All of these combine to provide voters this November with many more choices than the just the two presented by the RNC and DNC. I am heartened by the surge in anti-incumbent sentiment reflected in this poll. But, I believe voting punitively toward candidates is a lesser choice than voting for candidates who may have a higher chance of actually changing things for the better.
As many anti-incumbent supporters know, voting out enough incumbents will bring desperately needed reforms which the current batch of incumbents are not willing to commit to, given their 94% record of being reelected no matter how badly they perform. Voting out incumbents as a strategy for positive change and reform is a better and more positive rationale for voting out incumbents than what I suspect will be the trend to just punish lack of performance and disappointment in Republican performance.
I encourage all voters to take an hour or two before entering the booth on November 7 to review all the congressional candidates and their positions on the issues. And select one based both on the positive strategy of removing incumbents to bring about change and reform, as well as a challenger whose philosophy and record speaks to the voter's expectations for real solutions to our growing problems in America.
Voting for a Democrat just because a voter is disappointed with Republicans is not, in my opinion, going to be the most rational and intelligent vote. The most rational and intelligent vote is a vote for something positive, not a vote against something negative. I can think of no more positive outcome than putting the fear of voters and an anti-incumbent groundswell firmly into the minds of our Congressional politicians. Fear of losing reelection usually brings out the best performance in representatives. That is my view. What's yours?
Article comments
1 - Peter J
I never put much faith in polls, especially in such a confused political atmosphere as we're in.
I believe that you are partly right, that many voters aren't seeing the big picture and as you say are displaying ignorance and apathy toward a third party possibility, except that the reason for this seeming lack of interest doesn't necessarily stem from apathy a much as from ignorance.
I believe many voters aren't favoring democrats as much as they are voicing their disapproval for the current administration. Basically the Bush administration has become the albatros around the republican neck.
I don't think that the democrats have enough of a support vote to pull them through if the republicans were to distance themselves from Bush as much as possible and there were a strong third party show pulling from the democrats. This could very well leave the Rep party with the majority vote.