Oct 24, 2008
Are there reasons for not voting other than “I don’t care” and “Both choices stink”?
Generally, a person’s vote shows whether they’re more conservative or liberal, but not voting isn’t so clear.
What can a non-vote communicate?
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It communicates a misunderstanding of what voting is, I think.
Apathy?
Ignorance?
Unconcern?
Some combination of the above?
I am a Single issue Voter.
I was going to write…Apathy. I like Jerry am a single issue voter.
I would consider those who didn’t care or didn’t vote is not a true American for the Lord. We all need to vote no matter that both stink or not.
The best way to vote is always vote the best one of them that is the Pro-Life one. This is clearly one issue vote.
We as American also need to pray for our country and those who rules in our land.
Of course, we all look forward our eternity home in Heaven that is not here yet until He called us home to be with Him.
Still while we are still on earth, we all need to vote.
Read Romans 12 – 13 and read The Cross of Christ by John R. W. Stott in chapter 12 Loving Our Enemies. (Yes, his book is very hard but very challegning to learn from it.)
Pro-Life for Christ,
‘Guerite ~ BoldLion
Unwilling to align my name with either
Unwilling to tip the scales – leaving it up to God
On the one issue thing, I’m tempted…
rebellion?
I’m a one-issue voter, too, so I would have a hard time voting if both were pro-choice.
How about anger and frustration at a broken system?
Politicians saying one thing and doing another, changing convictions like the wind, playing the fool in front of the public instead of taking responsibility for their actions, lying [and on the list goes] does NOT make me want to vote for more of the same.
I will vote because I don’t think shirking my responsibility helps anything, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. :-)
It’s not always quite that cut and dry. I refuse to vote for anyone who is pro-abortion so I cannot vote for Obama. McCain has said that life begins at conception. That is well and good. But McCain is all for embryonic stem cell research.
So, what does this mean? There is a serious inconsistency here. Does he mean that destroying a life for convenience is immoral but destroying a life for medical use is moral?
I agree. Not voting is not an option, but continually accepting the lesser of two evils is almost worse. Why? Because that tells our system (most notably the Republican party) that the church is happy to support the lesser of two evils. Promises can be made to garner our votes and then broken without any fear of removal for failing to make an honest attempt to meet our expectations.
That is because they are the lesser of two evils.
The will of the people? Indeed.
It could communicate that one lives ins a state that is going to be handily won by one candidate, no matter what. And since the electoral college determines the president, your vote would essentially be a wasted one if you were choosing to vote for the opposing candidate.
Broken System indeed.
You can and should always vote.
Write-in: Mike Huckabee, Ron Paul or for whomever strikes your fancy.
To vote for anyone other than McCain, or to not vote, is a vote for the Freedom of Choice Act.
To say that someone who doesn’t vote is automatically apathetic, misunderstanding what voting is, or not a true Christian for the Lord is narrow-minded and not true.
Someone who is struggling between too completely opposites and finds herself somewhere in the middle must evaluate which issues are most important, consult with those she trusts, and then make a decision as best she can.
My issue is that if I vote one way or another, I don’t want to be responsible for the hell that ensues if the chosen president goes terribly. If I did vote or didn’t vote. Some people are very strong one way or the other, and I am comfortable with the majority taking the country in that direction.
This is one of the hardest decisions we’ve all ever had to make, so I’m just trying to vote the way that my main concerns seem to lean.
I actually like the idea of Deron up there. If you are truly unhappy with your choices, consider a write-in. although, some would say this is a “throw-away vote”…
My friend Keith believes that He cannot stand before God having voted for either candidate, that it is his responsibility to choose more wisely.
I understand his line of reasoning, but I believe it is every American’s duty to vote for some candidate. And unfortunately, I have never found a candidate who lines up with my beliefs 100% so I think we must pick the person who most closely lines up with our beliefs.
Another single issue voter here.
A common reason is, “My vote won’t do anything”
You Americans have it real easy. You actually have a pro-life ticket on the cards. In UK we simply vote for a member of parliament to represent our own constituency. Whichever party has the most votes is in control, and their leader is the Prime Minister.
Here and there, there are pro-life candidates to be MPs but it’s all down to where you live. The most radical option where I live is someone who wants to merely reduce how late one can abort a baby.
So it’s vote for someone who thinks killing babies is fine, as long as they’re not too old (consider John Piper’s logic on single-issue voting), or it’s no vote at all.
Doug Wilson said if American democracy is a religion, voting is a sacrament. Sacraments are controlled by the priests, not by perishoners.
Also, the freedom not to vote is one that is often ignored. To make voting compulsory is to take away my freedom.
A Republican vote is not necessarily a pro-life vote. Roe v. Wade was handed down by a Nixon-appointed Supreme Court after all.
Twenty-two words each. Except this one.
We need to do what’s right, and leave the results up to God. If two candidates are unacceptable, then a write-in is appropriate, even if the “effective” result is a non-vote. Taking into account the sovereignty of God, there is no such thing as a ‘non-vote’ when you do what’s right, and leave the rest up to God.
So, the question is: “What’s right?” In truth, there is no difference between abortion and stem cell research. That makes McCain fatally conflicted. Obama’s views are so wicked, the only decision I face with him is whether it’s time to start praying imprecatory Psalms. That leaves the write-in option.
Yes, Stan’s statement about the Freedom of Choice Act rings painfully in my head – and so does Habakkuk 1.
a felony ! you can’t vote if you have lost your right to vote.
Yes–the freedom not to vote IS often ignored. If you don’t believe in either candidate, then why must we vote for the lesser of two evils? Further, voting is about who we WANT in office, not about who we don’t want. If there was a box of “don’t want” a candidate, I might go check it.
Anyway, not voting communicates:
1. Tired of the two party system that is perpetuated by the media and by the pressure to only vote one of those two candidates.
2. That the process is important. In other words, you could vote in the primaries and not in the general election in order to see your candidate get the spot. If it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out. It doesn’t automatically mean you don’t care.
3. It can also send the message: I don’t care. Is that so bad? Is it so bad to not care about the two politicians vomiting half-truths on north americans and just going about smear politics as usual? By voting for these guys, we’re in essence saying “We believe in the way this is going” I, for one, do not.
If we are believers in the Constitution, then being free to vote, doesn’t mean it’s the wisest decision. It’s certainly not the only decision of a free citizen that can make a difference.
So here’s the deal for me… I haven’t given in to the pervasive apathy concerning voting, although I do hear it from lots of my Christian friends.
If I WERE to abstain, here are two reasons why I would: (1) John McCain is going to win South Dakota, whether I vote for him or not. (2) Barack Obama is going to win the overall national election, and it doesn’t matter a hill o’ beans who wins South Dakota.
But I’m voting, and I’m voting for John McCain, because I’m a “one-issue voter” (shame on me).
We need to vote our conscience. Vote for the candidate that is most aligned to our moral compass, whether that candidate is D or R or 3rd party. Vote for the candidate who will “do right” by the US.
Honestly i think someone who doesn’t vote is misguided at best and apathetic at worst. God is sovereign no matter who wins the election.
that being said i think of voting as a hard won privilege that I think is just not an option to just throw it away.
Reasons for not voting? Here’s a few. From Thomas DiLorenzo’s piece:
And Wendy McElroy:
Robert Klassen:
Mark Reynolds:
What does a non-vote communicate?
1. Disrespect for those who have given their lives for you to have that right.
2. A willingness to shirk the responsibility God has given us to vote for those who will best allow us to, “lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.”
It is important to remember that voting does not require a vote for or against McCain or Obama. Write in a candidate or vote for a third party. Romans 13 tells us that God chooses leaders–but at the same time, He holds us accountable for using the opportunities He’s given us to His glory. That includes voting.
On a side note–life isn’t a single issue… it is the FOUNDATIONAL political issue.
I think there’s another reason: sin. When I was 23 years old, all of my time was spent doing two things: 1. Filling my day with as many diversions as possible, and 2. Squeezing in the things I absolutely had to do in order not to get expelled from college or go completely bankrupt. Vote? Who had time for that???
I agree with most others above that there is no good reason not to vote…
And, in response to anyone who says both choices stink, there aren’t only two men running for the job… there are other options.
I unashamedly don’t vote based on a cost benefit analysis and not on principle.
Since my vote doesn’t actually matter*, any benefits that I receive from voting a merely psychological. For me, acknowledging that my vote doesn’t actually matter means that I no longer derive any benefit whatsoever from voting. With no benefit, any cost (including gas to drive to the polls, time spent standing in line, etc.) tips the analysis to not voting.
Of course this doesn’t mean I think that no one should vote. I wish everyone would vote… myself and liberals excepted. Besides, most people derive enough psychological benefit to tip the analysis.
* – I’m using “doesn’t actually matter” as short hand for my vote not having any causal powers as judged by the most accepted account of causality – counterfactual dependency.
I think the Electoral College, Red-State, Blue-State thing discourages a lot of people I know.
Texas will be a Red-State. There is no question about that.
So for those who are republican, the feel like they are doing their part to ensure that. But, others, who were told in Social Studies that their vote matters, don’t feel like it really does.
National voting with the EC feels like a bit of a sham.
As far as local elections go, where every vote does count… that is laziness and apathy.
A reason “not to vote” – how about
2 Timothy 2:4
No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.
I think an inordinate amount of time has been wasted this political season by those who should have their eye on Kingdom issues.
Why are we putting our trust in politicians to “save us” from the evils of abortion, gay marriage (the two platforms).
Why won’t we repent, return to God, and seek Him — to heal our land?
I’m a one issue voter also – but that issue is “who is Kingdom minded”?
It’s pointless for me to vote in the Presidential election here in the People’s Republic of Massachusetts, where all we like sheep vote Democrat. However, I will still go to the polls and vote in the down ballot initiatives. As long as there is one race where my vote will count I will always go to the polls. I might non-vote in one item if I thought that neither option was worth supporting.
[rant]
To all of you single issue abortion voters, I hope you realize that you are perpetuating the stereotype of non-believers who think that we are the people who want to tell them what to do, not the people who love other people.
[end rant]
Sorry. I feel better now.
We voted yesterday and it seemed to be an exercise in futility. I have often wondered if it is a violation of conscience to cast a vote for someone you do not respect. I think that a non-vote can communicate a dissatisfaction with the candidates that have been provided. I would almost like to see a box for “None of the Above”. If there are enough votes for “None of the Above”, then we have to be presented with a new set of options.
Ben – your perspective is something that others (perhaps especially those in the Bible belt) don’t even consider -
My opinion with the one issue voters (abortion) is that I am glad that they celebrate the sanctity of life – but it will never be solved via legislation –if so, wouldn’t a republican president and a republican congress have already solved it?
Secondly, what about the issue of global poverty? or orphan care? are those not life and death issues?
just thinking out loud
Jason nailed it. If you think you’d rather “not vote”, go in the voting booth and write in the name of someone you respect — someone who you would rather have in that office.
Abstaining from the vote is a way to tell that party which takes you for granted, “Eat dirt.”
But voting third party or for a write-in does that better.
Sorry Frank, I respect you a lot, but how is that functionally any better than not voting on that particular race? Unless there are thousands of other people with you writing in the same name, it’s not.
Why is that we feel that there is only 2 choices? Parties have and can change in the US remember the Whigs, Federalists, Democratic Republicans??? Our current 2 parties at one time did not exist (they actually formed over single issue voting for Lincoln over slavery) A vote for a 3rd party is not a waste but an exercise of conscience. the lesser of 2 evils is still evil. can Christians live without compromise…. I hope so. Chuck Baldwin with the constitution party Will receive a strong vote this year for this reason.
I’m single issue. That issue is Jesus. Pro-life, yes. Pro-poor, yes. Anti-War, yes. Is there a candidate that will serve these issues consistently?
After reading all these comments, I can still can’t, in my own mind, justify not voting.
I don’t necessarily think our vote is only for “who we want in office”. In this election, my vote is against who I do not want.
That being said, I am reminded time and time again, after admittingly getting too caught up in the worldliness of politics, that God is Sovereign. Most of us here know that. But believing it, putting our trust in it is a whole different struggle.
You live in a different country. You registered to vote by absentee ballot. The ballot went to your in-laws house in the States, and there it has been sitting at the bottom of the mail pile. Your mother-in-law put it in the mail yesterday. Oops…
It could mean you were sure planning on voting — a little bit concerned about what seemed like an inordinate attachment to the political process among your evangelical friends, but planning on voting — then became convinced as recently as several minutes ago that Christians, particularly evangelicals, living the geographical confines subject to the earthly power of the United States government have become so devoted to the American political system as a civil religion as to make their devotion idolatrous.
And you could reason that opting out of such a system is a prophetic, symbolic act of protest against that particular idolatry — not unlike Jeremiah cooking his food over a dung fire or John enacting the cleansing for repentance outside of the temple.
You might hope that by such in-action, proclaimed with the reasons behind it, might woo some back from their idolatry to a rightly ordered hope and a rightly ordered understanding of “Render unto Caesar what is Caesars and unto God what is God’s.”
America is not a religion. Voting is not a sacrament.
not believing in the “democratic” system. let’s be real, moving to Canada or Sweden or wherever is just not an option for a lot of people. i didn’t get a say in being born here, and technically, i don’t have to like it.
i’m pretty sure i’m voting. though i’m not VERY sure who i’m voting for yet.
Not voting can communicate one’s displeasure with his representative(s), as many Republicans attempted to communicate in the 2006 mid-term elections.
I don’t think they got the message.
As long as there is the opportunity to write in a vote, there is no excuse not to vote. People might say, why bother? Your one (or dozen or however few people might also vote for that person) vote for the write in won’t make a difference.
Well, it wouldn’t make a difference if I didn’t vote either, but at least it’s a chance to communicate dissatisfaction with the two choices in a positive way. And for me, it’s just a matter of principle. Even if only the people who count the votes see my choice, someone gets to–just like a letter to the editor that doesn’t get published. Somebody has to read it.
And I don’t think the write in has to be someone who dropped out of the primaries. I have voted for people in my community, or more nationally known people who I think would have done a good job.
In this case, we have a candidate who now claims to be willing to defend the unborn, and that is reason enough to vote for him. Hopefully, he will follow through.
For those who choose not to vote at all if they can’t in good conscience approve of either candidate, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. Perhaps I’m just a person who always has to get in my two cents–even in the voting booth.
Chris – well stated. I disagree, but don’t want to be disagreeable.
You typed:
“In this case, we have a candidate who now claims to be willing to defend the unborn, and that is reason enough to vote for him. Hopefully, he will follow through.”
If Roe v. Wade was ever going to be overturned, wouldn’t it have been accomplished while there was a Republican President and a Republican congress?
My opinion is that our vote should be given to one who displays a mature Christian walk – and all the “policy” will take care of itself.
I don’t think there’s ever a good reason not to vote.
Most people don’t know it, but there are actually 8 presidential candidates running for president (it may be down to 6 now). If you can’t vote for either of the 2 that everyone talks about (which I most certainly cannot), vote 3rd party — my choice is Chuck Baldwin. Pro-Life (unlike Obama and, even though he wants to say he is, McCain), and the only candidate that would actually sign the constitution if it were written today.
Until people “buck the system” and begin to vote on the principles instead of “the lesser of two evils” or whatever nonsense they contrive, it will always be more of the same. Republicans and Democrats are 2 sides to the same coin.
Vote 3rd party — but don’t not vote!
Because we are ambassadors of the Kingdom of God and not diplomats. We don’t come to negotiate. We come to say “repent and believe”. If the Ds and Rs stand against the Kingdom, then our allegiance is to the King.
Amen to the right-in candidate option. Simply not liking either candidate isn’t a good enough excuse for not voting.
How about making your own bi-partisan ticket.
indifference + laziness
Some say “all non-voters are indifferent, lazy cynics” while others said that “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” Interesting.
Not having enough information to make a well-thought-through decision. Sometimes I have to do this in the local races, although this year I’m trying to do more homework.
Some of these comments are expressing the idea that somehow you’re not for Christ if you participate in the political process. Frankly, that’s ridiculous. You don’t see Paul or Jesus telling Christians to pull out and have nothing to do with the earthly governments over them; you see them saying things like “pray for those in authority,” “render to Caesar what is Caesar’s,” and “Give honor/tribute to those to whom it is due”. Christians are supposed to be good citizens in order to give the gospel (as far as possible without compromise) a good reputation among nonbelievers. And keep in mind that the gov’t the NT writers were referring to was the Roman Empire– not quite the paragon of Christian virtue.
In the sinful and imperfect US, we have the privilege of influencing the process, and so as we have occasion we should avail ourselves of that privilege. This doesn’t mean we think we’re establishing the Kingdom on earth; it means we’re exercising stewardship of the gifts God has given us, as well as “seeking the prosperity of the city where we live.”
Linda – beg to disagree on your two word response.
My decision to not vote has cost me much time and energy and thought.
I could have just as easily said the reason people are voting in this election is
conformity + unintelligent
but I didn’t
Jake – I do see Paul telling Christians to “subject to higher authority” – but I also see him writing in 2 Timothy 2:4
“No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.”
The problem is not the act of voting. Voting is not a panacea. The problem is that believers are misplacing their hope and loyalty.
Blindsquirrel, I see your point. Yet at one time we had a president who vetoed the ban on partial birth abortion, and then the next president signed the ban into law. Whether it is a full overturning of Roe v. Wade, or doing whatever possible to stop as many abortions as possible as legislators pass laws, it is important to me to have a president who will do whatever he/she can to protect life. Whatever GWB’s faults and mistakes, I’m grateful that he finally said what no other sitting president before him said publicly (at least to my knowledge), that life begins at conception. Presidents and governor’s aren’t actively involved in making laws (as a past PA governor’s staff member once gave me as an excuse for his failure to defend the unborn), but they have a position and voice that can still have great influence.
I said I hoped he would follow through because I had heard that McCain wasn’t as strongly pro-life in the past as he has been reported to be now. If he has truly become more strongly and consistently pro-life, I hope he will continue to be.
People may have other reasons for not voting for him, which may be valid, but being pro-life to me makes him a possible candidate, and this would be the reason I may not write in a name this year.
David– with respect, I think you’re proving my point. I’ve never heard anyone say that voting is a panacea. It’s ridiculous to say that any believer who participates in the political process (and voting is about the bare minimum of involvement you can have) is “misplacing his hope and loyalty.”
I want the government to serve for the “punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right.” I think one candidate will do a much better job of that than the other, so I will do what I can to put him in authority. That’s not mutually exclusive with placing my ultimate hope in the second coming of Christ.
Think of what else you’d have to include in “civilian pursuits” to be consistent with what you’re saying. Do you ever listen to the radio or watch TV? Have you ever seen a movie? Do you own a computer, or any books other than the Bible? When you’re with friends, do you talk about anything other than God? If so, how is that OK, while voting violates 1 Tim 2:4?
Piper for President
Jake -
In this political process the buzzwords are “HOPE YOU CAN BELIEVE IN” and “COUNTRY FIRST”.
Couple that with the feeding frenzy that is happening as candidates are attempting to secure the “evangelical vote” causes me to say with confidence that the church is too entwined in political affairs.
While we do not compartmentalize our lives as “spiritual” and “secular” – my warning is simply that I see evidence that believers are drifting from the understanding that we are aliens and strangers in this land.
“Civilian affairs” in Paul’s writing in 2 Timothy is different from “worldly affairs” – which your examples lend themselves to.
I think it would be a bit severe, and maybe a little uncharitable, to label all non-voters as ignorant or apathetic etc.
After all, isn’t it possible that some people would be violating their conscience if they voted for either option?
In a closed system with two candidates like ours, non-participation because it is the better of two evils actually casts a vote of apathy for the worse of the two evils.
I have a “right to vote.” There is a big difference between a “right and a “responsibility.” My responsibility is to live a godly life. If I cannot vote with a clean conscience about either candidate (as is most likely going to be the case for me on this one) my responsibility overtakes my right, because it is to God and not to men.
Also, if I am free to vote (in the political sense of the word “free”) then I must be equally free to not vote. Otherwise it is not truly freedom.
p.s. I’m a Calvinist and would not even think to use that argument in a theological debate, but here it does apply.
Vote 3rd Party. Maybe, maybe not. I still don’t know what I’m doing. But I understand your thoughts.
Voting 3rd party in my mind is a waste of a vote. There’s been no succesful USA 3rd party in the last 100 years and there’s little to no evidence showing that voting 3rd party somehow has any bearing on either the DFL or GOP. A sizeable group of people voted for Nader in 2000 and 2004. Did their “message vote” change anything?
We’re a two party country. In my opinion, one should stive to change their party from within, not by forming an alternative party.
My problem with a multi-party political system is this: let’s say there are 5 main political party. And let’s say each of these gets a somewhat equal amount of votes. The result is a party only needs about 25-30% of the vote to win the election. That’s hardly representative of the nation at large.
On the abortion issue alone, John McCain has run on a pro-life platform and has a voting record to support his stand. Obama’s voting record is very pro-abortion, even going so far as to oppose legislation that would require medical treatment for babies born alive during a botched abortion. Given these facts, I have to vote for McCain as the candidate most able to defeat Obama.
Also, yes Christians should put their primary hope in God and not in elected officials. However, Proverbs 29:2 says, “When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; but when the wicked rule, the people groan.” While McCain may not be the most “righteous” leader, he is the man that God has set in this election as being the most legitimately electable candidate to uphold my values.
I think not voting communicates apathy on so many levels. Voting is a privilege with heavy costs tied to some of it. I recently came across this article and posted it on my blog.
http://denalidreams.blogspot.com/2008/10/cost-of-privilege-to-vote.html
By not voting aren’t you in a sense completely removing yourself from having to make a decision, thereby leaving the final result up to those that do vote? I guess you can argue that you are “leaving it up to God,” but that argument seems to me the more “spiritual” way out of not making a decision. Isn’t it possible for God to work in the election powerfully through the votes of the American people? Anyway, if you decide to not vote, whatever your reasons, that’s ok…just don’t complain or take credit for the final result.
personally, i find it a bit contradictory for conservatives to be so pro-life, yet support the war which kills hundreds of thousands of people.
you CANNOT justify killing, no matter what. i feel like if the argument is that you shouldn’t kill, then to be pro-life, you would have to want us out of the war as well.
Saying that not voting communicates apathy, indifference, laziness, sin, insufficient devotion to Christ or lack of concerns for the unborn is either uninformed or uncharitable with the likes of people like Stanley Hauerwasand John Howard Yoder out there.
No one who has not seriously considered their position on participation in the political process (even if arriving at points of disagreement with them) simply accept uncrticially that participation in the political system is a Christian mandate (let alone participation in the two-party system).
To call a principles position with which you disagree “wrong” is not a problem. But to use the ad-hominem argument of calling it apathetic is a problem.
I’m with Blind Squirrel on this one. My decision to vote OR not to vote come November whatever will have come not as the result of apathy one way or the other but as the result of a principled consideration not only of my 2, 3, 6, or 8 choices of who to vote for but also of my decision, in Christ, wheter or not to vote at all.
A non-vote reveals your marginal preference. In other words, it demonstrates ambivalence which is politically and socially useful.
Not to mention that voting is irrational.
Steve
Erin, I think where people see a difference is that the Bible tells us to rescue the oppressed, and the fact that Jesus told various people to leave their life of sin, but he did not tell the soldier to leave the army and put down his arms. In fact, the Bible says that God has given some the task of keeping order and bringing to justice those who hurt others. Granted politicians, generals, and others can become corrupt and tyrranical, so not all are doing this as they should.
The Bible says: Do not murder. Many do not see the killing that is done in a defensive war, or a war to rescue the oppressed, as murder.
Who’s to say which oppressed people we should rescue first, and how, that is the part that is so hard.
It will be some time before we see the whole picture about the current wars. But WWII for example, I’m not sure how many people find fault with the US and other countries who finally opposed and stopped Hitler by force, even though many people were killed in the process.
Erin-
Do you see no difference between the elimination of an innocent baby and the elimination of a dangerous, tyranical force? Yes, innocents are killed during war, but innocent deaths are the unfortunate byproduct of war as opposed to abortion where the innocent are the actual targets.
You also say, “you CANNOT justify killing, no matter what.” Was it wrong for Alied soldiers to kill Nazi soldiers during WWII?
Erin: the argument is that you shouldn’t murder. The Bible draws a distinction between murder and killing– that’s why God could give the Ten Commandments but also send Israel into war.
NOT SAYING FOR A MOMENT that the US is engaged in some kind of holy war. Just that war is something that’s sometimes a tragic necessity in a fallen world. Different than abortion, which is always the deliberate taking of a human life, never in self-defense or with the goal of pursuing any kind of justice.
Sorry Erin, I think a bunch of us were responding to you at the same time. Sorry if you felt piled on.
Don’t mean to be argumentative, but those aren’t reasons not to vote either!
what is the biblical basis for being a single-issue voter?
i just found this logic (http://thebarleys.blogspot.com/2008/06/is-single-issue-voting-wrong-from-john.html), which i agree with, but so few people articulate the process in such a discerning, careful way.
i have heard many Christians present the one-issue-voting logic as if doing it is completely obvious, and anyone who doesn’t stand that way is mislead.
there are way too few Christians directing others to commune with GOD to be the sole director of their consciences. let’s preach listening to the Jesus, humbly seeking Him and His Word, and asking for Him to make us obedient to whatever that is.
if there is an issue on which God wants us to base our vote, He will tell us–and others.
[right now, i have personal issues with finding out that my church put up a large banner outside of the building saying "Vote Pro-Life". but discussing the varied reasons why i disagree with that action extends beyond the parameters of this message board.]
and yes…i veered from the original question.
*sigh*
I would urge everyone to take a look at the other candidates before you vote. Take a look at CHUCK BALDWIN, he’s running in the constitution party, and is endorsed by Ron Paul.
If you don’t think a Third Party vote matters; the Republican party came from somewhere, the Dems came from somewhere. A third party starts with people saying that that is what they want.
I would also like to echo the possibility of a write in or third party vote. Most people needlessly forfeit their right to vote for their first choice! If everyone disregarded the possibility of their vote being “wasted,” these candidates would most likely gain great ground. If a third party candidate captured just 15 or 20 percent in this election, perhaps in 4 years, even more would consider voting for him/her. We should remember that competition encourages quality!
In twenty-two words, a non-vote might be saying, “In striving to have a clear conscience before God and man, I cannot vote for any of the choices I am given.”
If that is coupled with prayer and fasting over the conditions of this nation, I would say it is communicating much to the Father.
wanting to allow the primary concern of my decision to be the “life” issue … then realizing one of them only supports life in the womb, and the other only supports life outside it.
:(
that’s the only reason i wouldn’t vote.
as of today, though, i’m going to have to leave the “life” issue out because i’d be violating any number of biblical and extra-biblical realities about life & death regardless.
as of “today,” i said. something external or internal could change tomorrow!
For an excellent article on one issue voting, read this one at http://www.desiringGod.org:
One-Issue Politics, One-Issue Marriage, and the Humane Society …
The only limit on choices for the office of the president is he/she must be “a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty-five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.” For me, this is not an “either/or” decision.
Going back to original post… the problem doesn’t seem to be apathy so much as it is a non-vote not communicating anything at all, and as such can be co-opted to anyone’s agenda. It’s not, to borrow the common argument, that you have no right to complain if you don’t vote, it’s that you are essentially giving your vote to anyone to use.
Because it isn’t clear what one means by their abstaining, their non-action can mean anything. The angry and frustrated crowd can adopt all the non-voters to their cause. The elected candidate can spin it as silent assent, etc. Or it could just be seen as apathy.
Deets! Thanks for your reply!
blindsquirrel: Yeah, it’s soooo true that we continually vote for republicans because of the “life” issue yet they haven’t changed roe v. wade yet!!! Why do we keep listening to christian radio and drinking the kool-aid every election cycle? They’re just politicians that want our vote … just like all the other politicians.
Deron: I’d LOVE to vote Ron Paul. But he dropped out. It would be great if he announces today that he’s back in!
drewB: That’s an interesting perspective. Freedom NOT to vote. As a member of a demographic that just received the right to vote (long story) in 1965, I feel obligated to vote. But, then again, the “right to vote” wasn’t designed to enslave people to vote; rather it exists to give people the right to that option. Cool.
“My vote doesn’t count” people: Of course it does. If it didn’t, and no one voted, the hated electoral college train would be left in the station and no one would get elected. I’m a big one-man-one-vote person (at least for half of the overall vote, so that small state folk don’t get left in the dust when it comes to national issues that affect everyone) but even the EC needs actual votes to work.
eric: Thanks for mentioning the Chuck Baldwin dude. I’ll check him out.
As it stands, though, since I don’t agree with the way either “major” candidate treats the “life” issue, I’ll be voting on other issues. And because of my huge problems with McCain’s notion of foreign policy (among other concerns) I can’t vote for him!
*Hopping off soap box*
*Grabbing soap box*
*Leaving corner*
Coming from the UK things look very different (no party is particularly more pro-life than any other). Although not at all a left-winger myself I have some sympathy with Jim Wallis in this:
http://www.sojo.net/blog/godspolitics/?p=3166
Wow, you find out who’s really reading your blog when you bring up politics!! Bravo!
It communicates, “I did not vote; therefore, I cannot complain.”
For me a non-vote would communicate that I was dead, mad or in a coma.
Voting is an important duty, even if you spoil your card. Not voting communicates the thought:
“I don’t care if someone takes this right away from me.”
If the choices on offer are Hitler and Stalin, don’t endorse either, but show up at a polling station, and make the protest. Apathy is vile.
Ron Paul!
There is no good reason not to vote. Abstaining to communicate frustration doesn’t work. It didn’t work in 2006 as someone earlier pointed out. Besides, how will the parties know that you aren’t voting because you are frustrated? Unless millions and millions don’t vote (never going to happen), they won’t get the message. Not voting results functional apathy, whatever you mean by it.
After some painstaking consideration, I have decided that I must vote for McCain because it is the strongest vote against Obama. To say the least, I’m not thrilled about it. However, I cannot personally justify going 3rd party when I think of GHW Bush/Clinton/Perot.
Pray about it, and vote your conscience before the Lord.
I am not a fan of either candidate and was hoping for better/stronger VP choices. As much as I dread saying it, I have a strong feeling neither one of them will live out their presidential term. Therefore, the VP candidate is CRITICAL in this election. The first time in my voting life, I will have a difficult time casting my vote, but I will definitely vote.
We have a family member serving in Iraq allowing us-Americans-ONE OF THESE VERY FREEDOMS, and to not vote would mean all the service men/women would be partially serving in vain.
I cannot, as a Christian, obedient to Christ, and as an American, thankful for my freedom,
ignore the voting privilege
There is no excuse for not voting. My 80 year old mother was visiting us recently She lives 1500 km away. She was scheduled to return home on the day of our country’s election (Canada). The flight she had booked meant she would miss the opportunity to vote so she paid extra to change her flight time to earlier in the day, just so she could vote. Any my mother is not wealthy just conscientious. BTW my parents immigrated from German post WWII. Maybe our generation take our rights for granted?
If you have convictions against voting for either one just look at it as voting against the guy who you don’t want in office. Basically, vote for the lesser of two evils. A vote for McCain is essentially the same as a vote against Obama and vice-versa.
Abraham hit a raw nerve!
First – voting is a privilege, not a duty. If one chooses not to vote, it is their privilege to not do so. That said, I would not choose to “not vote”. It is my opinion, for what it’s worth, that not voting is like not counting. To be quite honest, no one is going to say, “Oh look, a non-vote.
By writing someone in, you have truly said “This is how I feel about this particular position.”, as opposed to “I’m not saying anything about this particular position.:” People notice write in votes – even if they “don’t matter”.
If the system is broken, and I believe it is, it is because WE – the people – have allowed it to be misused to the point of breaking.
That said, I will vote. I am actually writing in someone who is a dear, Christian, friend who is not only educated, girded in the armor of Christ, and a believer in individual responsibility, but is also a woman of color. AND a homeschooler to boot!
I keep deleting what I was going to write here.
—-It doesn’t say anywhere in the Bible to ever be okay with “choosing the lesser of two evils”. I’m not quoting anyone’s comment, I haven’t even read them all, but I am really growing weary of “Just choose the lesser of two evils”.
There are plenty of OTHER candidates running and I am even MORE weary of people saying “Well, I don’t like the TWO candidates”….TWO? There aren’t just TWO. And you can always write in Mickey Mouse. He gets a bunch of votes every single time.
I have no issues whatsoever with people not voting for whatever their reasons are. Voting is personal, people’s reasons are personal.
If people spent half the energy talking to their elected officials about making some real progress as those same people spend berating people that say they might not or are not voting, maybe our elected officials would actually make some changes. It seems misplaced to me to be bothered with the VOTERS. Be bothered with the POLITICIANS.
Thanks for letting me get that off my chest, Abraham. It feels like I’ve finally sneezed after waiting half an hour for it.
One’s conscience may not allow him to vote for either. That is how I feel.
I am not wasting my vote, apathetic, ignorant, or lazy, I just can not in good conscience vote for either candidate.
Obama is pro-choice, McCain is going to continue with Bush’s Foreign Policy and still want to start more wars. He is more aggressive than Bush and will most likely cause more damage in the long run.
Unfortunately, being pro-life and anti-Bush-Doctrine limits my options here, so I will pray and hope that in four years, the States will provide it’s country with better options.
The only elections I ever wanted to vote in – Stevenson, JFK, Goldwater – I was too young. Since then, I didn’t vote for years as a matter of protest. I love my country and I hate seeing what is happening to it. However, once I became a believer, I sought G-d as to whom he wanted and voted accordingly. Can’t say I’ve been happy with the results, but that’s not what He promised.
This election, I believe it is critical that we vote for McCain, not because he’s so wonderful, but on the off chance that we might avoid the disaster that Obama will inevitably bring.
Coffeswirls, and Puritanicoal….Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure McCain is NOT for embryonic stem cell research. From http://www.johnmccain.com:
“As president, John McCain will strongly support funding for promising research programs, including amniotic fluid and adult stem cell research and other types of scientific study that do not involve the use of human embryos.
Where federal funds are used for stem cell research, Senator McCain believes clear lines should be drawn that reflect a refusal to sacrifice moral values and ethical principles for the sake of scientific progress, and that any such research should be subject to strict federal guidelines.”
Voting is an act of agreement.
With the freedom presented to us in this country and with the freedom in Christ, I will not be voting.
I vote for Christ. I vote that we ourselves start making change happen in our communities and churches and families. Christ allows us to make the change we need and if you want to see less babies killed each year, then you better help make a difference in your community. Not just voting for a candidate who might be pro-life. That will do nothing.
(plus, most republicans are annoying)(Someday I might move to the east coast or to France.)
I was seriously, very seriously, contemplating not voting, voting 3rd party or writing in Huckabee. To prove a point I think was my reasoning. I’m sick of the Republican party using us one-issue voters. I can’t stand McCain, I think that he’s arrogant and just plain yucky.
However, my heart breaks over babies being murdered so I must, all Christians MUST vote AGAINST abortion. You don’t have to like McCain, but you must detest the shedding of innocent blood just as much as God does(prov 6:16-17).
If you are considering voting other than McCain read this heart wrenching article and see if you can still do it in good conscience. http://randyalcorn.blogspot.com/2008/10/im-not-voting-for-man-im-voting-for.html
I get tired of people saying that a vote for a third party candidate is a vote for Barack Obama, or a vote for the Freedom of Choice Act, or anything else. When our two party system has left us voting for either death (abortion) or death (an unjust war) and torture, it has failed us. Voting for a third party is voting for a third party candidate. I’m glad that the reformers didn’t decide not to stick with their cause because it didn’t seem to have enough people to succeed, or the Boston Tea Party, for that matter. I’ll be voting for a third party and I don’t think anyone has any excuse for not voting.
I get tired too.
I get tired of people automatically equating Christian with Republican.
I get tired of being pigeonholed so that when talking to people about politics, you get “labeled” as “Not pro-life” or “liberal”.
I get tired too.
[...] blog – every post is 22 words – opened a can of more than 22 worms, when he asked the question, “Are there any good reasons not to vote?”. The comments are an interesting read, but one caught my attention and I thought I’d bring [...]
http://www.constitutionparty.com/
This year will be my first time voting and I have decided that a clear conscience on all fronts is the way to go. When I read Chuck Baldwin calling Bush/Cheney too liberal I knew he would have my vote.
Bush is pro-life and US abortions have gone up since he’s been in office, I don’t think that choosing a candidate just because they are pro-life is a responsible vote.
Amen Banana Split.
Just to add to the conversation another twist.
This is a great blog post.
http://www.upper-register.com/blog/?p=237
Honestly? I agree with Banana Split. No offense to all you single-issue voters out there (which are many of you apparently – as are some of my very best friends)…but that is not the way to go. The Bible calls us to help the poor, the downtrodden and the mistreated. One would think that these issues would be front and center in a party that is pro-life. Unfortunately they often are not. Use your brains, please. Uncover the other pertinent and timely issues as well. Pray about them. Pray that God would lead you to make an informed, well-rounded decision. I am a Christian and do believe that abortion is wrong BUT that will not stop me from exploring every other issue that should be important to Christians and voting for the person I believe God is leading me to vote for. I am tired of feeling like a bad Christian because I will be voting for Barack Obama.
…a great read that opened my eyes to many things about my faith: Unchristian. http://www.unchristian.com/
I think every Christian should make themselves aware of the issues brought up in this book…they are very relevant to this political atmosphere.
I’m a missionary living overseas that has already voted by absentee. There are many names on the ballot besides McCain and Obama. About 5 other choices, if I recall.
Because I didn’t like my choices, I wrote someone in that I believe would follow God’s wisdom in running our country.
Although we don’t always like the choices in front of us, we need to be thankful we live in a country that allows us to make one. Not all of the world gets as many choices as we do.
Here’s something to think about: If one candidate wins (let’s call him Obama) is elected, the Freedom of Choice Act will very likely become law. This will eliminate all restrictions of abortion that are currently in place in many states (parental notification/consent and the like), as well as requiring gov’t (=taxpayer) funds to pay for abortions. If passed, and especially if Obama appoints the kind of Supreme Court justices we can reasonably expect he would, on a political level the pro-life movement will be dead in the water.
To those who are not voting, or voting for Obama, I’d like to hear what makes you think it’s OK not to do what we can, however small, to stop this. Personally, I don’t want to hear pro-Obama Christians (or non-voting Christians) be shocked and dismayed if and when it happens. A non-vote, or a vote for Obama, enables it. I’d love to know what other issues are important enough to trump this one.
And E: do you think God’s call to help the “poor, the downtrodden and the mistreated” applies to the more than 1 million children a year who are legally murdered? Do you think God is leading you to vote for a person who wants to expand the ability to legally murder unborn children?
And since you want the rest of us to “use our brains,” do you think those of us who don’t think that’s acceptable just aren’t as smart as you?
For a well-reasoned response on this issue from my tradition (Anabaptism), see the article by Mennonite historian, John D. Roth, here: http://www.catapultmagazine.com/election/feature/polls-apart
Blessings.
One of the things that I find hard to believe is that so many people are so put off by people who don’t vote. As if being an American and being a Christian somehow make it necessary that someone votes. As an American – whatever happened to my Constitutional rights to not have to vote? As a Christian – whatever happened to my allegiance to the Kingdom of God above all other earthly kingdoms?
I am a single reason non-voter. I believe in the sanctity of ALL life – whether that life is a child or an enemy on the battlefield. As someone who is heavily into non-violence and non-aggression I could never vote for someone who would have to send people to kill/murder other people. As President – it is a must because he must protect the self-interests of the State. As a Christian – I reject those self-interests and believe that my allegiance is to Christ alone and to the Kingdom of God (which is why I stopped saying the Pledge of Allegiance and only stand silently during the National Anthem out of respect for others).
I reject the fallacy that as a Christian it is my God ordained duty to vote. For people who scream sola scriptura – where is that in the Bible? I pray for my leaders, pay my taxes and give them my obedience to the point where it contradicts with the Law of God. But the rest of my time and energy go to service to the Kingdom (one cannot have two masters after all).
And not voting does mean that I lose my right to complain – but I would never complain in the first place. I can still call sin “sin” though – and instead of complaining about things and can go out and make a difference. But to somehow say that to be an American Christian that I must vote and that somehow it’s disobedience, rebellion, or whatever not to is misguided to say the least and stupid to say the most. I live my life according to the Sermon on the Mount – not according to Enlightenment ideas of how a worldly government should be run.
I think not voting essentially says that you don’t care if you live in a place where you are allowed to vote, you would be just as happy living under some other kind of system where you have no say at all. And there are other things on the ballot besides Obama and McCain.
vote for Chuck Baldwin! – http://www.baldwin08.com
~abi
I’m not voting, so perhaps I can try my hand at an answer.
(1) Who am I to know how to solve these massive problems or even to choose the best person to deal with them? I am praying for the election, but I am not voting in part because I know I know way less about and spend a lot less time studying these things than a lot of other people. So I’m taking part in this election through prayer and deferring to the wisdom of the voters in the sovereign hand of God.
(2) By not voting, I want to show my family and friends that as massively important as issues like abortion and poverty are, there are things ten thousand times more important.
I should add (3) In the past politics have led me into becoming very puffed up and arrogant. The easiest and quickest way I could find to deal with it was to gouge out that eye.
hey jake:
you said, in reference to killing the unborn: “To those who are not voting, or voting for Obama, I’d like to hear what makes you think it’s OK not to do what we can, however small, to stop this.”
my reply: it’s actually not ok to refrain from saving the lives of the unborn. we should do that. problem is … (1) voting republican hasn’t and won’t accomplish this no matter how often we blindly follow christian radio pundits and ignore their history of success on this issue, (2) it’s also not ok to refrain from ending the loss of civilian lives and teenaged lives fighting a “war” that punishes those other than the initiators.
my point?
neither of those candidates are truly pro-life.
how can a christian justify voting for someone who ignores the sanctity of the lives outside the womb?
Some refrain because, they say, voting is immoral—particularly for Christians.
[...] Vote, why not? Bloggers like J.J., Rod, Randy, Eli, Emil, Amitai, Abraham, Ben, Bill, Huntley, and Silent are sharing their views probably with milk and cookies. Some [...]
Shannon – the answer to your question of whether I would be just as happy living in another form of government is “yes.” It doesn’t mean that I don’t like the possibility (of which I don’t partake) of voting – but a democracy isn’t the only form of government nor is it one mandated by God. Look at the system of government that God established in Israel – a monarchy. A Democracy isn’t necessarily any more God ordained than anything else. And so yes – I would be just as happy living in a monarchy as I would be living in a democracy or anywhere else (including a communist state that would persecute me).
My residency, although in this wordly kingdom at the moment, is ultimately in Heaven. And so wherever I reside – although an alien and stranger here – I am at home with God.