Dear Protest Voters:
I’m sure you’ve seen the headlines, read the articles or heard the incessant phrases declaring something similar to “it’s too close to call”. I’m also sure you’ve received disappointed looks, passive-aggressive comments and relentless criticism from establishment-adjacent friends and family for choosing not to vote for Vice President Harris. That’s not what I’m here to do. This is intended to respectfully and pragmatically implore you to reconsider now and in the future, and outline a few reasons that might just change your mind.
There’s no shortage of reprehensible, inexcusable decisions surrounding international policy that have cast a large shadow on the Biden/Harris administration’s overwhelmingly positive domestic policy. That is not to be ignored as we enter what is (unfortunately) yet again, one of the most important elections of our lifetimes. It’s difficult to overstate. This election will likely decide whether or not we enshrine the already solidified perception of the Supreme Court as a regressive, conservative and politicized space engineered to take away our rights rather than expanding them. It will determine whether our immigration policy is inhumane at best, or violent at worst. It will determine how those only a few years younger than us learn about history, sexuality and science. It will determine whether or not government-run healthcare programs that I have used continue to be available to the public. It could determine whether or not millions lose citizenship based on their status as children of immigrants. It’ll determine whether or not people are forced to once again ration life-saving drugs like insulin, and it’ll determine whether or not the government respects the bodily autonomy of everyone, no matter their gender or sexuality. It’s not just liberal excitement driving people to the polls, it’s livelihood.
The stakes are high, and choosing not to vote for a candidate who would otherwise receive it is not only a central part of electoral advocacy, but vital to get the message through to those in power through a medium they cannot ignore. That said, when the stakes are this high you have an obligation to consider the repercussions. If you live in California, Washington, New York, Tennessee, Texas, or another deep red/blue state, large protest votes have the intended effect of sending a message to the candidate without jeopardizing the future of millions. However, if you live in Michigan, (one of the states with the most significant protest vote) Nevada, Pennsylvania, or Georgia, you must begin to ask yourself whether a protest vote is worth the risk. These states, cities and counties are the epicenter of federal elections, where just a handful of votes, down to 537, could determine the results of the next presidential election.
The truth is, we have two options. Neither inches even close to having humane, effective or realistic policy promises surrounding the legally classified genocidal acts and human rights violations in Gaza. Adding to the problem, neither of their policy stances are representative of the American majority’s feelings on the issue.
Candidates must continuously be held accountable, because even if you chose to rescind your vote for Kamala Harris, or even if you didn’t, it is our duty to ensure Politicians do what their constituents want. There should be no shortage of people, no matter how fervent or placated their support for her candidacy was, who are ready to protest, organize and legislate if she is elected and fails to follow through on or rebuild policy from abortion to Gaza and healthcare to immigration.
There are also a few states in which there are alternative ways to show your dissent for the Biden/Harris administration’s policies without jeopardizing the results in your city and county. Although this is a deep blue state, places like New York allow you to vote for Harris under alternative parties like the Working Families Party (WFP) which supports universal healthcare, an end to apartheid and the unconditional protection of abortion rights. Voting for Harris through this medium aids in pressuring the candidates to endorse more progressive policies without the added risk of not voting at all, or the trade-off of voting for them instead of choosing not to vote in protest.
Come next week, a new person will have been elected President, and I implore you, now and in the future, no matter the candidates or the stakes, if your vote could very well help decide the election, vote for someone.
Vote for the person whom you know will let you protest their policies without risk of persecution and violence. Vote for the candidate who will protect the bodily autonomy of your mom, daughters, partners and friends. Vote for the candidate you know isn’t a convicted criminal. Vote for the candidate who won’t alienate, chastise and prosecute more than half the country when the sun rises tomorrow, regardless of the result.
