Biden will not be getting my vote. However, I do intend to vote, and so should those who cannot bring themselves to vote for Biden. The progressive movement is not only about getting the power of position, but it is also about getting the votes that we need to change the system via infiltration. Those are the races that are down the ballot from the presidential race.
There are fifty-three Republican senators of the one hundred who serve as senators. It appears that Mark Kelly is likely to win the seat once held by John McCain. Both McConnell and Graham are facing challenges unlike any in the past as they take on Amy McGrath and Jaime Harrison, respectively. With the exception of Harrison, none of the aforementioned Democratic challengers will match what Jamaal Bowman will bring with his upset victory over Democratic rival Elliot Engel. For the first time since taking office, Nancy Pelosi is facing a Democrat as a finalist in California's top-two system in Shahid Buttar.
These are significant races that those who would have voted for Sanders or Gabbard would have also voted on. Some of those supporters will support Biden, while others may split off into groups that will write-in one name or the other and those who vote Green.
However, what the rigged system also created was a lot of discouraged voters who now may not vote. While that may reflect a sincere lack of regard for the race for president, it reduces the chances for the progressive infiltration into the party by winning the down-ticket races for state and local offices.
If it bothers people in your circle that you voted Green, or wrote in a name to protest the system, let them be bothered. It is your vote to cast as you see fit, and the presidential race is one item on the ballot. There are races for other offices, and legislative directives are often on the ballots in my state. People holding those offices will become voting members of the party, so that is where the battles in the political revolution that can be won by voting for people who do not take corporate money.
It is a legitimate position for someone to vote blue no matter who. However, it is not a legitimate position to demand other people vote that way. Everybody owes it only to themselves to vote such that their consciences are clear. You owe no one an explanation, and especially anyone who did not demand a fair nominating process. If they accept the result of an unfair process, then they will get an unfair process; I don't accept that.
Though my preference would be to write-in Tulsi Gabbard or Bernie Sanders, I am opting to vote Green this time. I hold out little hope that either the Green or Libertarian parties will become legitimate third parties by reaching five percent, but my vote will go to that little hope rather than to the huge disappointment that the DNC forced upon us in the duopoly we must destroy.
If you haven't voted and weren't sure who to vote for, get the ballot and vote for the candidates who commit themselves to getting money out of politics. Of the four largest parties out there, one holds that as part of its constitution: the Green party. Voting for the Green party keeps my conscience clear. Then I can focus on the political gains we can make in the state and local offices, await the results, and get ready for the 2022 mid-term elections.
My protest vote is not a vote for Trump. Not demanding a fair nominating process cost the party my vote. My vote is Green; it never was blue no matter who.
