No remotely serious candidate is out there running to the right of George W. Bush. This leaves those conservatives who are uneasy with Bush only two meaningful alternatives, either to stay home on Election Day, or skip over to the far left and vote Ralph Nader or the Greens, whoever that may be.
Michael Badnarik, the Libertarian candidate, loops around in some universe of his own, in favor of disengaging the Federal government from all but its stated powers as enumerated in the Constitution, and pretty much permitting everything else that is not prohibited. Michael Peroutka, the Constitution candidate, is pretty much foursquare on God, defense of the American family, and the restoration of the American republic according to the Constitution as written, not interpreted. His other plank is prohibition of abortion as of the day he takes office.
While all these are worthy and commendable goals, not one addresses what to do to reverse and make desirable the steps necessary to achieve these ends, nor how to deal with the inevitable problems created in the interim between repeal of the old rules and adoption by general acceptance of the new ones. Essentially, they have the same problems the Democrats do, no plan of action except repeal and executive order, while doing nothing to muster public support.
Now perhaps George W. Bush does not himself manage to build up enough support for what he considers good and worthy goals, which at the moment include encouraging a vigorous and growing US economy, an internal war on family values, an external war aimed at creating a more stable Middle East, incidentally preventing further attacks within the US homeland, and shifting world opinion so the Americans may be seen as good and decent people in our own right, and not some kind of cardboard cutout of a breed of demon. The last may be much the hardest, as not everybody that claims American citizenship is convinced that their fellow Americans, and particularly conservatives, are NOT demons of some sort.
You left out the split the vote alternative for conservatives.
Yeah, he's really nutty for advocating the principles established by the Founders of this country, isn't he?
Flitter off, comrade...