by Sean Poliakoff

Created on: November 22, 2008

"Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost."

These words by John Quincy Adams have never rung truer. The man or woman who votes based on principle and not on party is the man or woman who doesn't waste his or her vote.

It is hard to find a principled candidate in America's exclusive two-party system since we are only given two chances for a principled candidate. However, most Americans are ignorant or unaware of the lesser-known men and women of principle running for president under a third party ticket.

One fourth of all voters nationwide are registered as independent or as members of a 'third party.' Over the last 10 years this has been the largest growing segment of voter registrations. Some states' third party or independent registrations approach 1/3 of all registered voters.

A Fox News opinion poll taken in May 2008 shows that 47 percent of the public are open to voting for a third party presidential candidate, compared to 39 percent who are not.

Highlighting the paleoconservative third party candidates are Constitution Party's Chuck Baldwin and Libertarian Party's representative Bob Barr.

The Constitution Party, the third-largest party by voter registration (behind the Republican and Democratic parties), chose Chuck Baldwin for their presidential choice. Chuck Baldwin is a radio show host, a syndicated columnist, and a Baptist minister. The platform that Baldwin stands behind is a form of libertarian and laissez-faire policies. The base of all of his policies is a conviction to uphold the constitution as the basis for all government action or inaction. Baldwin holds an isolationist foreign policy, a state's rights domestic policy, and a free market economic policy. One of the key policies for Baldwin is creating a secure border and pardoning U.S.
Border Patrol Agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean.

Libertarian Party, one of the most well known and the third party that most often receives the most votes, nominated a former Republican representative of the House. Bob Barr, who represented Georgia's 7th district, is a candidate who many Libertarians, such as myself, were outraged to find receive the nomination from the party.

Bob Barr has changed his stances multiple times.

1. First he voted for the war in Iraq, now he takes the Libertarian stance against the war.

2. He not only voted for but wrote the Defense of Marriage Act, now he believes the federal government should recognize

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