Gary Johnson Gains Support And May Take Ohio Out of Play for Romney

Reason ^

[TigerClaws]

The usual wisdom is that, as election day grows closer, support for third-party candidates tends to shrivel as the voting public heeds the tribal war drums and comes home to Team Red or Team Blue in a ritualistic display of political masochism that could be topped only by the sight of actual hair-shirted flagellants lined up to enter the polling booths. That third-party shrinkage may not be happening this year, though — or not yet, at least. A new poll from Ohio shows Gary Johnson gaining support, even as press reports emphasize the hold-your-nose-quality in which both major-party candidates marinate, and which may have voters looking elsewhere for options.

[1rudeboy]

I agree. I'm sorry that you feel it to be true.

[dforest]

Gary Johnson has nowhere near the support Perot had.

Most people don’t even know who he is.

[ansel12]

Social lefties like those libertarians you mentioned, can vote against open borders and the left when the economic choice is so stark.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

....if anything Johnson will bring in anti-obama votes....

Could be. Those that can't stomach voting for Obama again this time but want to be able to tell their Lib friends, "I didn't vote for Romney!" may cross over and vote for Johnson. Could be.

[Deb]

Total and complete BS!

[Deb]

So you’re for the abandonment of Israel and the legalization of drugs. And you’re still pretending to be a “conservative”? You prove everyday who you’re working for.

[bert]

There are but two candidates....... all others are but pretenders.

To vote for anyone but Romney or Obama is to pretend to vote.

To not vote is to be irrelevant.

[ansel12]

??? Perot was wrong ???

He was sure wrong about abortion and guns and the homosexual agenda.

[ssaftler]

There are guys right here on FR who have told us that they voted for ole Ross, and they are going to vote third party in 2012

I'm one of those that voted for Perot in 1992, but that was because I live in CA and, as I was driving to the poll, the radio was already announcing that Billy Bent-Pecker had won. So Ross was a protest more than anything.

I also plan to vote 3rd party (Green) in 2012, partly in protest, partly because there is no way in bloody hell that this state WON'T go for the Kenyan Interloper. However, if we can get enough votes for the Green Party, we can get them on the ballot permanently. Hopefully, this will be enough to split the Demon-rats votes and we might be able to turn around the SS California before Moonbeam and his buddies finish it off.

and that they are not afraid of the accusation that they gave us Clinton

See above. Clinton already had the necessary 270 according to the news before I even had a chance to vote that day.

[Fresh Wind]

If Perot wasn't there his voters would have had to split at least 2/3 Bush to 1/3 Clinton for Bush to have won. I don't think they would have split that unevenly.

Correct. And that assumes that ALL of Perot's votes would have gone either to Bush or Clinton.

It doesn't account for the fact that the Perot circus brought millions of voters into the process in 1992 who would not have voted otherwise.

The popular vote in 1988 was about 92 million, in 1992 it was about 104 million, an increase of 12 million. But, in 1996, the total dropped to 96 million, a decrease of 8 million. A straight line interpolation between the 1988 and 1996 numbers would give us 94 million vs. the actual number of 104 million.

So, the unique factors in 1992 caused a bump of 10 million in the popular vote totals. Some of that bump was Clinton infatuation, some was Bush fatigue, but mostly it was the novelty of Perot and a general urge to "throw the bums out".

[1rudeboy]

I'll maintain that he was wrong about pretty much everything. He predicted that jobs would be sucked to Mexico, when actually more jobs were created here replacing the jobs that were lost. Dynamic economies tend to do that.

The whole "sucking sound" meme was catchy, anyone will admit. It's just strange to see people claiming Perot was correct, after a decade or more of data proving he was wrong.

[Tennessee Nana]

WOW

TN is for all that ???

Oh how dare we in TN allow those extra Americans to exercise their Constitutional right to run for the office of president of the United States...

[1rudeboy]

However, if we can get enough votes for the Green Party, we can get them on the ballot permanently.

The stupid, it burns.

[Deb]

Noted, the fake TN Nana agrees with Virgil Goode. Pretending to be a conservative can’t hide your Obama petticoat. Lying liars lie.

[lewislynn]

when actually more jobs were created here replacing the jobs that were lost.

Great! Where are they now?

Dynamic economies tend to do that.

LOL! One worlder speak.

[Tennessee Nana]

Good grief Deb

if you only what the Two Wons to shoe on my ballot complain the the Tennessee Election Commision...

They were the ones who decided that since both Obamna and Willard with theuir foreign born fathers were considered eligible they might as well go ahead and put a few real Americans on there also...

Odd that eh ???

and SOOOOOOO unAmerican...

[elkfersupper]

That’s the political reality.

There's nothing more oxymoronic in English than "political reality".

Congratulations.

[1rudeboy]

Nothing makes people go more batcrap crazy, in an economic sense, than a recession. Take your comment, for example--in your world, jobs are never lost. And the government makes it so. How does that work, actually?

[iopscusa]

I think most libertarian types will not vote for Obammie, but since the idiot demonizing by many Repubs as well as the cheating of the RNC on Paul delegates and rules, they may not vote for Romney. Stupid RNC goes limp for Hispanics, Blacks and the mushy/leftist middle of the road voters but manage to run off natural allies like Libertarians and strong Conservatives. If the Repubs lose this election it is time to say FU Rove and the rest of you frauds!

[Sarajevo]

Thank you for that perspective, and I agree!