I think you should usually vote for a party, not a person. The individual candidate’s character and political views are usually less important than the letter next to their name.
If you want to predict what a politician will do in office, their political party is usually the most informative piece of information that you have. You have a lot more relevant information about the political parties than you do about the specific individuals who are running for office, and you’re usually better off relying on that party information.
Legislators usually vote with their party, especially on close bills where their vote could be pivotal. Executives usually pursue policies similar to what others in their party support, although they have more leeway (especially on foreign policy), and they mostly staff the executive branch (and appoint judges) with similar people to who other members of their party would have chosen.
The primaries are your chance to pick the better individual; in the general election you should just try to pick the right side.
Caveats: in extreme cases the individual does matter (e.g. criminally corrupt). You should be more willing to consider the individual for executive offices than for legislative offices, for local elections more than national elections, or if you’re relatively indifferent between the two parties.
In India, political parties are essentially community or caste groups. They vary their policies wildly depending on who is in power at the given moment. The expectations of the peple are also molded accordingly. They expect politicians to be hypocritical. There are ideology based parties, but those are fewer and far inbetween.
This is true about 90-95% of the time. I have on a few occasions voted for “the other party”, usually based on specific policy differences they have with their party, but occasionally because the candidate in my party is too odious, and the admittedly poor evidence I have the opponent’s character is favorable.
I often I vote third party though, especially when the election doesn’t seem close.
I think you should usually vote for a party, not a person. The individual candidate’s character and political views are usually less important than the letter next to their name.
If you want to predict what a politician will do in office, their political party is usually the most informative piece of information that you have. You have a lot more relevant information about the political parties than you do about the specific individuals who are running for office, and you’re usually better off relying on that party information.
Legislators usually vote with their party, especially on close bills where their vote could be pivotal. Executives usually pursue policies similar to what others in their party support, although they have more leeway (especially on foreign policy), and they mostly staff the executive branch (and appoint judges) with similar people to who other members of their party would have chosen.
The primaries are your chance to pick the better individual; in the general election you should just try to pick the right side.
Caveats: in extreme cases the individual does matter (e.g. criminally corrupt). You should be more willing to consider the individual for executive offices than for legislative offices, for local elections more than national elections, or if you’re relatively indifferent between the two parties.
May not be relevant in all political situations.
In India, political parties are essentially community or caste groups. They vary their policies wildly depending on who is in power at the given moment. The expectations of the peple are also molded accordingly. They expect politicians to be hypocritical. There are ideology based parties, but those are fewer and far inbetween.
This is true about 90-95% of the time. I have on a few occasions voted for “the other party”, usually based on specific policy differences they have with their party, but occasionally because the candidate in my party is too odious, and the admittedly poor evidence I have the opponent’s character is favorable.
I often I vote third party though, especially when the election doesn’t seem close.