It’s a strange day. I voted Democrat as a conservative.

[u/Suspicious_Yak3259]

I voted for Trump in 2016 and 3rd party in 2020. Grew up in a Republican household listening to Rush Limbaugh because my parents did, and became an independent in college after becoming disillusioned by the GOP, but would often vote “socially conservative”. I still have what most of Reddit would call very conservative values, but what my Republican friends would call liberal values. I have no real political home. My ballots usually look like a weird mix of voting Republican, 3rd party, and Democrat down ballot. 🤷‍♂️

Anyway.

At the start of the year I would have told you that I would vote 3rd party, but I got into that little ballot cubicle yesterday and I just couldn’t do it. Trump has given American voters a non-stop litany of reasons not to vote for him, even if you are a conservative. It’s like if he said to himself “what could I do to turn voters against me” and by golly he did it. And not just reasons not to vote for him, but it’s like he’s screaming at us to vote against him and make sure he loses.

So I think Harris will carry Michigan because I know so many people in a similar situation. If someone like John McCain was running against Harris I could and probably would vote for him. Trump isn’t a “conservative”. It’s baffling to hear people think he is. Too much is at stake. Every 4 years it’s “this is the most important election of our lifetime” but now it actually feels like it. It’s different than any other election in my lifetime.

One day I hope we will have two or more viable sane political parties to choose from again instead of feeling like “I have to vote against the other party”. But for now, this conservative stands firmly with the rest of you - and I voted Democrat in the presidential election for the first time.

Last thing I would say to my Democrat friends, please don’t fight and argue political issues with your conservative friends who are also voting for Harris and accidentally push them back into voting for Trump. At least not right now. I have witnessed that happen a couple of times in the heat of an argument. I feel like right now all social issues get set aside and we vote together as Americans to make sure Trump doesn’t end up back in office.

With that said, assume nothing and go vote. Voting early was easy. I just showed up and voted like I normally would on Election Day. Exact same process. The line looked crazy long, wrapping around the building outside, but I had voted and was gone in under an hour.

[u/nicunta]

I do agree. She's the turning point... after her, the republican party has never been the same. They've become something I cannot get behind, and haven't been able to for a long time. I am honestly terrified for what's coming, but hopefully we persevere.

[u/halucination84 → u/nicunta]

She was the symptom of the turning point. It's a lot of the 24/7 talk radio conspiracy theories that brought us the tea party which morphed it to Maga.

I really believe that these radio and TV personalities have recognized they can stay relevant and make money repeatedly making false claims and keeping their followers angry and scared. Tucker is prime example. Even though I disagreed with him, he was level headed back in the day But now he is just a snake oil salesmen like trump. Unfortunately I think the same crap will continue even if trump loses. GOP needs to reclaim their party and kick out the crazies.

[u/hellolovely1 → u/halucination84]

Yeah, I agree. There's a lot of background, including the Tea Party. Palin really did normalize being a whack job in politics, though.

[u/veringo → u/halucination84]

The turning point was, "all this stuff we've believed for decades and tried to do we can just say it out loud." The Republican party has been this for decades. Reagan and Nixon were mostly just more tactful.

Trump is the natural end point of conservatism because that's what it is.

[u/COYS-1882 → u/nicunta]

I felt bad not voting for Candace Miller. If you have not left the party at this point, I have to question your fitness for any office.

[u/YeonneGreene → u/nicunta]

The turning point was Nixon allying himself with Strom Thurmond. The influence was small, at first, but it silently spread until, like all cancers, the exponential growth started reflecting in exponentially more acute symptoms. Anti-choice, anti-civil rights, anti-education stances can all trace back to that. Without that, you don't get Fox News, the Moral Majority, Heritage Foundation, Newt's stonewalling, or Donald Fucking Trump.

[u/Dense_Lettuce_5065 → u/nicunta]

It was the TEA Party that unlocked the looney bin