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Thread: Party-partisan or swing-voter, what's your record here?

  1. #1

    Default Party-partisan or swing-voter, what's your record here?

    Some people here consider themselves "moderate" but only ever seem to me to support one viewpoint, I personally do not consider myself "moderate" - I'm very strong in my views: Liberal, Conservative, Libertarian, Right-wing, whatever you want to call it (yes I know 2 of those theoretically are contradictory, but I'm a liberal Conservative).

    So I was curious, how do you view yourself? But also, in your time here (here including "the other place"), in elections which party have you supported. I'd be curious who are the "swing voters" - in the nearly a decade since the other place started - and who has always toed their party line.

    I was at the forums since February 2000 and have posted the following:
    US
    2000 - Supported Gore, posted about this at the "Falcon 4.0" predecessor to the CC Forum
    2002 - Supported GOP in mid-terms
    2004 - Supported Bush
    2006 - Supported Dems in mid-terms
    2008 - Supported Obama
    2010 - Didn't post anything about mid-terms.
    Not made mind up yet about 2012.

    UK
    2001 - Voted and supported Labour (regretted it not long afterward)
    2005 - Voted Conservative, but said I "thought it was a good election to lose" and expected Labour to win, debated with Loki the merits of wanting my own side to lose
    2010 - Passionately voted Conservative, despised everything to do with Labour

    Others
    Consistently supported the Liberals in Australia, the centre-right in the rest of the world.

    PS for the benefit of Hazir, Hague's "save the pound" campaign is the reason I didn't support the Conservatives back in 2001, though I still considered myself in general a Conservative I couldn't support Hague.

  2. #2
    I prefer not to reveal my domestic political allegiances or voting record, but I'll bite on Israeli elections:

    1999 PM and legislative elections: Meimad, which was running on a joint list with Labor and Gesher. I probably would have voted for Barak as well, given Netanyahu's bungling of Wye (though I didn't like some of Barak's positions).
    2001 PM elections: Definitely Sharon. Barak messed up the Lebanon pullout and the early handling of the intifada.
    2003 legislative elections: Probably Likud. I wasn't really sure who I liked in this election - Meimad is an old favorite, but there were more pressing matters to address (the height of the intifada) and Sharon was likely to do a better job than anyone else.
    2006 legislative elections: Definitely Kadima. I liked the idea of a 'realignment plan' and general setting of borders.
    2009 legislative elections: Green Movement/Meimad. This was more of a protest vote since it was unlikely they'd get more than a seat or two (if any), but I really disliked Livni's handling of things and was very skeptical that the hardliners left in Likud with Netanyahu would be able to make substantive progress on a peace plan. Barak clearly didn't have the mojo to pull Labor together, and the rest of the parties were radical, one-issue, or racist.

  3. #3
    Senior Member Flixy's Avatar
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    Dutch: voted socialist party first time (2006), regretted it soon after. Voted Democrats '66 last year, didn't regret that (they are progressive and liberal, I suppose). Despise pretty much everything of the government we got

    Never really got into British politics, but generally backed the Democrats in the USA in '04 and '08.

    Don't consider myself that partisan, because I am far from blind for the downsides of the party I support, and I check the party programs (and how likely they are to follow it). I am always very much annoyed by people who vote for a party without knowing why, especially if I know their views do not match the party they voted for, at all.
    Keep on keepin' the beat alive!

  4. #4
    My voting record in the US has evenly swung between Democrats and Republicans except the past two elections, which has been almost entirely Republicans.

    Your Zionist party preferences surprise me, Wiggin!

  5. #5
    I typically vote a straight Libertarian ticket, with occasional deviations, (for both Republicans and Democrats) depending on whether or not there was a Libertarian running, or if I had strong feelings about a particular candidate.

    I've always voted Libertarian in presidential elections.

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Dreadnaught View Post
    Your Zionist party preferences surprise me, Wiggin!
    Really? Who do you think I would have 'voted' for?

  7. #7
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    In Dutch elections I never voted more to the left than PvdA and that only once. Also cast one protest vote for a dead guy once (Fortuyn). Otherwise my vote goes to either VVD (conservative-light) or D66 (labour-light).

    As far as US is concerned; mostly D, but without the disgust for R that some people seem to have.
    Congratulations America

  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by wiggin View Post
    Really? Who do you think I would have 'voted' for?
    I guess I didn't imagine you agreeing with their views on the conflict quite as much.

    EDIT: Though to be fair I can't say I know all the subtleties of their positions.
    Last edited by Dreadnaught; 01-04-2011 at 01:56 AM.

  9. #9
    Switzerland
    '99 Voted mostly FDP (liberals, right wing) and some greens*.
    '03 The same. With some more research of the individual candidates
    '07 Thrown in the whole GLP (Green liberals) list.
    '11 will do the same.

    *It is possible to create your own list in Switzerland http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panachage

    US
    Supported Democrats or their candidate each time.

    Germany
    '98 supported Schröder as Kohl was in power for too long.
    '02 supported Schröder again, once more he was the lesser of two evils. Stoiber is too conservative for me to support.
    '05 supported Merkel
    '09 supported Merkel

    I have to add that in either case I would have voted for the smaller Party in the coalition (Green or FDP) as they fit my views much better than the big ones (SPD or CDU).
    "Wer Visionen hat, sollte zum Arzt gehen." - Helmut Schmidt

  10. #10
    Dutch: mostly center left. Voted CDA (Christian Center) once influenced by parent, PvdA (then center left) a couple of times, once influenced by other parent. D66 until the last election where I went back to PvdA. Lately I have been voting based on the advice I get from online Vote Advisers (based on questions, kind of like PC). Never went as far left as SP or Groen Links (Green Left).

    edit: US ...

    Never actually supporter any one candidate, just opposed to a couple. Mainly Bush and Hillary. Bush is obvious and I simply couldn't stand watching and listening to Hill. Obama/McCain would have been completely neutral to me, if it weren't for that she-bitch.

    Damn, I also can't stand Pelosi and Bachman. I'm so misogynist

    Oh wait, I always vote for a woman in the dutch elections. Albayrak the last time.
    I could have had class. I could have been a contender.
    I could have been somebody. Instead of a bum
    Which is what I am

    I aim at the stars
    But sometimes I hit London

  11. #11
    Quote Originally Posted by Dreadnaught View Post
    I guess I didn't imagine you agreeing with their views on the conflict quite as much.

    EDIT: Though to be fair I can't say I know all the subtleties of their positions.
    I'm not a one-issue voter; most parties in the Knesset adhere to the same basic idea of a two-state solution, it's just a matter of small details that differ one from the other. There are notable exceptions, such as the Arab parties or the real wackos on the right calling for forced deportations, but the mainstream is in a surprising degree of agreement. (For similar reasons I rarely consider Israel an issue when voting in the US; most US politicians have generally concurring views on our relationship with Israel.) There are some differences that have evolved over the last two decades - from the rejectionist Likud position to a more pragmatic one, albeit hawkish, or the evolving understanding in Labor on what a future Palestinian state might look like - but the basics are similar. On a security front, though, all of the main parties have nearly identical positions - vis-a-vis Iran, defense spending, deterrence, etc. Hell, the 'dovish' Labor party is led by the man with the best security credentials in the Knesset.

    Unless a party really messes things up (a la Barak in 2001) I generally won't support a party solely on the basis of their handling of the conflict. I do have a few so-called 'red lines' - I think dividing Jerusalem, for example, is a recipe for disaster - but the coalition politics of Israel makes it likely that these lines won't be crossed prematurely. Otherwise, I find non-conflict matters to be as important or more so: the economy and fiscal picture, education spending, 'Jewish state' matters (e.g. haredi and Arab conscription, religious/secular relations), etc. I think Netanyahu is a very unlikable politician who has consistently rubbed American presidents the wrong way, but his fiscal prudence, privatization, and other economic reforms both as PM and later as finance minister were a godsend for the Israeli economy. Similarly, though some of their political acumen may be lacking, I find Meimad and the Green Movement's ideas for Israeli society to be well worth supporting, and a nice bridge across various divides (religious/secular, Jewish/Arab, left/right, etc.).

  12. #12
    Quote Originally Posted by Ziggy Stardust View Post
    I simply couldn't stand watching and listening to Hill. Obama/McCain would have been completely neutral to me, if it weren't for that she-bitch.
    I thought I liked you. I really did.

    I should know better, people suck.
    We're stuck in a bloody snowglobe.

  13. #13
    Can't argue with "people suck".

    The She-Bitch is Palin by the way. Hill was just annoying to listen to.
    I could have had class. I could have been a contender.
    I could have been somebody. Instead of a bum
    Which is what I am

    I aim at the stars
    But sometimes I hit London

  14. #14
    Senior Member Flixy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hazir View Post
    Also cast one protest vote for a dead guy once (Fortuyn).
    Hope you don't mind me asking, but why? I understand the idea of a protest vote, but voting for the incompetent party of a dead guy was something I never really understood (though I was younger then, and I'm not quite sure if it was obvious that they were this incompetent before the election).

    I'd like to add to my previous post that while I generally supported D in the USA, I'd pick a moderate Republican over a radical Democrat (and vice versa).
    Keep on keepin' the beat alive!

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by Flixy View Post
    Hope you don't mind me asking, but why? I understand the idea of a protest vote, but voting for the incompetent party of a dead guy was something I never really understood (though I was younger then, and I'm not quite sure if it was obvious that they were this incompetent before the election).

    I'd like to add to my previous post that while I generally supported D in the USA, I'd pick a moderate Republican over a radical Democrat (and vice versa).
    We allways have perfect vision in hindsight. That LPF was a bunch of wankers for sure. At the moment I cast my vote the message was (to all politicians) I prefer to vote for a dead guy over giving my vote to any of you bastards.

    What I loved about that particular election was that all other parties got decaptitated by the shocking entry into parliament of the LPF with .. eh.. 26 seats ?
    Congratulations America

  16. #16
    Quote Originally Posted by Ziggy Stardust View Post
    Can't argue with "people suck".

    The She-Bitch is Palin by the way. Hill was just annoying to listen to.
    Okay, that's better.

    But disliking Hill is unacceptable behavior.
    We're stuck in a bloody snowglobe.

  17. #17
    The very core of my being disagrees.
    Quote Originally Posted by Hazir View Post
    We allways have perfect vision in hindsight. That LPF was a bunch of wankers for sure. At the moment I cast my vote the message was (to all politicians) I prefer to vote for a dead guy over giving my vote to any of you bastards.
    Heh, I almost forgot I did that once as well when I voted for the Party of Parties (or something like that)

    I was also tempted to vote for the animal party 2 elections ago, but didn't.
    I could have had class. I could have been a contender.
    I could have been somebody. Instead of a bum
    Which is what I am

    I aim at the stars
    But sometimes I hit London

  18. #18
    Senior Member Flixy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hazir View Post
    We allways have perfect vision in hindsight. That LPF was a bunch of wankers for sure. At the moment I cast my vote the message was (to all politicians) I prefer to vote for a dead guy over giving my vote to any of you bastards.

    What I loved about that particular election was that all other parties got decaptitated by the shocking entry into parliament of the LPF with .. eh.. 26 seats ?
    Fair enough. Bit of a shame how badly the LPF fucked up. And it did send a message to the other politicians I guess.

    I think it was pretty historic for a new party to go from nothing to 26, then 8, then nothing.
    Keep on keepin' the beat alive!

  19. #19
    I used to think I was moderate, until i realized that was a false aggregate. I frequently have strong views, they're just not consistent with particular political philosophies. I can, however, almost always see the validity in positions opposing my own.

    As for my voting record, I see no reason to get into specifics, but I've voted Democrat, Republican, done third-party throw-away votes, and not voted at all, variously.
    Last night as I lay in bed, looking up at the stars, I thought, “Where the hell is my ceiling?"

  20. #20
    Quote Originally Posted by LittleFuzzy View Post
    I used to think I was moderate, until i realized that was a false aggregate. I frequently have strong views, they're just not consistent with particular political philosophies. I can, however, almost always see the validity in positions opposing my own.

    As for my voting record, I see no reason to get into specifics, but I've voted Democrat, Republican, done third-party throw-away votes, and not voted at all, variously.
    I disagree. Granted, moderation in the US is hard to maintain, because our system tends to polarize. But pure ideologies are nearly intrinsically harmful, and thus balancing elements of them against others is the way to go.

  21. #21
    Hi, guys! I found the old forums are dead and I found a link to here in the Legendary Discussion forum...so here I am. Anyway, onto the topic:

    Elections here in Australia are compulsory and we have referential voting where you number candidates from 1 to N. Since I have been of voting age I have voted (lower house first preferences from best of memory):

    In Federal Elections:
    2004 (seat held by Labor): Pretty sure I voted Green, certainly was not the centre-right federal Liberal party
    2007 (seat held by Labor): Voted Green
    2010 (I moved to a new electorate in 2007-2008-ish, also held by Labor, however, seat was lost by Labor to Greens): Voted Green

    State:
    2002 (seat held by Labor): Liberal. The Victorian state Liberals are moderate conservatives compared to their federal counterparts, and the leader at the time Robert Doyle (now the Mayor of Melbourne) I have respect for.
    2006 (seat held by Labor): Green
    2010 (Moved to new electorate, seat held by Labor): Green. Candidate lost as the Liberals decided not to preference the Greens second, else Greens would have repeated the federal success earlier in the year. The Liberals actually won the election as a whole, but their leader Ted Baillieu is a moderate conservative. I don't mind him.

    Local:
    Always blank vote.

    My upper house votes I follow the how to vote card of my first preference lower house candidates party, but my lower house preferences I usually make my own decisions.
    As you can see I am a left leaner...I am also now a member of the Greens...

  22. #22
    Hi Mr. Lane! Your name sounds familiar, did you have a Laura Croft avatar? Anyways, welcome! Beer's in the fridge, nuts are all over the board.

  23. #23
    Lara Croft, yes, that was me!

    "nuts are all over the board" hehe!

  24. #24
    Welcome Mr Lane, shame you missed the Ashes

  25. #25
    Shocking business. England is a fine side these days (IMO not as good as you were in 2005 where you beat a stronger Australia), and we played terribly. You totally deserved to win. Our side actually has some great talents in it, but until we can play the swinging ball and get some more venom in our bowling attack we are doomed to keep losing like this. Sadly, I think you are going to win again in 2013.

    But thats going OT! Back to the politics!

  26. #26
    WB Mr Lane.

    UK
    - Voted Lib-Dem 1997
    - Voted Labour 2005 (close run in local borough between labour and tories, so tactically voted labour to ensure the borough remained out of tory hands, but to no avail)
    - Voted Lib-Dem 2010

    Always considered myself a liberal (UK liberal as opposed to US liberal), but as time goes by I find my points of view becoming more right-wing - mainly fiscally but in some aspects socially too.

    I don't see it as being unrealistic that one day I may vote tory, much as these words would have made me vomit stomach-bile ten years ago.

    US
    The Dems.
    Quote Originally Posted by Steely Glint View Post
    It's actually the original French billion, which is bi-million, which is a million to the power of 2. We adopted the word, and then they changed it, presumably as revenge for Crecy and Agincourt, and then the treasonous Americans adopted the new French usage and spread it all over the world. And now we have to use it.

    And that's Why I'm Voting Leave.

  27. #27
    Getting old, grumpy and conservative hey? 10 more years it will be "Get off my lawn you hooligans!"

  28. #28
    I normally just vote Liberal Democrat. Though it may be necessary to stand at the next election myself, so I can actually vote for someone I completely agree with for a change.
    When the sky above us fell
    We descended into hell
    Into kingdom come

  29. #29
    I have voted Social Democrat, out of boredom and disbelief in the effect my vote could ever have more than anything else. This is in line with my general leftist disposition, but against my fascist tendencies. But there you go.
    In the future, the Berlin wall will be a mile high, and made of steel. You too will be made to crawl, to lick children's blood from jackboots. There will be no creativity, only productivity. Instead of love there will be fear and distrust, instead of surrender there will be submission. Contact will be replaced with isolation, and joy with shame. Hope will cease to exist as a concept. The Earth will be covered with steel and concrete. There will be an electronic policeman in every head. Your children will be born in chains, live only to serve, and die in anguish and ignorance.
    The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference.

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