This election cycle, the American people are faced with a very difficult choice. The majority of Americans feel that they are being forced to choose between the lesser of two evils. Most agree that Donald Trump, the Republican candidate, is unqualified to be the President of the United States due due to his tendency to disrespect women and minorities, his lack of experience in foreign policy, and his business record which has resulted in at least three bankruptcies.

On the other hand, Sec. Hillary Clinton, the Democratic candidate, has been deemed untrustworthy by the American people in large part due to a controversy over deleted emails which could have contained classified information, and her role in the attacks at the American consulate in Benghazi.

Since most people are equally unsatisfied with either candidate, this year has been a prime year for third party candidates like Gov. Gary Johnson, Libertarian Party, and Dr. Jill Stein, Green Party. Johnson in particular has been taking a huge lead and has almost met the 15% polls requirement needed to be included in the presidential debates. Dr. Stein has not been put on the ballot in all 50 states so it is unlikely that she has a real chance at the presidency.

Before the Republican Convention last week, Sec. Clinton was leading in most polls. Most people who were voting for Trump in the polls before the convention were presumably die-hard Trump supporters, and those who support him now support him due to the need for party unity. Those who side with party unity are unlikely to change their vote to Gov. Johnson unless Trump does something drastic before the election in November. Those who are voting for Sec. Clinton are generally long time Democrats who would vote for the Democratic nominee no matter what, or loosely associating themselves with Sec. Clinton in an effort to defeat Trump.

There is a large gap of voters who are either undecided or displaced supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders, a self proclaimed Democratic Socialist who divided the Democratic Party during primaries. Many supporters who were "feeling the Bern" have vowed never to support Clinton but we will see how that turns out after the end of the Democratic Convention. The remaining voters are likely to cast their vote for a third party candidate, either Gov. Johnson or Dr. Stein. If the voters who are polling for Clinton but are still dissatisfied see that Gov. Johnson has a real chance at the presidency, they could change their votes to Gov. Johnson. Those who wanted Sen. Sanders could vote for Dr. Stein, leading to a break in the polls.

Should Gov. Johnson continue to gain popularity, there could potentially be a huge problem. The reason that America has moved to a two party system is because with a 3+ party system, a candidate could potentially be elected to office with only 1/3 of the electorate, leaving almost 2/3s of voters unsatisfied. If Gov. Johnson were to pull vote from Sec. Clinton, he is still unlikely to win and neither is she. This will lead to a Trump victory which could be detrimental to American society.

Trump's inexperience in public office combined with his eagerness to go to war with the Middle East and his attitude toward countries like Mexico and China could easily lead to a war. Meanwhile, a Clinton presidency is unlikely to lead to a foreign war both because of her identification with the Democratic party which is mostly antiwar and her experience with foreign policy as the former Secretary of State.

Economically, because of the huge divide in where the U.S. stands on fiscal policy, it is almost impossible to unbiasedly tell who would do a better job at keeping the nation together. Similarly, the U.S is greatly divided on social policy.

With what little unbiased information we have, it is somewhat clear that a Clinton presidency would at least keep us out of war for the time being, until the next election. So, before you go to the polls in November, remember that you should vote your conscience but also remember the consequences of your individual vote.