If Hillary Clinton wins the nomination, how will DUers vote in the general election?

[Nikki Stone1]

Assume that your favorite candidate has bitten the dust. (Al decides not to run, John Edwards gets another haircut, Dennis can't muster more than single digits, and Obama's association with Colin Powell tanks him.) Hillary is the candidate: how do you vote?

[shadowknows69]

1. Other: I like polls

[Nikki Stone1]

2. I assume that is "Other: please specify". :)

:)

[cgrindley]

3. I'm boycotting the polls entirely

being a resident alien prevents me from voting, but if I could vote, I'd vote for Mrs Clinton in a heartbeat (especially so if she ends up running with Obama as VP).

[Lerkfish]

4. *sigh* this again?

[mitchum]

5. The lesser of two evils

[TechBear_Seattle]

13. Is still a vote for evil

:hi:

[Frances]

32. A vote for HIllary is a vote for evil?????!!!!!!!

Hillary may not be my first choice, but she is a Democrat.

I thought Gore was a bore in 2000, but I wasn't dumb enough not to vote for him.

It's those people who thought there was no difference between Gore and Bush who have the blood of the people killed in Iraq on their hands.

So don't lecture to me about evil!

[TechBear_Seattle]

41. You made a general statement about the lesser of two evils, I responded

If, as you seemed to state, Clinton is a lesser of two evils, then you are also stating that she is evil.
If she is not evil, then how can she be the lesser of two evils?

[The Magistrate]

54. Someone With A Good Grasp Of The Circumstances Here Below, Sir, Said Once

"This is the best world possible: everything in it is a necessary evil."

[mitchum]

51. Sad, but true (n/t)

[William769]

6. At this point I don't care.

People who take their ball and go home are not worth the time of day. And yes I'm not trying to make nice here because theres no sense in it.

Just look where SCOUTS is now. with the ages of the Justices, just imagine what it will look like...

[phantom power]

7. Let's boycott her, so that the GOP can control the white house another 4 years.

:eyes:

[triguy46]

8. What is it going to take to get "Yellow Dog (D)" listed as potential candidate? n/t

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

9. About 60 million Americans willing to vote for a yellow dog. (nt)

[Nikki Stone1]

10. Or a banana slug

:)

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

17. At least they're both yellow.

:-)

[triguy46]

45. And no "R" behind their name.

[TechBear_Seattle]

11. Who else is running again? n/t

[Nikki Stone1]

16. Assume that all other candidates have bitten the dust

...

[TechBear_Seattle]

19. There are no Republicks running? No minor party candidates? No independents?

I can't say that I would not vote for Clinton, or that I would vote for someone else. I will, however, give other candidates who are on the general election ballot some serious consideration. Without knowing who those candidates are, though....

[Nikki Stone1]

22. Have you read the OP?

Lots of options there including Republicker, third party, write-in, not voting and going to Canada. :)

[TechBear_Seattle]

39. Again, what are the candidates?

There are some Republicks I might vote for, and many that I would definitely not vote for. I would consider a third party candidate, but probably not Nader. If I said I would not vote, my post would be deleted. I have a cushy job with nice benefits and am unlikely to move. If, after all, Clinton is the best candidate, then I would vote for her.

In short, I don't have enough information to make any kind of meaningful response. So, I wander off on a tangent, looking at the sky and whistling a tune.

[Nikki Stone1]

55. Then you can put "Other" and give an explanation

If you would vote for Giuliani, for example, then you could say that.

Not tryin' to hamper your style, dude.

[TechBear_Seattle]

59. Other doesn't quite fit either

At this time, I have no preferred candidate. I will wait until I know who will be on the ballot, study the candidates I will be chosing from, and doing my best to make an educated choice that represents my values and who will, in my studied opinion, will cause the least amount of damange.

At this time, I can not make a meaningful answer. In the scenario being layed out, it might be Clinton. It might not be Clinton. Without knowing all the choices, no conscientious voter can make a choice.

[Nikki Stone1]

79. OK, then you'll have to vote later

:)

[WinkyDink]

65. A candidate isn't a "what"; it's a "who". If you are even considering voting for a "Republick",

YOU ARE ON THE WRONG BOARD.

That would explain your inability to understand this simple poll.

[TechBear_Seattle]

86. So if I am not a party hack who has sold himself, body and soul, to the Democratic Party...

I have no business whatsoever engaging in dialogue with you?

Go ahead, drive way even more of your potential allies.

[WinkyDink]

87. What about "We welcome Democrats of all stripes, along with other progressives who will work with

us"---do you NOT understand?

[TechBear_Seattle]

88. And then you piss and moan about how no one will vote for your candidates

And fail to realize that people like yourself are to blame.

I am here because I want to vote for progressives and liberals. I grant my vote based on the candidate, not the party. Usually, that means a Democrat.

If you do not want my help, just say so. If you are so certain that the Democratic Party can succeed without the very large group of independent progressives, fine. But don't go screaming when we take you at your word and refuse to help because we are not welcomed.

[phantom power]

24. well, your choices for GOP will be one of...

Giuliani, McCain, Fred Thomson, Mitt Romney, etc.

And it looks like you could vote for Nader. Plus the usual batch of odd-ball candidates that are always on the ballot.

Game theory applies. The probability that either a Dem or Rep is elected is greater than 99%. the probability that any other candidate wins is less than 1%. Significantly less.

Do the payoff matrix, and it's easy to see that voting 3rd-party is a very very very bad strategy.

[TygrBright]

12. I think a banana slug would make a GREAT President!! Why don't we draft one?! n/t

[yardwork]

15. A banana slug would be much better than what we have now.

[TahitiNut]

34. They don't want to leave the good life at UC Santa Cruz.

:silly:

[TygrBright]

43. See?!? That just shows you how SMART they are! It's about time we had a smart President... n/t

[Nimrod2005]

14. I oppose her, I will PROUDLY vote for her if she the nominee.

[Nikki Stone1]

18. Curious about the other "third party". Is Nader not running Green?

>>>

[William769]

20. Nader is running, it's just that no one has figured out where.

[Nikki Stone1]

21. Hopefully to the border.

But barring that, would he have the funding to run without the Green party apparatus?

[in_cog_ni_to]

23. I don't want her to win the nomination, but would hold my nose and vote for her. n/t

[Nikki Stone1]

25. I think that should be known as "the banana slug vote".

Just a thought. :)

[phantom power]

26. You should call it the "Game Theory" vote. Or the "payoff matrix" vote.

[Nikki Stone1]

31. Yes. Could do that. But wouldn't you rather have a beer with a banana slug?

:)

[phantom power]

33. That's tricky. Slugs freak me out. Especially enormous slugs.

Tell me, would the beer kill the slug?

[Nikki Stone1]

37. Dunno. I wonder if there is a slug expert on DU

:)

[Debi]

27. I will vote for the Democrat no matter what their name is n/t

[Bitwit1234]

28. If Obama wins the nomination how would you vote

How about Edwards,
Richardson
Dodd etc etc...just because the people who don't like Hillary get a chance to top post why do they think they are the only ones who count. Obama has a lot of baggage, why don't you post about him. Richardson also, and how about Dodd and the rest. I suppose it is because their candidates are trailing, Hillary is the front runner and they desperately want so bad to bring her down. I wish Edwards was the front runner. But if Obama was, I sure as hell wouldn't slash and bash him. I AM A DEMOCRAT AND I ONLY BASH REPUBLICANS.

[Frances]

30. I love your statement:

I AM A DEMOCRAT AND I ONLY BASH REPUBLICANS!

I will vote for a banana slug if it has a D after its name. Look what 8 years of R has gotten us!

[William769]

35. They are Democrats so thy would get my vote.

[Tesha]

29. I haven't decided.

I've been going back-and-forth on this for a long time,
and if Hillary is the candidate, I expect to be going back-
and-forth on this until I finally cast my ballot.

About the *ONLY* reason why I would support Hillary is
that it would be a wonderful thing to break this part
of the gender barrior and see a woman elected President.

In every other way, the election of Hillary would be an
appalling political event (and I think it's quite
improbable anyway).

o As demonstrated by several key votes in the Senate
(the war, flag burning, a few others), she has no actual
principles and will vote whichever way she thinks will
earn her her next promotion.

o She directly opposes many things that I think are
essential elements of a free, modern, western society
(such as government-paid health care for all, a broad
interpretation of the Bill of Rights, etc.)

o She represents the continued drift of the Democratic
Party into territory we would have surely called
"Republicanism" just a few short years ago.

o Electing a dual dynasty of Bush/Clinton/Bush/Clinton
would set a very bad precedent for our country continuing
as a democracy. (Who's next? Jeb Bush after a few years
of Hillary?)

And I say all this as someone who donated substantial
support to Clinton in her 2000 Senate bid.

What I'll probably do is look at the New Hampshire
polling numbers as the election draws near. If it's close,
I'll probably hold my nose yet again and vote for Clinton.
But if it's a blow-out either way, I'll vote Green or
write-in an actual Democrat.

Tesha

[DinahMoeHum]

36. I'm not crazy about Hillary, but even she would be a THOUSAND TIMES BETTER

than any Republican right now.

:kick:

[Buzz Clik]

38. If Hillary swings any further to the right, she'll be running as a Republican.

At that point, it becomes irrelevant because I won't vote for a Republican.

I suggest Hillary check her political compass.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

40. For Hillary Of Course. I'm A DU'er So I Know How Monumentally Stupid It Would Be To Do Otherwise.

[William769]

48. To bad we have 19 others that don't. NT

[William769]

49. To bad we have 19 others that don't. NT

[Nihil]

70. Does that make it 38 now or did you stutter? (n/t)

:P

[porphyrian]

42. Senator Clinton is who the republicants have tried to frame as our Presidential candidate...

...for over a year now. They want her to win the primary, either because they know they can beat her or because she'll do enough for them that they can take it for four years. For that reason alone, we should avoid her like the plague unless we want to be part of the republicant plan.

[Individualist]

46. Exactly! They want a DLC nominee.

This is why the DLC is dangerous. For all their claims of supposedly wanting to help Democrats, they employ people like Marshall Wittman who specifically try to undermine the Democratic Party, even if it means he has to publicly defecate out the most rank and easily-debunkable lies. They reguarly give credence to the right wing's agenda and its worst, most unsupportable lies. They are the real force that tries to make sure this country is a one party state and that Democrats never really challenge the Republicans in a serious way.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-sirota/why-the-dlc-is-so-dangero_b_13640.html

This was a vintage Democratic Leadership Council approach to intra-party disagreements -- turn the guns inward, attack internally. Without a doubt, the DLC is the most fundamentalist organization within the caucus, the most ideologically rigid, and the most destructive to the progressive cause.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2004/5/24/1712/23448

[mitchum]

52. Yes, it's a win/win situation for the corporatists (n/t)

[porphyrian]

62. I want a government that can't be bought.

Until that's the case, my vote isn't worth as much as theirs.

[Nihil]

71. Good luck with that!

It's not likely in the UK and certainly not likely in the US.
"One dollar, one vote" is the battle-cry ...

[porphyrian]

77. I'm not holding my breath, but it's a worthy goal. - n/t

[EFerrari]

47. Yep. n/t

[porphyrian]

63. (sigh)...yep... - n/t

[Anwen]

44. Hillary would have my vote. n/t

[SoCalDem]

50. I would have to vote AGAINST the republi-slug.. so any "D" would do it

I am not supporting anyone just yet.. Too much time to go:)

[mmonk]

53. Banana slug I guess.

I'm so tired of voting against someone other than for someone. Keeps me a little edgy.

[MadHound]

56. Granted, this is a pretty liberal place

But this poll doesn't look good for the Hillary folks. One third of the people here are now stating that they'll vote for other than Hillary.

Frankly I think that this will be a problem for Hillary in general. Sure, it may not be at the rate of 33%, but if Hillary gets the nomination, the anti-war people and other liberals will abandon her at a high rate, thus making her unelectable. She had either better do something to make herself more appealing to the left, or the Dems had better find themselves a new candidate.

[Zavulon]

57. I'd probably stay home.

I will never vote Republican again (I regret to say I did in '84 and '88), but I cannot bring myself to vote for Hillary. I just can't - no matter what's at stake.

I checked "third party" in the poll, but the truth is that if she gets the nod I'll probably rent a DVD and stay home that day. Voting for Hillary is unthinkable to me, and the thought of standing in line to cast a vote for her is actually making my stomach hurt thinking about it. I cannot stand her, she really makes me ill. I'm trying to think of anything good to say about her and I just can't.

If Hillary runs and we get stuck with four more years of GOP in the White House, all I can hope is that we'll have learned a lesson.

[NoPasaran]

58. I'll vote for Hillary

Or the banana slug, or the ham sandwich.

[Tactical Progressive]

60. DHL's are the bane of progressivism

Dem Hating Leftists have given us eight years of Bush and all that means for this country and its future, including tens if not hundreds of thousands of dead in Iraq, and that many more crippled. DHL's have so much blood on their hands it is incalculable, and the best they can try to do is blame others. How despicable. You put us here. You and Bush-Cheney divided and conquered progressivism for the better part of a decade. Not Hillary voting against flag-burning or videogame labels, or an inevitable invasion of Iraq from a position of complete powerlessness, courtesy of you. No. You. Put us here.

As a result, the Democratic party simply has to move farther to the right. Much farther than Hillary, who is a true progressive at heart. We simply don't have the luxury of trusting progressive pretenders who understand nothing about politics. We need progressives who not only understand but are capable of playing the politics of this psychotic country.

After Hill is elected, DHL's can forget about prancing around as the leaders of the left, instantaneously trying to assume the mantle of righteousness from those they stabbed in the back, as is their habit. You won't be welcome and nobody will be listening to you. You still haven't come to grips with what you have done to us with your rancid, dishonest not a dime's worth of difference rhetoric, which you really believe. With Al Gore then, like Hillary now, painted as a corporate tool. You remember, DHLs. It'll be nearly a decade of hell by the time we get the monsters that you helped put in, out, along with another decade or two of Supreme Court evil.

So to all the DHLs who never grew up politically, and all the new DHLs keeping the rancor alive, please: vote third party, write in someone else, don't vote at all or even vote Republican for all I care. You have proven, and continue to prove daily as in this poll, that you are completely untrustworthy and should not under any circumstance be considered worthy of input. One-third sanctimonious defectors in a DU poll? I'm farther left than just about anyone on this board, and I so look forward to shedding this party of your progressive backstabbing and building a strong progressive base without you, even if it has to be more centrist than I'd ever choose myself.

These polls are a clear indicator of how little the intransigent left should be given consideration. Every centrist-right action Hillary's campaign takes lets me know the people in her campaign understand exactly how to play the politics of this country. Hasta la vista, DHLs.

[Raine]

61. I'll leave that spot blank nt

[WinkyDink]

64. I'll take my place in voting for our first female President!

[Perky]

66. Very Scary when 1/3rd of the base says they wopuld desert the party

If Hillary gets the nomination.

[Jed Dilligan]

67. It depends entirely on her campaign and her opponent's.

If the R is preaching peace and bipartisanship, and the Hil is preaching war and austerity, I might stay home.

If the R is scary enough (probable) and/or Hil campaigns to the left, I will definitely support her.

[ellisonz]

68. Canada.

[Elspeth]

73. Really?

Sorry to interject here, but would Mrs. Clinton on the ticket be enough to send you to Canada?

[ellisonz]

76. America is enough to send me to Canada!

I hate you people. <snark>

[Elspeth]

101. So it's not specific to the 2008 election

Ok, then. Thank you.

[madokie]

69. Oh I'd vote for the hil

when I first came here I was a fore shore Hillary fan but as I have read and learned I no longer am a big Hillary fan. If she is the nominee I'll gladly vote for her I just don't think she will be the nominee anymore, too polarizing. Big Al is my first choice, John Edwards next, from there I rightly don't know

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

72. I'll vote for the most progressive, anti-war, candidate on the ballot.

If none appears I will write one in or leave that spot blank.

[DesertRat]

74. Of course!

:dem:

[Nikki Stone1]

75. Assuming that none of the voters above are trolls (making trouble)

I am appalled that over one-third of all DUers would put the Supreme Court in the hands of a Republican administration by either not voting, voting Nader/third party or writing in a candidate.

Did you NOT see the decisions that came down from SCOTUS today?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=1204347&mesg_id=1204347

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=1204762&mesg_id=1204762

[NaturalHigh]

78. No way I will ever vote for Hillary Clinton.

If Democrats nominate her, they can rest assured that their own stupidity cost them the election. "My party, right or wrong" won't fly with her as the nominee.

[Nikki Stone1]

80. Even with today's Supreme Court decisions?

??

[ourbluenation]

82. a most excellent point.

[NaturalHigh]

98. Yes.

[Raine]

96. Same here

I abhor her and there is no way I can vote for her even if I hold my nose. x(

[Hekate]

81. I will proudly work hard for our Democratic nominee. Period.

[Blue_In_AK]

83. Banana slug for me, please. n/t

[Up2Late]

84. Banana Slug? Hell, I'd vote for a Sea Cucumber if it won the Democratic nomination!

To do otherwise is a vote for "...the people who hate freedom."

[Nikki Stone1]

99. What's a sea cucumber?

:shrug:

[Va Lefty]

85. I would vote for Hillary...

but I hope it doesn't come to that. I'm used to "my" candidate not getting the nomination (Kennedy in '80, Hart in '84, Jackson in '88, Brown in '92, Dean in '04) so I'll hold my nose and vote Democratic, but I think if we nominate Sen. Clinton we lose general election. Too many people have already made up their minds about her and MSM would rehash all the "Clinton scandals" (Travelgate, Vince Foster, Whitewater, etc) making it very difficult for her to get her message across.

[illinoisprogressive]

89. Canada sounds good. Quebec would be nice since I'm half french.

[Warren DeMontague]

90. I'm a Democrat. I support my party. I would expect that the DLC types would do the same if Kucinich

was the nominee, but I suspect a whole buttload of 'em wouldn't.

[Warren DeMontague]

91. And what, precisely, do you have against Banana Slugs?

UC Santa Cruz, Baby!

[Nikki Stone1]

95. Nothing. I love them when they are Democrats. :)

:D

[Tektonik]

92. I'd vote for anyone w/ a D after his/her name

anyone who votes for a third party rather than a dem. in a close election is a scumbag

I certainly don't want to have to vote for Hillary, but if it were Hillary/Obama (D) vs Thompson/Romney (R) vs Bloomberg/Hagel (I), I'd vote for Hillary without a doubt in my mind even if Bloomberg/Hagel would ever become the the anti-war ticket. There's so much riding in this election, and we need a Dem. to win.

[Heidi]

93. I will vote for the Democratic nominee. Period. (nt)

[some guy]

94. Other: Reluctantly

She is my least favorite Dem candidate. I haven't decided yet what I will do, or how I will vote if she is the nominee.

[BlueStater]

97. With very little enthusiasm n/t

[KAT119]

100. I much prefer Kucinich, but would vote for H. if is the nominee-unless

3rd party candidate is as great as Kucinich, e.g Gore.

[madinmaryland]

102. If you're not voting Democrat in the next election, then

what are you doing here?

:wtf: