The only way that makes sense is if they’re in a coma and have been for the past 6 years.
I don’t really get the rage against undecideds. Yes, it seems a bit silly to me that someone hasn’t made up their mind yet, and I don’t actually know anyone who claims to be undecided, but again, some people are going to be less decisive about those sorts of things. Personally, I’d rather see an undecided voter than how many of the already decided people I know are, who never even considered for a second voting anyone other than the Republican or Democratic nominee. I’d rather see someone take a long time, but actually consider who they’re voting for, than just blindly follow party loyalty.
I will say, it does seriously bother me when I’ve seen voters in line in past elections still apparently doing their research, with the Democratic sample ballot in one hand, and the Republican one in the other. By all means, I understand not necessarily being particularly knowledgeable about a local bonds issue, but if you’re actually in line and don’t know who you’re voting for for president, sentator, or representative, I would say that’s clearly past any reasonable deadline. And I do find it frustrating that I’ve taken the time to research my positions and it makes me feel like my vote and effort means little when someone else is voting for a candidate for silly reasons.
As for me, I’m very happy with the candidate I’ve selected for my presidential vote, but the senate race is a mess and I’m not so much undecided as I just haven’t done the research for it yet. I always find the full ballot and research all the candidates, including the third party candidates. Thus, for senate, if it’s just between the Democrat and the Republican, I know who I’d pick there, but I’m not sure if there’s a third party yet. Even if I am pretty happy with my candidate, I still think, as a responsible voter, I should look at all of them. As it stands, at least with the senate race, I don’t find either candidate particularly enticing, so I will hold out to be decided until I’ve done that.
That all said, I do have some contempt for people who make a big deal about being undecided or independent, as if they’re somehow better than most people. I have known these types, but when you actually see their voting record, it’s usually very heavily favored toward one party. And even of these people that I know, they all have already decided their candidates, but still claim they’re independent, while bashing the other party their candidate isn’t a member of. But that’s all not so much the voting part, as just people trying to claim to be special and important when they’re not.
I would have considered myself an undecided in the 2008 election. Up to that point I mostly sided with the Republican party. But the Bush Presidency caused me to reconsider my loyalties and I realized that the party had moved too far to the right for my views and beliefs, especially with their embrace of Evangelic Christianity, their stance on Civil Rights, and their anti intellectual stance on anything regarding science. While I knew I was likely going to vote for Obama - and did - I still felt like I was betraying my team by doing so.
Now that the Republicans have swung even further to the right I have no problem this election cycle voting for Obama.
A few months ago the magazine “Foreign Affairs” ran an article about the relationship between Evangelicals and the Republican Party. Less than 25% of Republicans identify as Evangelical, and yet that group makes up almost 50% of Primary voters. This is a problem for most candidates as they have to take on a very strong Evangelical stance to have any chance at being the nominee but then have to dial back that attitude in order to attract the rest of their own party - let alone anybody on the Democratic side. I suspect that this is a source of the undecideds this round, who like me 4 years ago want to support Republicans but simply can’t stomach what the party currently promotes.
And I live in a state that will vote for Romney.
I think that there’s one Democrat in my local elections who might win. Just about all the other races are going to go with the Republican or Libertarian candidate…if there’s a choice of candidates at all.
He wants to privatize a lot of stuff. Yes, government run services are well known for fraud, waste, and abuse. The problem is, privatized services are even worse. A privatized service is going to need to make a profit, or it will have to fold. Now, you might see this as an incentive for privatized services to be lean and mean. However, it usually means that the wrong corners are cut and the difference is going into the VIPs’ pockets. It’s also a dandy way to encourage bribery and cronyism. The contracts don’t always go to the lowest bidder, they frequently go to friends and comrades of the people in charge.
Libertarianism is a fine political ideal, and it can work in a very small community. If a community is larger than “everybody knows everybody else”, then it’s not going to work. Libertarianism requires that everyone work to make the system do what it’s designed to do…and most people won’t do that.
Fair tax? Usually it’s NOT at all fair. The primary appeal of the “fair tax” is that it’s simple, and easy to understand. However, the fair tax fails to take into consideration that someone who makes $10K has almost no discretionary spending, especially compared to someone who makes $100K or $1M.
Plus, of course, he fails one of my litmus tests…he wants states to decide on whether to allow abortions or not. We’ve already had that. It means that in a lot of states, women won’t have access to abortions, unless they have enough money to travel to another area and spend enough time there. I think that Johnson is actually anti-choice, but he won’t come out and say it because THAT would be against libertarian principles.
Here is a description of one undecided voter I know. He is somewhat racist and anti-black. Obama has been a surprise to him, in that he likes Obama and thinks he’s smart as a person, and thinks while he could have done better, he did a pretty good job. And he’s always been of a conservative bent.
When he talks I can see his inherent racism struggling with his dislike of Romney and the Republican party and his desire for conservatism, which the Republican party in his opinion no longer espouses in the way he wants.
I am pretty sure Obama will win out. He voted for Obama last time. The racism is slowly washing away. But it isn’t a fast change, and I don’t intend to push him.
Hey, when I don’t see a big difference between the two main candidates, I vote for who I’d actually like as president, which has been known to be some Green Party candidate or another. When I am in active fear, then I vote for the person most likely to take down the candidate I can’t stand, even if I’d rather someone else were in charge. (The “anybody but Bush” reaction.)
What I haven’t decided yet is which kind of year this is. I wasn’t particularly for Obama (I was for Hilary), but by the time of the election I got fairly excited about the whole “change” thing, even though I’m old enough and experienced enough to know it didn’t actually mean anything. So now I’m over that.
In general our elected officials seem to be people who report not to the populace, but to the people who really run the country. The more worried those people are, the better I like the candidate who’s worrying them. It’s usually the Democrat, but not always. Political dynasties are generally worrisome to me. (I don’t count Bill & Hilary as a political dynasty BTW & fortunately they have only one offspring.)
So while I’m leaning toward Obama, I also like the Green candidate and I would like to send a small, one-vote message that I’d like more choice. But I haven’t decided. I don’t have to decide until the ballot’s in front of me.
Depends on how much you distrust the Tea Party. If you trust them, I’d say DON’T vote for the GOP because they will send the US into default intentionally like they tried to do a year ago. On the other hand, if you think they were just bluffing, and/or Romney and the relatively sane minority in the GOP will be able to restrain them, then there’s less to actively fear (just in the fiscal short term, that is). Myself, I’m not going to take that chance.
Well, I never thought anybody would REALLY come out and ax the mortgage deduction. The smartest people I know are in favor of Obama, but they aren’t particularly worried about Mitt, either.
I don’t think it’s going to matter to me much either way. It’s just politics. Basically, theatre to make us think we’re running the country.
I am not actually following your “If you trust the T.P. don’t vote GOP.”
Wait, so you’ve already seen Romney’s third debate performance?
So a vote for Obama it is, then.
So what would constitute a viable third party? Republicans With Integrity? Democrats With a Spine?
My point is that there are lots of third parties; most of them are too fringe to govern (if they could get elected). Any alternative to the existing major parties would, by definition, have to be different from the other two. Ideologically, then, they would have to be more conservative/reactionary or more liberal/progressive (since there is virtually no wiggle room between the two current parties). Either of those options is only going to bleed support away from one or the other mainstream party. Then the remaining, un-bled-from mainstream party becomes the permanent majority party.
If we were to have a useful third party choice, I think it would have to be a party that approaches policy from a completely different perspective. I don’t know what that would be. Greens, maybe, if ecological concerns ever became top-of-mind to the majority of Americans.
Roddy
Go to the Undecided Evangelical and scroll about halfway down to the view out the window of his Altoona home. He either has a model sitting on the railimng, or there’s a brontosaurus in his backyard. A weird thing for an evangelical, in any case.
Watch Howard Stern’s show’s interviews with people on the street. Humorous and frightening at the same time. Some of them predict that John McCain will win 20 to 40% of the vote. Some of them think Obama’s VP running mate is Paul Ryan. It’s a foggy world out there and many possible voters don’t have any clue about how the country is run.
Ok, I finally decided and I voted for Roseanne Barr.
I like Democrats with a Spine, but, hmm, Republicans With Integrity? That could work. I don’t know…
I voted on weed on my early voting mail in ballot here in Colorado. 
Pretty much. This compounded by the fact that I don’t have a crystal ball and I can’t tell who is lying about what. Obama wants me to think he can create jobs. Romney wants me to think he won’t raise my taxes nor add to the deficit. Those are the primary lies in a long line of them.
With lots of decisions, major and minor—not just whom to vote for—I very often couldn’t pinpoint the moment when I went from “leaning toward” to “decided on” my ultimate decision. Or from “thinking about” to “leaning toward.” I make decisions gradually. At what point am I no longer “undecided”?
When someone asks who you’re voting for and you give them a name instead of “Dunno yet.”
Touche! You’re absolutely right. Most of the ads are just finger-pointing. The debates aren’t a whole lot better. But in the end, someone is going to be inaugurated as President next January. At some point, you either decide which one you support or you decide that you don’t know or care enough to vote.
Well, for the first time in my life, I’m an undecided voter. I know already against whom I’m voting, but haven’t decided which pencil mark yet to make on my absentee ballot. My considerations:
[ul]
[li]Voting isn’t important (statistically)[/li][li]My state is already decided, so:[/li][li]Vote for the guy in my ex-party (major party) knowing that I’m throwing it away, or[/li][li]Vote for the guy in my current party (third party) that I’d really like to win, knowing full well that he won’t win.[/li][/ul]
Actually, now that this thread has forced me to list my reasoning, I guess I’m no longer undecided. So, uh, thanks. Sorry to trouble everyone.