Tomorrow is Election Day, 2014. It will be my first federal election in Virginia’s 4th Congressional District (I was in the 1st in 2012). As will likely surprise no one who read me regularly, I will be voting for the Republican nominees for Senate and Representative – Ed Gillespie and Randy Forbes.
I am voting (and volunteering) for the Republicans because the Republican Party remains the most viable vehicle for advancing economic liberty at home and American interests abroad. The minor parties are too small and unserious; independents are generally unaccountable; and the Democrats are – well, the Democrats. The Republicans aren’t perfect by any means, but they remain the best on offer.
As it happens, I will be voting in one competitive election (the increasingly exciting Senate race) and one non-competitive election (Congressman Forbes is a heavy favorite to win re-election), yet I consider both important. Obviously, in a competitive election, my vote could help determine who wins, and Republican Gillespie is far superior to incumbent Democrat Mark Warner. However, voting Republican in non-competitive elections matters, too. Should Forbes win with only 55%, for example, he will likely get more attention from the Democrats in 2016. He will have to expend resources (including national resources that could be used elsewhere) to defend his seat. He could garner an opponent who could even beat him in a bad Republican year. By contrast, if Forbes wins with 65% or more, all of the above begin to fade from view. I certainly can’t move the needle 10 points all by myself, but I can move the needle in that direction.
This is how every vote counts – even in the races that seem to be foregone conclusions. A Republican earning a larger margin of victory is a Republican who has more political capital to defend our interests abroad and economic freedom at home. A Democrat with a smaller margin of victory is put on notice, and less likely to ignore the growing Republican vote in his or her district or state. It is with this in mind that I choose the Republican nominees in both races.
