The next time someone tells you who to vote for, tell them to take their good advice elsewhere. There is no need to tell them to shove it where the sun doesn’t shine, even if that is your knee-jerk reaction. The political reality citizens face is far too grim to throw pointed barbs at mere citizens. The United States political system is broken; the Supreme Court itself is handicapped by the dissension within Congress. Many political leaders keep obsessing over how this presidential race is different from every other, but they’re wrong.

Here’s the thing, I remember the past four presidential races. Every single time the political opponents have eventually vilified the other; there have always been racist, sexist, classist remarks given by a candidate; there have always been interesting options that reside outside of the two party system; there has always been this ramped up, terrified reaction from the general public towards one of the candidates. Don’t get me wrong, I’m in no manner exempt from this fear.

In fact, I fear my very existence as a female is threatened by someone like Trump, but, for very different reasons, I wasn’t too fond of Romney or Bush either, and we all know how those races turned out. Since then, certain things have made me change my mind about Romney and Bush. Bush, prior to 9/11, proposed an immigration reform act that would have favored many ‘illegal’ migrants. Romney, in the light of Trump, appears light years evolved. So, by now, you can likely tell I’m not voting for Trump, and I’m okay with you knowing that. Just because I don’t plan on telling you who to vote for, doesn’t mean I don’t have an opinion.

Clinton has tirelessly groomed a political image since the beginning of her adult life, and people hate her for it. Someone of Clinton’s political caliber is rarely seen in modern politics. She’s our modern day equivalent of a Roman senator; she was born to accomplish great things. It’s a genuine shame she hasn’t been given a better opponent. However, she’s perceived as crooked and fails to address the concerns of the more left liberals, myself included. Her proposed educational reforms and mentions of a ‘living wage’ fail to impress me.

There’s the libertarian, Gary Johnson. A wildcard who can’t name a single foreign leader he respects, doesn’t believe the general public having access to subsidized healthcare is important, and could care less about energy efficient practices. However, he’s no Trump. He is against the death penalty, the war on drugs, and is very forward in his support of the same-sex marriage supreme court decision.

Jill Stein is the far left’s almost dream. She gets nearly full marks on women’s rights, energy, and environmental practices. In a world full of instant experts, thanks to the internet, she seems lacking in certain areas, though. She has claimed the need to study up on some things, and that is valid, but in a race that expects their running candidate to be an instant expert, she lacks. While most will admit the more you know, the less you realize you know, for Stein this presents itself as a campaign flaw.

I will not be sharing who I will vote for here. If you want to know, ask me in person or over a message, but here it seems inappropriate. I will tell you to vote with your heart. Vote with what feels right. Do not let the broken system we’re currently attempting to hobble onward with stop you from voting outside of the two party system. Don’t let people tell you voting one way or another will change the outcome of the election. They’re wrong. Perhaps, this is one of the only times being just another number is a good thing. Your vote will not be the deciding factor. However, your vote could contribute to something you believe in. Decide who or what you want to contribute to and register already. Here’s a link to help you do so: https://vote.gov/?1