My Gender Is Not Binary, and Neither Are My Politics

A paradox of progressive posturing

Last Tuesday I went to cast my ballot, as I have in nearly every general and midterm election since I first became eligible to vote in 1988. However, I had never been more unenthusiastic and resentful about voting as I was in this election season. It wasn’t because I thought my vote would make no difference. Having seen my fellow Californians take away the rights and dignity of same-sex couples with Proposition 8 ten years ago, I felt that at least voting on local and state ballot measures was important.

But when it came to the candidates, I refused to obey the orders of my fellow progressives to ignore my values and back Democrats. I have not been a member of the Democratic Party since the mid-90s, and since that time I have heard in every single election that “this is not the time” to support progressive third party or independent candidates because the stakes are too high. Since 2016 in particular I have been told that refusing to vote for Democrats — or not voting at all — is an act of privilege and oppressive toward women, people of color, and the LGBTQ community.

Here’s the thing. Unlike some far leftists, I do understand and respect the choice of progressives to vote for Democrats, even if I disagree with that choice. What I don’t understand or respect is the vote shaming and the presumption that our current two-party system is sacrosanct. The insistence that there are really only two political parties is…