Ruth: Third-party candidates are killing me

[DonCoquixote]

https://www.tampabay.com/opinion/columns/ruth-third-party-candidates-are-killing-me-20181109/

Sample:
However, nearly 100,000 Floridians with gruel for brains also voted for a litany of fringe candidates running for governor who had less chance of getting elected to the parliament of Fredonia, much less the top job in state government.

Now it is certainly true there is no way to know if the citizens who voted for these pre-doomed vanity candidates would have turned out on election day for either DeSantis or the Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, had their preferred choice of Sad Sacks not been on the ballot. Or would they have even voted at all?

What we do know is 100,000 gormless souls simply threw their ballot and their voice away. And that’s the thing about democracy, one of its perverse charms perhaps. People have the unquestioned freedom to be dumber than a sack of mold spores on election day.

[FSogol]

1. Hail Hail Fredonia!

Spoken:
Lady:
If it's not asking too much,

Sung:
For our information
Just for illustration
Tell us how you intend to run the nation

Rufus T. Firefly:
These are the laws of my administration

No one's allowed to smoke
Or tell a dirty joke
And whistling is forbidden

Chorus:
We're not allowed to tell a dirty joke

Hail, hail Freedonia

Rufus:
If chewing gum is chewed
The chewer is pursued
And in the hoosegow hidden

Chorus:
If we choose to chew we'll be pursued

Rufus:
If any form of pleasure is exhibited
Report to me and it will be prohibited
I'll put my foot down, so shall it be
This is the land of the free

The last man nearly ruined this place
He didn't know what to do with it
If you think this country's bad off now,
Just wait 'til I get through with it

The country's taxes must be fixed
And I know what to do with it
If you think you're paying too much now
Just wait till I get through with it

*Whistle*

I will not stand for anything that's crooked or unfair
I'm strictly on the up-and-up, so everyone beware
If any man's caught taking graft, and I don't get my share
We stand him up against the wall and pop! Goes the weasel

Chorus:
So everyone beware, you're stricken or unfair
-------unless he gets his share

Rufus:
If any man should come between a husband and his bride
We'll find out which one she prefers by letting her decide
If she prefers the other man, the husband steps outside
We stand him up against the wall and pop! Goes the weasel

Chorus:
The husband steps outside, relinquishes his bride
They stand him up against the wall and take him for a ride.

[SoCalDem]

2. Parties that are not one of the "Big Two"

should have to have at LEAST 15% polling numbers to be included on the ballot..

We are NOT a parliament , where those fringe parties can sometime have some sway.

It's way past time that we realize that when we are as "close"as we seem to be, this is NO time to cannibalize voting results and state coffers for recounts.

If a state requires at least 50%, there is NO earthly reason to have more than 2 candidates. States like that either must limit choices to TWO or have instant runoffs (like Maine)

and we must have NONE OF THE ABOVE as a viable choice

[JCMach1]

3. Instant run-offs are the best solution...

[Amishman]

6. Yes, we NEED ranked preference / instant runoff voting

It's absolutely the best way to break the Republican party apart.

[Takket]

10. THIS

We need to make this a federal standard for elections.

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

11. Yes, loving Ranked Choice Voting up in Maine

I want to see it expanded in Maine to cover the governor's race and state legislative races and I would love for it to spread to other states.

[MarvinGardens]

8. Disagree.

I think that's dangerous. Repubs could take it one step further, first in a red state: Why even have the Dems on the ballot? One party is good enough.

We (and the Rs) should earn everyone's vote, not force them to choose one of us.

[MarvinGardens]

9. Couple more things.

If a candidate can't gain ballot access, they aren't going to poll above zero percent, because no polling or media outfit will include them. So you've established a ballot access criterion that is impossible to meet. I think an important aspect of democracy is not just access to the voting booth, but access to the ballot.

Folks on DU seem to really hate 3rd party candidates, almost more than the Rs. The underlying thinking may be that if only those pesky spoiler candidates weren't on the ballot, all those 3rd party voters would vote for Dems. But suppose that's not true? Some of them might flip the other way if forced. Suppose more of them would flip the other way? At one time, it was probably true that more Libertarian voters would flip Republican if forced. I'm not sure if that's still true in the age of Trump, but suppose it is. In the recent past, Libertarian candidates garner more votes than any other minor party, especially down ballot (occasionally, the Greens or someone else get more for President). So if you take that 3rd party choice away from voters, it's no sure bet that you're helping Democrats, and you might be harming us by flipping more votes to the Republicans.

[Guppy]

4. This is an example of a lack of education

of political systems. As a whole we are a nation of ignorance. Anyone who has taken Political Science 101 is taught that we are based on a 2 party system. When one party fails another takes its place(whigs to republicans).

These people are part of the history is boring crowd.

[mcar]

5. You can't fix stupid

[KT2000]

7. It's about ME!

Some vote for the third party candidate because they want to show the world what their beliefs are. As a friend said after voting for Obama. I'll never do that again, because he did something she didn't like. To her, her vote is making a stand for her beliefs. I bet there are others who think that way too.

It is all I can do to not ask her if she is happy now - as she probably voted for Jill Stein, which really didn't matter in Washington State. I believe voting is for the greater good others may think it is all about them and their particular issue.