left of any Democrat that ever has a chance of being President; I vote for the Democrat only as a consolation prize.
In order for me to vote for a Republican, either the electorate as a whole would need to make a radical shift to the left, leaving me behind in their zeal for outlawing religion and turning all businesses into government property etc., or else the parties would need to switch, with the Democrats being further to the right than Republicans are.
Maybe, but only because I expect to be alive for another fifty years or so and the parties may shift positions significantly during that time. In their current incarnation, no (unless the Democratic candidate were Rod Blagoevich or similar, in which case I would vote for a moderate Republican who seemed to be a decent and honest person).
I haven’t voted Republican for POTUS, although I came close with Dukakis/Bush 41 in '88. I guess the fact that I did vote Dukakis means it’s unlikely I ever would go GOP for pres.
I *have *voted Republican for US congress and US senate. I don’t think I have for governor (went 3rd party Blagojevich v. Topinka).
I have paid serious attention to two Republican presidential candidates in recent years - Bob Dole and John McCain.
Dole seemed initially like a relatively (for a politician) honest and independent-minded sort, but when things got serious he started pandering (i.e. succumbing to pressure to endorse Oliver North for the Virginia Senate race, despite North being a central figure in the Iran-Contra scandal). I had high hopes for a real choice in the Obama-McCain race in 2008, but McCain pandered to his party’s far rightist elements and picked a VP candidate I couldn’t stomach.
So I’d consider voting for a GOP candidate for President, but it looks like the party will need to make dramatic changes to return to a more centrist orientation before I’d do so (to use Eisenhower’s somewhat vague terminology, conservative on spending, liberal in regards to people).
As of now the highest office for which I’ve voted for Republicans is state supreme court justice.
The closest I’ve come (and likely the closest I ever will) was voting for Schwarzenegger for re-election as California Governor (I was against the recall of Gray Davis). It was kind of a perfect storm–centrist Republican, Democrat-dominated legislature (divided government is not the worst thing in the world), completely uninspiring Democratic nominee (Phil Angelides).
For President, the stakes are just too damn high, I can’t really see a situation where I would vote ®.
The Democrats would have to put forth a field of nothing but complete raving nutjobs for me to take any high-level Republican candidate seriously, and even then, said Republican would have to prove to **not **be:
I suppose there’s a non-zero chance of all those things happening at the same time.
No and I think I never will.
Prior to the Iraq war it is conceivable (although unlikely) that I would vote for a Republican. A friend of mine was killed in Iraq and now the GOP will always be the party that killed Chuck.
I voted for one today, does that count?
Seriously, I consider myself a Democrat now, but I never voted for a Democratic presidential candidate until 2008. I voted for GHW twice, Dole, and GWB twice. I was old back then; I’m much younger now.
I tried to vote in the GOP primary today but ended up casting a useless vote for Huntsman. It was the best I could do once I actually looked at the names.
I voted for GW, my first time ever voting, his second term. Mostly because I wasn’t very political and my Republican big brother had me terrified of him not being re-elected.
I will never make an ignorant mistake like that again. It’s highly unlikely I’ll ever vote Republican, not likely at all if it remains like it is today.
I’m a unique snowflake in that chances are I will live for another 40 years if not 50 or 60. 60 years ago it would unlikely for me to support the Democratic party if I lived in the South. So who knows what will happen 60 years from now.
If I were shoved into a time machine and forced to vote in the 1860 election, yeah. I’d vote Republican. Otherwise? No chance. Like Left Hand of Dorkness the current Democrats are too centrist for my liking, but you play the cards you get dealt. So as long as the Democrat isn’t some time traveler from before Roosevelt’s era, I’m voting the straight Dem ticket.
I’m young enough that '96 was the first presidential election I was able to vote in. I’m also one of those foul skanks who uses birth control, a former PP patient when I had no insurance, and think people living in abject poverty in one of the richest nations on earth is an absolutely disgraceful state of affairs. So no, I’ve never voted Republican. And as long as the GOP presents itself as the party of more war, less access to reproductive health care, and slashing social support programs, I can’t see someone I could support ever getting the Republican nomination.
Didn’t read the OP, eh?
One assumes that no one would call 60 years the reasonably near future.
Pat Robertson said feminisism is
As I recall, not so liberal. He got in touch with his “America is a CHRISTIAN nation” roots. Which he conveniently forgot to mention during the campaign. I, and many other supporters assumed - and in my case said - he didn’t reeeaaly mean it. It turns out he did. I heard less-than-pleasant stories from reliable sources - the sort of things that are all too typical of Congresscritters, but are deeply disappointing in someone who wanted to be POTUS.
I answered:
I have never voted for a Republican, but I have considered or might seriously consider doing so.
The caveat is: the Republican I considered voting for never actually ran for President, though he appeared to be seriously considering it for a while. That Republican is Colin Powell.
However, I’m not sure I would have ended up voting for him in the general election. It would have depended on who the Dems ran.
As for whether I would seriously consider voting for a Republican POTUS candidate in the future, well… certainly not until and unless the GOP decides to rejoin the human race and jettisons the Tea-Partiers.
Last two years I considered voting for a moderate Republican for President. Romney was prominent on my list. The primary campaign makes him look like a right wing idiot, so no, I’ll vote Obama. Least idiotic clown in the car doesn’t cut it.
I see what you did there.