54% of Presidential Votes in 2016 went to Someone other than Trump


2018 Looms Large for All Political Parties 


A final wrap-up of the 2016 presidential election. In total, there were 137,053,916 votes cast for president in 2016. Of that total, 62,979,879 were cast for Trump. Leaving 74,074,280 votes for other candidates. While national vote totals don't elect any US president, the spread between those who voted for Trump and those who didn't is notable. Also notable is that voter turnout was at a 20 year low in 2016.

Democrats picked up two senate seats and the GOP lost two seats in the US Senate. Democrats picked up 6 seats in the US House and the GOP lost six seats.

The Libertarian Party got a historic level of support in 2016 relative to previous elections. Younger voters flocked to the LP out of an awareness that the 'old two-party ways' of running the nation are corrupt and misguided. This is something in which to build. The LP will continue to grow with those in America who believe in keeping government out of their bedrooms, churches, a more open immigration system, free trade (ending crony capitalism), privacy (ending the spy state), ending the war on drugs, quelling imperial aims of the war state, and commitment to low taxes.

The GOP is now Trump's GOP and the party of Reagan is officially dead. While millions of Republicans still identify with "The Gipper," they no longer support his political party. Conservatives have never been less relevant to the GOP than they are today.

The DNC is now an open book after being mauled by cyber leaks and the reality that they presented a presidential process that limited the ability of an insurgent candidate to rise to the top and installed a corrupt and scandal ridden candidate to the public. The DNC will likely not take advantage of the opportunity to rebuild itself, but here lies a historic opportunity to rid itself of flawed ideological systems, tainted political baggage and rebuild itself into a better political party.

The problem with all political parties generally, is that they survive on the basis of how many votes they attract, not philosophical and ideological purity. That tug-a-war with what people want to hear and what people need to hear will forever be betrayed by political parties in general.

In the game of majority, there's no room for right and wrong. Selling one's soul in a party system is a foregone conclusion. There is no room for 'right and wrong.' Just a single question, "Does this help us win?"

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