This year’s election is breaking everything – ground, news, the internet, friendships, you name it. It is also the first race in a while to divide something else – the ballot. Split ballots are going to break the black-and-white voting pattern that American voters have created over past years – people are more likely to vote the Republican presidential candidate, but Democrat down the rest of the ballot, and vice versa, rather than voting completely Democrat or completely Republican. Maybe that’s due to the fact that the 2 front running candidates, Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump, seem so polar and pretty extreme, not only in their political platforms but in their personas and public presence, that voting for a candidate’s party in association with the candidate doesn’t necessarily imply that you are voting for the same stances on the issues. Heck, we all know that The Donald is definitely not super widely accepted by his own party. All of the down-ballot Republicans may find themselves voting on all of the other levels (congressional, etc.) differently than how they stand with Trump.

So since there is such a split, and it seems that the disdain people have for opposing candidates could start a revolutionary uprising, a lot of people are facing the dilemma of who they are voting for. I’ve heard many say “It’s like choosing the lesser of two evils, but you gotta choose.” Then I thought, voting for the lesser of two evils is still voting for an evil, no matter how much you hate the other evil you’re voting against. If morally, you are voting for what you consider an evil, albeit the lesser of two, then why vote for one at all? Yes, there is the responsibility of being an active citizen, of using your privilege and right to vote, and contributing to your country in efforts to make it a better place to live for yourself. You have that power, so why not vote?

But then I got to thinking – if you aren’t voting for something you fully believe in, then you aren’t really working towards the future you want. Wouldn't that mean a vote towards something that isn't a representation of your voice and your beliefs, a wasted one? I guess it could all be dependent on what you consider “wasting” is – morally, it would be a waste to put your power to use in an unprogressive way, but maybe not a waste in the simple fact that you are using your vote. Morally, it could be like not voting at all, if you think about it. Voting for someone just for the mere purpose of not voting for the opposing candidate is the same as taking away a vote for the opposing candidate by not voting all together. The only difference is in one scenario, you’re taking away your vote from the candidate you don't like most and that’s it, and the other scenario, you’re taking away a vote from the candidate you don't like most while you are voting for a candidate you still don't totally like, but supporting them anyways, thus supporting a potential future that you may not even want, thus your true voice isn’t heard.

Now we have arrived with third parties. I know, a lot of people will read “Third Parties” and think of how anyone who votes for them are wasting their votes, how 3^rd parties never win. That’s because America is now so bipartisan, so starkly “this” or “that” and nothing else, that 3^rd parties are almost seen as a joke to some (not all) voters. I’ve heard people say that yes, they agree with Gary Johnson and like his platform and think he could be a good president, but aren't voting for him simply because he’s not the presumptive candidate for wither of the parties. The big 3 on his forehead deters voters, thinking their votes will be wasted on a party that will never produce a president. (However, if there was any year that a 3^rd party could have a chance of winning on the presidential level, this year would be it, considering that 2016 is deemed as one of the most negative races in history in regards to the two presumptive candidates.)

Thinking morally, however, if you supported, say, Gary Johnson for example, but voted for another candidate in fear of wasting your vote on a normally unsuccessful party, wouldn't that be a bigger waste of your vote? It comes back to voting for a candidate despite them not being the best representation of the American leadership you want. It's just as bad as voting for Hilary just because you hate Trump, and vice versa. You wasted your amazing, powerful vote on something you don't even know could keep your country afloat! That seems more wasteful to me then voting for something you may believe in, even if they way not win the race. Everyone seems to want to root for the underdog until they are in a third party, and for what reason?

Obviously this doesn’t apply to you if you aren't indecisive about who you are voting for, or if you aren't split between candidates, but it’s just something to think about when you step into that curtained booth and it’s time to punch a hole next to a candidates name. Think “Is this vote using my right to the fullest? Am I sacrificing what I support for what I think will happen in the polls? Am I wasting my vote or is this what I want for my country?” To me, that’s the most a citizen can do when debating who to vote for to limit the waste and strengthen their power to make the America they want to live in. Support who you want to support, not who you think will or will not win in the polls. Support the 3^rd party if that’s what you believe in, vote one of the two frontrunners if that’s what you fully believe in, but don't vote for something you have wariness about. Vote for you, because you can.

Sources for this article can be read here here and here.