On “Wasting” Your Vote

One of the consistent narratives about the Libertarian Party is that a vote for an LPTexas candidate is “wasting” your vote.I asked Libertarians statewide to share their thoughts on this. Here is what they had to say:

• Wasting your vote is voting for who you think will win, not who you want to win. Don’t wait for Libertarians to win elections before deciding to vote for them, be a leader and make it happen now. – Elliott S.
• A vote for your principles is never a wasted vote. – Teresa R.
• Because the two parties have betrayed the ideals of limited government, and guaranteed civil liberties. – Timothy M.
• The greatest minds on earth have been/ are libertarians (pro-individual liberty) of one persuasion or another, from Jesus Christ to Noam Chomsky, to Mahatma Gandhi, to the 14th Dalai Lama. Why would you vote for less? – Gene C.
• We all have a choice to make, either we vote for individual liberty and freedom or we vote for using coercion and force against others. I chose liberty and freedom! -Robert H.
• Because voting your conscience is never a waste of a vote. Voting for the lesser of two evils (republican or democrat) is still voting for evil. – Ben M.
• Ten people, each with a dollar, are voting with their money on which products to buy. Four people vote for LSD. Four people vote for Copenhagen, and the last two prefer Chic-Fil-A. Should the last two vote for either LSD or Copenhagen so that their votes won’t be “wasted”? – Don F.
• Voting for the publicrat party is a wasted vote. There is only one way to vote correctly; according to your moral values and principles.- Steve M.
• Change is made not by those that repeat the mistakes of the past but by those who choose to make a difference. – Arthur T.
• How can voting one’s conscience possibly be wasted? Increasing voting percentages for third party candidates, even shy of winning, has the potential to get media and public attention, and thus move the debate off of the two-party paradigm that alienate so many voters. – Mark M.
• It’s easy to waste your vote. Simply vote for a candidate you have serious disagreements when you had a better choice. Arguably the majority of votes that will be cast this election cycle will be wasted. If you care about economic freedom and personal freedom, then don’t waste your vote. Make a vote that will clearly and plainly declare what you really mean. Vote Libertarian. – James G.
• Only voting Libertarian will prompt politicians to move toward a free society; refusing to vote Libertarian re-inforces politicians’ urge to move toward repression. – Jeff D.
• You waste your vote when you vote against someone out of fear and not for something you actually believe in. Not only are you wasting your vote but you are allowing others to control you.- Arthur T.
• This is for people that do not vote FOR a candidate… Unless it is a close race, any third party vote is a None Of The Above vote. Politicians notice NOTA. Your vote is all most of them want from you. If you show up and give it to neither of them, It may make a small difference. – Matthew W.
• A vote for the “lesser” of two evils, is still a vote for evil. – Matt F.
• The only wasted vote is one for the status quo. Look at a U.S. debt chart by year, and try to remember which party was in charge. – Allen P.
• Your vote is one tool to have your voice heard regarding your principles. Casting your vote is the only way not to waste it. – Kerry M.
• If we all wasted our votes together, just once, at the same time, we’d change the world. – Denise L.
• If you cannot stand by your principles when alone in the voting booth, then when can you? – Scott L.

And if that doesn’t convince you that your vote is not wasted, how about this classic scene from South Park: