An item in my news feed says that the race between Mike Lee and Evan McMullin may be one of the most expensive election contests in history. I don’t doubt that, because it is a fact that the candidate who spends the most money campaigning is usually the winner. Advertisements cost money — big money — as do yard signs, mailing cards and everything candidates use to convince voters to pick them.
How do you decide? Do you vote for the Republican because you are a Republican? I’ve done that in the past. I was a Republican for 40 years and there were times that I simply voted a straight party-line ticket, not really knowing anything about who I was voting for in many of the down-ballot races. Not exactly the most informed way to vote.
There are resources to help you learn about the candidates and issues on the ballot. Both Lee and McMullin have websites on which they tell about themselves, what they stand for and what they would like to do. I’ve looked at both and there are positives about both.
Having been a senator for 12 years, Lee has a lot more he can post about his accomplishments while in office. McMullin hasn’t held office before, so his website tells more about what he would like to do if elected, his priorities and principles.
I have become disillusioned with politicians and party politics. It seems that many politicians are more concerned with getting re-elected than they are with getting to work on solving problems. They only see ahead two to four years to the next election, not really caring much about the long-term issues that need solving. They will do and say only that which they believe will sit well with voters. They don’t view their office as an opportunity to serve their constituents, to make life better for them, as a statesman does.
So, I look at the candidates and ask, “Who displays wisdom? Who displays concern for the people of Utah and the United States? Who do I think will act for the greater good? Who will continue the divisiveness that tears at our country, our democracy?”
When I turned 18 and could vote, I proudly went down and registered as a Republican. No one was more excited than I was when Ronald Reagan was elected president in 1980 and when the “Contract with America” led to a Republican takeover of Congress in 1994. Reagan compromised with the Democratic Congress to accomplish important things and the Republican Congress of the 1990s compromised with Democratic President Bill Clinton on important issues.
But I grew disillusioned with the Republican Party, starting with Newt Gingrich’s cavalier, “Oh well, we tried,” when Congress failed to pass term limits in 1997. My sense of betrayal increased when the disastrous Iraq war failed to turn up weapons of mass destruction.
The last straw was when Republican Senator Mitch McConell declared that, “Making Obama a one-term president,” was Job One for the Republican Congress.
I remember thinking, “No, your job is to do the peoples’ business, to legislate for the good of all Americans, not to obstruct the other side so they will lose re-election.”
I left the Republican Party and have been unaffiliated ever since. I believe both the right and the left have useful ideas and that compromise is what we most need. So, I will vote for the candidate most likely to compromise to get something done, not the one most likely to stand with the party no matter what lies and machinations they use to stay in power. I will vote for Evan McMullin.
David Op’t Hof
David Op’t Hof, Lehi, is a retired educator.
