Unaffiliated
Posted in Politics and tagged with Politics, Voting, Worldview on May 8, 2009You all know I’m a dork, right? The other day I was talking to my roommate about my taste in boys, and I told her I was surprised she didn’t know that I liked dorky guys. She thought I meant that of course I’d like dorky guys because I’m dorky, when I just meant that the guys I’ve liked in the past were dorky and she knew that. The people who live with you know you best, right?
Along the same lines, the age that I was most excited about reaching growing up was 18. Why 18? Because that’s when you can register to vote. I knew early on that I would just miss voting in the 2000 election by 6 weeks and that bummed me out.
When I registered to vote that first year, I registered Republican. They were the good guys, right? I suppose my political philosophy, young as it was, mainly fit in the Republican camp, except I didn’t want legislation against abortion (I held some vague idea that this was forcing your morality on others), wanted capital punishment gone, and could care less about gun legislation one way or the other (this last one is still more or less my view).
Since then, I’ve grown a lot, and not just politically. I’ve read, listened, thought, and talked out my beliefs, seeking to form a consistent, relevant, and biblical worldview. Still, I’ve remained Republican, or at least the voting records still said I am. In the last years, I’ve drawn further away from the Republican party as I recognize that a political party will never accurately reflect my views (unless it’s based on mine, but who wants to follow me?). When I officially moved my voter registration to North Carolina last year, I registered Republican because I thought I had to in order to vote in the Republican primaries. Turns out, that’s not the case.
All that to say, I’m proud to announce that I’m now officially “unaffiliated.”
May 8th, 2009 at 7:29 am
Good for you! I’ve always been registered “unaffiliated”. There is no way any one political party is going to have ALL the same views as I do. Or as you said about gun control, maybe they care deeply about something I’m neutral on. I think there is something to be said for independent thinking vs. “group think”. Independence is something I hold near and dear! Way to go!
May 8th, 2009 at 8:42 am
Good for you!! I’m registered Democrat but for the next election I will be registered unaffiliated. Email me on how you feel about the abortion issue…I’d like to hear what you think. ;-)
May 8th, 2009 at 8:51 am
Nice! I’ve always been unaffiliated, too. Though my leanings are far more liberal than yours, I have the same issues with the democratic party (well, okay, not the *same* issues, but the same issues with not agreeing enough with them to register as a democrat).
May 8th, 2009 at 9:21 am
I find myself moderate these days. I am not a total Republican, nor am I a total Democrat. I actually do not vote strictly one party…I vote for whoever I feel more accurately reflects my views. Which, that list is growing smaller and smaller.
May 8th, 2009 at 9:48 am
Thanks for stopping by! I am a Republican but certainly respect other’s views. I would say that I’m more of a moderate Republican. Have a great weekend!
May 8th, 2009 at 10:07 am
I didn’t know you could be unaffiliated. I know about Independents and sometimes thought about changing my status to that.
I’m always worried about the primaries, but some states let you vote either way.
Good for you.
♥
Joy
May 8th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
I’ve always admired people who consider themselves to be politically unaffiliated. That takes a lot of guts–bravo! I’ve been a registered Democrat since 18, and since then I have become even more left-leaning (I’m sure you’re thrilled to get a bleeding-heart liberal in the family…but I promise I will always keep my mouth shut). I would like to register as an Independent, but as you know, in Kansas that means you can’t vote in the primaries. I take my voting duty very seriously–glad you do too!
May 8th, 2009 at 1:29 pm
I’m a registered Democrat, but I’ve been leaning more toward the middle in recent years.
May 8th, 2009 at 2:43 pm
Pam: I’ve sought to think indepentently all along, I just like have that political distinction now.
WhatACard: It’d be funny if they WERE the same issues, wouldn’t it?
Jacki: Oh, me too.
Joy: It probably differs by states. In NC, “unaffiliated” is the term they use, and I like it.
Amanda: I thought so, which is probably why I thought it was the same here. Yeah, let’s not have any heated discussions of politics over Thanksgiving dinner! (Not that I can imagine us having a heated discussion, anyway.) I keep my mouth shut around the family too, because I honestly don’t know where they stand anymore. Probably somewhere between you and I.
May 9th, 2009 at 12:59 am
I didn’t vote for the first time until 2000 b/c before that I was Canadian. I was so proud to be an American. Unfortunately that also means I can now serve on jury duty.
May 9th, 2009 at 1:21 am
I’m also registered as an independent….which is why I get LOTS of phone calls from political candidates around election time.
May 12th, 2009 at 8:26 am
I’ve got very much the same story you just told … change the dates to a little bit earlier (I just made voting in the 1992 election by about 6 weeks).
I left the Republican Party in 1995, mostly over the use of the slogan “Character Counts” and the appointment of certain Republicans to important posts in direct defiance of that slogan.
Welcome to the party-less!
Twitter: TurtleMom23
Says:
May 16th, 2009 at 2:01 pm
I don’t remember that being an option here in GA – although I might be wrong. Been leaning towards more of a Libertarian here lately…
December 14th, 2009 at 12:06 am
[...] 10. Registered unaffiliated…no more “R” by my name (except the ones IN it, of course). [...]
August 5th, 2010 at 2:22 am
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