Do you still vote even if you don’t like either candidate?
It seems like old news now but I was reminded of last week’s U.S. presidential debate while I was out for a walk with my mom yesterday.
When she comes to walk my dogs the conversations range from, well, anything to everything. I nearly stopped in my tracks when she asked, “Did you watch that presidential thing with Trump and Biden?” Uh, duh!
My response was that any time Trump is given the floor to ramble and ramble… and ramble… and ramble, it’s must-see TV. It’s not about liking him or supporting him, it’s for sheer entertainment.
What’s most laughable, at least to me as a Canadian, about the last debate was that two grown men — these are grandpas — needed rules set out as if they were unruly pre-schoolers. Seriously, they had to be lectured about speaking over each other.
The fact that rules about interrupting had to be put in place… I mean, come on, do I even need to finish that statement?
The problem is, Americans are so wound up in politics that an election campaign seemingly lasts four years. In this case, Trump was barely in office for six months before he was already campaigning for this year. (I don’t know how Americans don’t get political exhaustion. Although, maybe they do now.)
Much of my radio audience is American. It sounds like this election has pushed potential voters to the limit. And I say “potential” because the back-and-forth bickering is making some people reconsider voting altogether.
“I lean towards Biden,” said Holly from Arizona. “But the reality is hearing a grown man (Biden) tell another to shut up (Trump) during a debate is off putting. It’s unprofessional. Why do I want that representing us? People already laugh at us.”
The question ends up being: Do I vote for the lesser of two evils or just not vote at all?
I understand the mentality. It’s similar in Canada, although our voting system is a little different. If I don’t like the candidate in my riding but I like the party’s leader, do I still give my vote for the person in my neighbourhood?”
As much as all the celebrities and news anchors encourage people to vote, vote, vote, I almost wonder if that’s the last thing Americans want to hear right now — at least those who are fed up with the presidential election.
How many more days is it? Then again, voting day might be Tuesday but the election could drag out for weeks or months if Trump doesn’t get his way.
