I registered as independent in 1996, when I was less informed about politics and didn’t feel a preference. However, I’ve voted nothing but straight ticket Democratic since 2002.
Yeah. I’m technically independent but that’s because I’m not interested in joining a party. My vote always goes to the Democrat just because the Republicans are so horrible that it overrides all other considerations.
The problem with this is whether you can vote in a primary and not all states allow that unless you register as a member of that party you want to vote for. I would argue primaries are at least as important as the general election.
This and nice map. Some state primary rules favor independents, others bar them from participating. If you are in a closed primary state, you should consider joining a political party. And if you are in a one party jurisdiction and you care about its politics, you should consider registering in the majority party.
IIRC, in California, registered as a Non-Partisan, I was out of luck in the primaries. Of course, I could vote in the general elections. Here in Washington, we don’t have party registration o I can vote in the primaries as well.
I still laugh at the time I voted in L.A., and the Republican Party were giving away free cookies if you voted Republican. (I voted for the Democrat and still too their cookie.)
Which is why I’m a registered Republican in Kansas. I vote in the GOP primary.
Hasn’t helped yet, but I keep trying.
So a woman isn’t capable but a toddler is? That’s a deeply-rooted prejudice.
That chart is inaccurate insofar as Arizona is concerned. While registered party members get their own party’s ballots those registered as independent can and must request which party’s ballot they want to receive. Current registrations are 36% Republican, 29% Democrat, and 36% independent with the other three ballot-qualified parties, No Labels, Libertarian, and Green, totaling less than 2% among them. Cite.
I don’t know if I’d call it “mostly open” but when a third of the voters can vote in your party’s primary without being registered in it, it’s surely not a closed primary.
And I’ve mentioned I know what I think is probably a disproportionate number of genuinely wealthy people- 10s of millions to billions- and almost every one voted Trump solely because of money. Many would admit he’s an idiot, or they know he’s a racist jerk, but those things just stop mattering when your tax bill is seven figures, I guess.
(As always, and to be clear, I’m not rich, I just worked for rich people at one point)
Yes, it does. It costs you money.
–Jon Stewart, The Daily Show
Would be interesting to hear what those philanthropists are thinking today? Sure would hate to have a booming stock market with slightly higher tax rates they could easily circumvent… 
I’ve also previously mentioned that I know a couple of Republican voters. They aren’t RICH rich, but they’re probably better off than I am. One is a small business owner, one a doctor. Both of them will happily admit that Trump is an idiot, endlessly corrupt, has no idea what he’s doing, etc. And they both voted for him every time, and will do so again if he somehow manages to run for a third term.
Because the alternative would be voting for a Democrat. And however bad Trump is, every Democrat on earth is even worse.
They have been given something to hate, and that hatred is necessary, if not precious, to them.
The really perverse thing is that one of them is Jewish, and the other is a rather vocal atheist. Neither of them will have any place in the Christian nationalist society that the Project 2025 folks are trying to institute.
A slight clarification to the map: Washington (state) uses a “top-two” primary, where the first and second finishers go on to the general regardless of party affiliation. The parties can endorse candidates, but all the voters’ guide says is “prefers x party.” All voters get the full ballot, and can hopscotch down the races to their heart’s content.
Incorrect.
A certain number of Jews are required to form a Nation of Israel that will play a vital role in their Armageddon mythos after which whatever Jews did not die horribly and go to burn in hell for eternity the remainder will convert to Christianity.
Of course, the downside for global Jewry is that not all of the current Jews alive are necessary for this to occur, and it is only required that they be in Israel, there’s no reason to have the cluttering up the landscape anywhere else.
As I have heard it, they will die horribly at the hands of Jesus for the sin of not converting to Christianity the only thing that can cleanse the Jews of the sin of killing the Christ.
As I always say: since we Jews know that the Christian Armageddon isn’t going to happen and Jesus isn’t coming back, who, exactly, is conning whom?
As someone who is (was) in Israel a lot, I hear this from my colleagues.
And as I point out to them:
You are. Until they manage to get that great war started in your backyard.
I am afraid of what will happen once the “Christians” become just a touch more cynical than they already are, declare that one of their own “in” groups are the actual Jews (like maybe Jews For Jesus) and write off the actual Jews as disposable.