Maybe this is how it always goes. I mean, it’s only my first rodeo. Here I am, 20 years old, and this is the election year I’m thrown into. I’ve grown up, being educated on the American privilege of voting and how to involve oneself in the political process. But here I am, staring at the two major party candidates, and I just can’t seem to get behind either. We’ve all heard the long and hashed out debates on both sides, so I’m not going into that here. No, I’m going to look at my other options.

Since I’ve been able to understand political conversations, I’ve heard non-stop complaining. My conservative Republican family doesn’t like the Democratic agenda and my liberal friends don’t understand narrow-minded Republicans. And, we get gridlocked in these issues with no hope of getting anywhere. We’re forced to choose between parties, and neither one completely aligns with my values and morals. Yet, I’ve always been told that I have to choose a party, because the other two don’t have any hope. I’m here to tell you different because I do think there’s hope, and I think it might be exactly what we need.

At the root of this all, is the fact that our government wasn’t created to have political parties. Here’s good ole’ George’s view on the whole idea:

“It serves always to distract the public councils and enfeeble the public administration. It agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms, kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection. It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption, which finds a facilitated access to the government itself through the channels of party passions. Thus the policy and the will of one country are subjected to the policy and will of another.” -George Washington’s Farewell Address

Well, here we are, 220 years later, and we’re just about living out his warning to a tee. It seems like I can’t get into a conversation about politics without getting heated and angry. I think that’s because few people are satisfied with our choices between political parties-- and more than that, the American people are REALLY dissatisfied with our Presidential Candidate choices in the major parties.

In fact, most polls find that the American people are solely pledging allegiance to a candidate because they feel so strongly about opposing the other! The phrase “the better of the two evils” has been used way too many times more than I find healthy. Yet, as Americans, we lie down, shrug our shoulders, and decide to support two criminals in their pursuit of the highest leader in the land. Is there something wrong with this picture? Yes. The answer is yes.

I’ve been struggling with this moral dilemma for quite some time because I refuse to vote for a racist, sexist, narrow-minded idiot, yet I can’t bring myself to support an untrustworthy liar either.

Here’s the deal: your third-party vote won’t be wasted. Most people will still tell you that Johnson & Stein have no shot at the Oval Office, but there’s more to casting your vote than just winning the highest seat in the land. Third party policies are still heavily dismissed in the scheme of national politics, but there is a potential to change this. Political economists will probably assure you that due to the electoral college and the structure of the states up for grab, this election will go to a major party candidate. But, popular vote still is important! The popular vote for a smaller party will be a bargaining chip for change. This could mean that we won’t be stuck in our two-party system forever. It will show leaders on both sides of the aisle that we as American’s don’t want to have just two options to fall into. We have always been known as one of the most welcoming and opportunistic nations, and I think it’s time we start acting like it, by showing that there’s more to our political system than just two options.

So, now that you know that this is not just feasible, but it’s actually necessary, let’s talk about these lesser-known candidates because they’re actually pretty great people, from where I sit. There’s a number of independent candidates running, but most polls will give you statistics in a four-way race, when Libertarian, Gary Johnson & Green Party, Jill Stein are included.

Dr. Jill Stein is a former physician and former Green Party Candidate. Many are comparing Jill Stein to Bernie Sanders and are encouraging anti-Clinton supporters to back her. She has a fairly liberal health care plan and carries a socialist agenda. She pushes heavily for anti-capitalism and a reformed higher education system.

Gary Johnson is a former Republican governor of New Mexico. Running as the Libertarian Candidate, he first got my attention, because he realizes that Trump’s “Wall” will never work. He’s actually lived with and dealt with much of the immigration issues on the Mexico border and realizes that building a wall is not what America needs. One of my favorite things about Johnson is that he refuses to get in on the attack. While Trump & Clinton focus their campaigns, and intelligently so, on tearing down the other, Johnson remains focused on his political stances. Does that not seem like what a political race should actually be about? Common sense politics, hold the drama.

Fellow Americans, I think this is a real possibility. Following the conclusion of the GOP Convention, Google searches for ‘third-party candidate’ went up 1000%. ONE-FREAKING THOUSAND. This isn’t just me. This isn’t just a few of my dissatisfied friends. This is thousands upon thousands of Americans, searching for new possibilities, new candidates to support. The deal is, a third party candidate does have a chance. Americans are ready for it. The choice is yours: Are you ready to let go of the system and vote for change?