Who was your first vote when reaching the legal voting age? How has politics changed since then?

[AlexB23]

Actually, Goldwater's defeat caused them to back off a little on substantive Conservative issues (Wasn't it Nixon who went to China, founded the EPA, title IX for women, etc? He also did some great civil rights stuff) but the party went hard right with the sex stuff and hasn't looked back.

I was not around at that time, so I never knew about this, except that Nixon founded the EPA. I loved that.

 

[Lukaris]

My first US Presidential election to vote in was 1984 & I voted for Walter Mondale. As a person Mondale was all right but I voted for demos all the way up to the 1992 Presidential election. What sad and sorry, terrible, regrettable, destructive, bad etc. decision making on my part.

 

[AlexB23]

My first US Presidential election to vote in was 1984 & I voted for Walter Mondale. As a person Mondale was all right but I voted for demos all the way up to the 1992 Presidential election. What sad and sorry, terrible, regrettable, destructive, bad etc. decision making on my part.

Well, the Democrats were much better back then in the 1980s, same with the Republicans. It changed as the internet and cable news became popular.

 

[Joseph G]

Hello folks. The political landscape has changed a lot over the past few years. Who was your first presidential vote once you guys have turned the legal voting age (lowered from 21 to 18 in 1971)?

Mine was Biden in 2020, back when I thought he would be a good choice to get us out of a pandemic. In 2024, looking at how the political landscape has changed in the past four years (from not as woke back in the 2010s to full-on woke in the mid-2020s), and the strange, far-left Olympics opening ceremony, it has made me want to vote 3rd party this year.

Has anything happened in the political sphere between your first presidential election and now that has made you all shift party lines, or go independent?

My first vote was for Reagan. And looking back, I am of the conclusion that almost absolutely nothing has changed, other than that both parties have become ever more petty, dishonest and deceptive - and are still after all these decades - making the exact same promises with zero action.

As for We the People and how and why we are manipulated, the media pundits stoke the flames of agitation and self-righteousness to keep the profits flowing. Just like all entertainment, Bread and Circuses for the idle.

Same story, revolving cast of characters. I'll sigh and pull the lever for the lesser of two evils as always - not according to personalities (no difference - surprise!), but according to policies and platforms.

The only thing I see progressing overall in this country is the foothold and depth of evil upon our society.

But all is not gloom. I also see a revival for Christ expanding even in the midst of America's devotion to obscene heros and deceptions upon the masses. Worship of Self Almighty is losing ground amongst those whom God is drawing to Himself individually.

I figure that once God has finished His work here, and removed the believers who are the preserving salt, that this country will be toast. God only endures the stench of idol worship for so long. Look at the history of all nations - especially the example of Israel. Even so, Israel will be blessed in the end, whereas I can see nowhere that America is even mentioned in prophecy, unless we are indeed "Mystery Babylon". Then Katy bar the door!

But what do I know? Irregardless of my pessimism, I pray regularly for nationwide repentance and that America will at last live up to its dubious charter as One Nation Under God - if for nothing else than the perpetuation of the Gospel up until the last second. Same prayer for all nations.

We will all ultimately recognize who is who when Christ judges the nations.

God bless us all!

 

[AlexB23]

My first vote was for Reagan. And looking back, I am of the conclusion that almost absolutely nothing has changed, other than that both parties have become ever more petty, dishonest and deceptive - and are still after all these decades - making the exact same promises with zero action.

As for We the People and how and why we are manipulated, the media pundits stoke the flames of agitation and self-righteousness to keep the profits flowing. Just like all entertainment, Bread and Circuses for the idle.

Same story, revolving cast of characters. I'll sigh and pull the lever for the lesser of two evils as always - not according to personalities (no difference - surprise!), but according to policies and platforms.

The only thing I see progressing overall in this country is the foothold and depth of evil upon our society.

But all is not gloom. I also see a revival for Christ expanding even in the midst of America's devotion to obscene heros and deceptions upon the masses. Worship of Self Almighty is losing ground amongst those whom God is drawing to Himself individually.

I figure that once God has finished His work here, and removed the believers who are the preserving salt, that this country will be toast. God only endures the stench of idol worship for so long. Look at the history of all nations - especially the example of Israel. Even so, Israel will be blessed in the end, whereas I can see nowhere that America is even mentioned in prophecy, unless we are indeed "Mystery Babylon". Then Katy bar the door!

But what do I know? Irregardless of my pessimism, I pray regularly for nationwide repentance and that America will at last live up to its dubious charter as One Nation Under God - if for nothing else than the perpetuation of the Gospel up until the last second. Same prayer for all nations.

We will all ultimately recognize who is who when Christ judges the nations.

God bless us all!

It seems that all of here agree that the two parties have changed a lot over the past few years. All we can do is pray.

And yep, America is not in the Bible. Only Israel and Asia itself.

 

[RileyG]

Back in 2016, I was 21, and voted for Gary Johnson, since I didn't like either Trump or H. Clinton.

 

[AlexB23]

Back in 2016, I was 21, and voted for Gary Johnson, since I didn't like either Trump or H. Clinton.

Agreed. He was a good choice you made.

 

[LizaMarie]

I was first eligible to vote back in 1976. Jimmy Carter Vs Gerald Ford. I've been a registered Republican since 1980.
Both parties have changed a lot since then, become more extreme on the fringes.
And we are much more divided. I find this very concerning.
You could be a Democrat back then and still be pro-life, stand for traditional values and my late Grandparents were devout evangelicals and also Democrats. This started to change in the 1970's.
The Republican party has changed too, and are no longer the party of Reagan(In my opinion.)
I'm really not happy they removed their pro-life- pro traditional marriage platform.
And I don't like the current isolationism and pandering to extremists.
I feel politically homeless these days, I mostly seem to agree with the American Solidarity Party.

 

[FenderTL5]

I missed the the 1980 election by a few months but was hoping for a big turnout for Anderson.
I voted for Reagan in 84 and continued to vote GOP until W won over Gore in 2000. I've voted 3rd Party since.

 

[Arcangl86]

My first election was 2004, but I cannot remember who I voted for at all. I'm pretty sure I'm voted, but tbh not 100% sure. I do remember voting in 2008, and I think that was probably the first election I cared about. That one I voted for Obama. And while things had already started down the road they are now, that was before Republicans started to reject on reflex anything supported by Democrats.

 

[Diamond72]

Has anything happened in the political sphere betwceen your first presidential election and now that has made you all shift party lines, or go independent?

My first election was John F. Kennedy. We really thought he could make a difference but it did not turn out that way. When I became a christian I went democrat to republican.

 

[PloverWing]

My first election was John F. Kennedy. We really thought he could make a difference but it did not turn out that way. When I became a christian I went democrat to republican.

May I ask a couple of questions?

1. Your profile says you're 72, which I think means you were 8 when you voted for Kennedy. Can you tell me more about this?

2. What had you hoped for with Kennedy, that turned out not to be the way you'd hoped? (Noting, of course, that his term was cut short. Was it just that he didn't get to stay in office long enough?)

3. No flames, just curiosity: When you became a Christian, what about that made you switch political parties?

 

[Diamond72]

1. Your profile says you're 72, which I think means you were 8 when you voted for Kennedy. Can you tell me more about this?

Of course I did not vote. It was just the first election that I got involved with. We would stay up late on election night and wait for the results. That is interesting though that I started to get involved that young. I do remember my brother was into IKE and had a lot of "I like Ike" pins. I think he gave me some of those pins with some photos.

We were very disappointed when Kennedy was shot. He was very popular and we really did think that the world would be a better place. To this day I am surprised that anyone would want to shoot him. I pretty much gave up thinking that anyone was going to do anything to make this world a better place.

 

[WolfGate]

Ronald Reagan.

Biggest change is we no longer have a conservative party.

 

[AlexB23]

My first election was John F. Kennedy. We really thought he could make a difference but it did not turn out that way. When I became a christian I went democrat to republican.

Yeah, Kennedy's life was cut short, so there was not enough time for him to make any changes. For me, when I got deeper into my Christian faith, I have moved from left to center.

 

[wing2000]

Hello folks. The political landscape has changed a lot over the past few years. Who was your first presidential vote once you guys have turned the legal voting age (lowered from 21 to 18 in 1971)?

Ronald Reagan - 1984. Young (18), and naive I entered the US Army to fight the commies in Central America (Signals Intelligence Analyst, tasked by the NSA). I came back home with a new appreciation of a President's ability to shape intelligence to fit the administration's political objectives (that understanding was greatly re-enforced with Bush Jr's justification of the Iraq War). Bush Sr was the last Republican president I voted for in 1988.

Today, I'm independent and vote for whomever I think is best person for the job.

 

[AlexB23]

Ronald Reagan - 1984. Young (18), and naive I entered the US Army to fight the commies in Central America (Signals Intelligence Analyst, tasked by the NSA). I came back home with a new appreciation of a President's ability to shape intelligence to fit the administration's political objectives (that understanding was greatly re-enforced with Bush Jr's justification of the Iraq War). Bush Sr was the last Republican president I voted for in 1988.

Today, I'm independent and vote for whomever I think is best person for the job.

Thank you for your service. Reaganomics kinda ruined our country, but at least Reagan had class compared to Trump or current candidates we have. It is good that you have switched to independent. Who was your first independent vote? Mine might be Peter Sonski in 2024.

 

[SimplyMe]

Yeah, Kennedy's life was cut short, so there was not enough time for him to make any changes. For me, when I got deeper into my Christian faith, I have moved from left to center.

Actually, there was plenty of time. The most productive time of a presidency is in the first year, Kennedy was in re-election mode when he was murdered. Although I'm sure he did more, the two things I can think he actually did is deepen our involvement in Vietnam and start the race to the moon.

 

[AlexB23]

Actually, there was plenty of time. The most productive time of a presidency is in the first year, Kennedy was in re-election mode when he was murdered. Although I'm sure he did more, the two things I can think he actually did is deepen our involvement in Vietnam and start the race to the moon.

I like how Kennedy got us to the moon, but we should have backed out of Vietnam. Yeah, Kennedy could have done some stuff to remove the elite corporate establishment and repair the government, but he did not.

 

[RDKirk]

And the reason I still like Goldwater is that he was in favor of things like homosexuals serving openly in the military, environmental protection, gay rights, abortion rights, adoption rights for same-sex couples, and the legalization of medicinal marijuana. I guess he would be a "Marxist" today, too.

Although Goldwater opposed the Civil Rights Act on libertarian grounds, he was personally anti-segregationist. He didn't like laws dictating that private businesses must operate either way, and had desegregated his own family business. He did believe that government, however, must be desegregated and had worked hard for that to happen in Washington and across the DoD.