What an interesting take on our two party system at The Evangelical Outpost.

United by Our Differences:Electoral Politics in an Age of Choice

Almost everywhere I go I am faced with vast array of options: I can choose between 180 channels on my television, 170 stations on my satellite radio, 10,000 books at my local bookstore, and millions of blogs on the internet. But when I enter the voting booth I am presented with only two real choice: I can vote for a Democrat or I can vote for a Republican.

In an age when even ice cream comes in 31 flavors, having only two choices in electoral politics seems anachronistic. But the limitation has a ironically beneficial effect. For as divisive as politics can be, nothing else has such power to unite our pluralistic nation.

Perhaps the day will come when a third party will become a real force. We have seen a few Independents manage to pull out a victory but I think we are a long way from seeing that happen in a Presidential election. Until that time, I also agree with this:

*Casting a “protest” vote for third-party candidates is essentially casting a vote for the party you like the least. For example, say you prefer the Democrats to the Republicans but choose to vote for the Green Party candidate. Since the Green candidate will not win, you vote effectively reduces the vote for the Democratic candidate (your second favorite choice) by one. Had you cast the vote that way, it would have offset a vote for the Republican.

Just some food for thought.