Dear Mr. Trump,

I attended my first political rally at the age of three. The year was 2000. My mom had brought me along to hear George W. Bush speak. Despite my mom's strong political persuasions and involvement, my views were my own from the very moment I understood the system. I bled red, and I still do. I never thought I would vote anything other than Republican in my very first presidential election, but Mr. Trump, if the Republican Party chooses you to represent them on the ballot this November, my vote will find its home elsewhere.

I laughed when you announced your bid for the Republican nomination. "Not in a million years," I thought. However, as we inched closer to the national convention and as more candidates dropped out of the race, my fears increased. They continue to grow to this day. Somehow, you are still winning primaries and caucuses and still being endorsed by high profile politicians. I'm worried, I'm baffled, but more than anything, I'm sad. I'm sad that the political party I once held in such high regard has fallen to such a low. I'm sad that my Muslim friends have to worry about whether or not their next president will be accepting of them. I'm sad that I am seeing anger, violence, and hate being perpetuated, and I'm even more sad that nothing is being done about that.

I hold firmly to the belief that the First Amendment is of the utmost importance, and it is one of the many things that makes America so amazing. Mr. Trump, you reject the concept of "political correctness" and have declared your love of free press; it wouldn't be absurd for one to believe you are a supporter of freedom of speech, religion, and the press. This is not the case. Your volunteers, even those who give up just a couple hours of their day to call voters, must sign a non-disparagement contract forbidding them, their family, and even their employees from speaking one ill word about you, your campaign, your family, and your businesses. While you are free to speak your mind and refer to Vladimir Putin as a great leader and women as dogs, your volunteers can't even comment on how awful your fake tan might be. You wish to open up libel laws so when the media writes a negative piece on you, you're able to "sue them and make lots of money." Not only is this un-Republican, it's un-American and unconstitutional, and it's terrifying.

Donald, you are a hatemonger. Even if you had brilliant policy positions (you don't...not even close), I would never throw my vote toward someone like you. You are a misogynist, a bigot, and a catalyst of violence. Your recent attacks on Heidi Cruz, Megyn Kelly, and others are just a sampling of years and years of vile comments regarding women. I don't think I'm asking too much when I request a presidential candidate respects me despite the fact that I'm a female. Another recent hot topic is the increasing violence at your rallies. Violence you egg on. A man who vows to pay the legal bills of his supporters who throw punches should not be as close to the White House as you are. Your refusal to discourage racist remarks heard loud and clear at your rallies disgusts me, but it doesn't stop there. You have bemoaned Mexico for "sending their most unwanted people," generalizing immigrants as drug dealers and rapists. You did not immediately disavow David Duke when given the opportunity to. When asked about registering Muslims in a database or implementing a special form of identification, you did not rule it out. This makes me physically ill. I'm going so far as to say that I would rather have Hillary Clinton in office for four years than the kind of man I believe you to be.

Up until recently, the idea of voting anything other than Republican, especially in a presidential election, was something I thought to be out of the question. As I write this, however, I am familiarizing myself with various third party candidates, and I know I am not the only one. I'm going to be honest, it's not something I ever thought I would be doing, but desperate times call for desperate measures. I still hold out hope that the Republican party, on which I once placed such faith, will make the right decision when it comes to who represents them, but come November, should you be on the ballot with an 'R' next to your name, I'll be filling in a different bubble.