Straightforward Q: Who would get your GOP primary vote?

[tacosforlife]

I ask because reading stories about the race has left me with no real impression of who people will actually vote for.

This question is directed at those who intend to vote in the GOP primary and will or would consider voting for the GOP candidate in the general. If you know you're going to vote for Hillary (or another liberal candidate) in the general, don't tell me who you'd prefer see win the GOP nomination because IDGAF.

I'm not making a poll because there are too many people to keep track of. For purposes of this question, Jeb is a candidate since we know he is going to announce. Scott Walker is also a candidate since he is almost certainly going to run.

Please and thank you.

[pixy0stix]

I'm a registered Republican. (I AM! Don't laugh. It's the only way to make a difference for local elections.) I have no idea.

[tacosforlife]

Jun 5, 2015 14:35:39 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

I'm a registered Republican. (I AM! Don't laugh. It's the only way to make a difference for local elections.) I have no idea.

So for purposes of this Q, I don't really care what people are registered as since
a) being registered one party doesn't mean you will vote for that party in the general,
b) some states have open primaries so you don't really have to be registered with one party, and
c) some people are registered with one party solely for local elections but will vote for the other party in national elections.

I really only care what people who will vote or consider voting for the GOP candidate in the general election.

[KateAggie]

I don't know yet. I'm not excited about anyone at this point. TBF, I consider myself an independent now, that could end up going either way.

If I had to vote today, Jeb Bush. I think he would focus on what I think are top priorities. Economy, foreign relations, and ISIS. And I'm sure most of you don't agree with my assessment, but I think Jeb is a whole lot like his Daddy, and I think that's a good thing.

[tacosforlife]

Thanks for answering, KateAggie.

[pixy0stix]

Jun 5, 2015 14:40:36 GMT -5 tacosforlife said:

Jun 5, 2015 14:35:39 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

I'm a registered Republican. (I AM! Don't laugh. It's the only way to make a difference for local elections.) I have no idea.

So for purposes of this Q, I don't really care what people are registered as since
a) being registered one party doesn't mean you will vote for that party in the general,
b) some states have open primaries so you don't really have to be registered with one party, and
c) some people are registered with one party solely for local elections but will vote for the other party in national elections.

I really only care what people who will vote or consider voting for the GOP candidate in the general election.

CO is not open primary, hence why I answered. You specifically stated primary.

[tacosforlife]

Jun 5, 2015 14:46:37 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Jun 5, 2015 14:40:36 GMT -5 tacosforlife said:

So for purposes of this Q, I don't really care what people are registered as since
a) being registered one party doesn't mean you will vote for that party in the general,
b) some states have open primaries so you don't really have to be registered with one party, and
c) some people are registered with one party solely for local elections but will vote for the other party in national elections.

I really only care what people who will vote or consider voting for the GOP candidate in the general election.

CO is not open primary, hence why I answered. You specifically stated primary.

But I also said this: This question is directed at those who intend to vote in the GOP primary and will or would consider voting for the GOP candidate in the general.

Are you considering voting GOP in the general? Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I would find it surprising.

[tacosforlife]

Jun 5, 2015 14:47:35 GMT -5 deej said:

Out of current candidates, Jeb Bush. He probably isn't the one who I most closely align with belief by belief, but I think he is one of the R's best chances to win the election.

OK, so now I'm curious and have a follow-up: of the GOP candidates, who do you think most closely aligns with your beliefs?

[pixy0stix]

Jun 5, 2015 14:48:28 GMT -5 tacosforlife said:

Jun 5, 2015 14:46:37 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

CO is not open primary, hence why I answered. You specifically stated primary.

But I also said this: This question is directed at those who intend to vote in the GOP primary and will or would consider voting for the GOP candidate in the general.

Are you considering voting GOP in the general? Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I would find it surprising.

I missed the "and" and substituted "or".

[tacosforlife]

Jun 5, 2015 14:49:50 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Jun 5, 2015 14:48:28 GMT -5 tacosforlife said:

But I also said this: This question is directed at those who intend to vote in the GOP primary and will or would consider voting for the GOP candidate in the general.

Are you considering voting GOP in the general? Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I would find it surprising.

I missed the "and" and substituted "or".

OK, I thought I was taking crazy pills. pixy is going to vote for the GOP in the general?!

Sorry, IDGAF about your answer to this question. (Said with love, of course. (heart))

[KateAggie]

The primary candidate I "like" the most is Fiorina. But I think her winning the primary, much less the general, is an impossibility.

[tacosforlife]

Jun 5, 2015 14:58:36 GMT -5 KateAggie said:

The primary candidate I "like" the most is Fiorina. But I think her winning the primary, much less the general, is an impossibility.

What do you like about her? I'm assuming her business experience? Does the criticism from those in the business community that she was not good at HP bother you?

(Not trying to make you the spokesperson for all conservatives. I'm not really supposed to talk partisan politics at work. My closest friends are not conservative. So I've just got nobody else to dissect this stuff with, and you are being good enough to participate.)

[ttt]

Jun 5, 2015 14:58:36 GMT -5 KateAggie said:

The primary candidate I "like" the most is Fiorina. But I think her winning the primary, much less the general, is an impossibility.

I actually liked her somewhat too, until I heard her speak at a tech conference I was at recently. She talked about how she would roll back net neutrality rules and how net neutrality is bad for innovation. Not only do I totally disagree with that, it was SO tone deaf to talk about this at a conference full of tech geeks who are huge on net neutrality. I don't think she understood her audience at all.

Eta I wasn't asked but I liked her positions on immigration and drug de criminalization.

[sugarglider]

I don't know. I'm not crazy about any of them and might defect to the Libertarian party since I'm not in a swing state anymore.

My dad likes Rubio, but I don't know the specifics as to why.

I care about getting spending under control and minimizing government micromanaging of business. I might just have to go full Libertarian.

[oscarnerdjulief]

I will be voting for the GOP candidate in the general election or abstain from voting for president, like I abstained for Ohio governor last year because I disliked Kasich's stand on education but found the Dem Fitzgerald incompetent and foolish.

I am not sure which candidate would have my vote in the primary. I've put a few books on hold at the library to find out more about several candidates (Rubio, Walker, Fiorina). I know which ones I will not be voting for for various reasons: Jindal, Huckabee, Bush, Cruz, Paul, Carson.

Probably at this moment I would say Rubio; however, I think the best Republican candidate would be a governor because s/he could tout executive experience and the Democrats couldn't run against dysfunctional D.C. and the Congress. It wouldn't be a stretch for me to ultimately vote for a governor in the race like Walker or Kasich while opposing stances on education. I was more excited about those not likely to be in the field, like two western governors.

[tacosforlife]

Jun 5, 2015 15:17:58 GMT -5 oscarnerdjulief said:

I will be voting for the GOP candidate in the general election or abstain from voting for president, like I abstained for Ohio governor last year because I disliked Kasich's stand on education but found the Dem Fitzgerald incompetent and foolish.

I am not sure which candidate would have my vote in the primary. I've put a few books on hold at the library to find out more about several candidates (Rubio, Walker, Fiorina). I know which ones I will not be voting for for various reasons: Jindal, Huckabee, Bush, Cruz, Paul, Carson.

Probably at this moment I would say Rubio; however, I think the best Republican candidate would be a governor because s/he could tout executive experience and the Democrats couldn't run against dysfunctional D.C. and the Congress. It wouldn't be a stretch for me to ultimately vote for a governor in the race like Walker or Kasich while opposing stances on education. I was more excited about those not likely to be in the field, like two western governors.

I know you were very disillusioned with Kasich over education and the teachers unions. Are you bothered by Walker's busting of the public sector unions?

Full disclosure: I hate Walker more than any other candidate for personal reasons, but we don't need to go into that here.

[oscarnerdjulief]

The problem with Fiorina is that she hasn't run for office before, and didn't she have some business setback? If you want someone who's run a business, you at least want it to have been run successfully.

I'm not sure she could mount an effective organization. I am reading her memoir to find out more about her, but I doubt I will vote for her because a) lack of policy experience and b) the media will treat any female GOP candidate as a combination of Sarah Palin and Leni Riefenstahl. That's why I am a little relieved that Martinez probably isn't making the run because I don't want that for her.

[tacosforlife]

Jun 5, 2015 15:23:55 GMT -5 oscarnerdjulief said:

The problem with Fiorina is that she hasn't run for office before, and didn't she have some business setback? If you want someone who's run a business, you at least want it to have been run successfully.

I'm not sure she could mount an effective organization. I am reading her memoir to find out more about her, but I doubt I will vote for her because a) lack of policy experience and b) the media will treat any female GOP candidate as a combination of Sarah Palin and Leni Riefenstahl. That's why I am a little relieved that Martinez probably isn't making the run because I don't want that for her.

I actually agree with you on this.

Although I did not vote for Mitt Romney, I think that, in theory, he had a good balance of business experience and government experience.

I am not a fan of candidates having zero policy experience.

SEE. COMMON GROUND. BRIDGE BUILDING BETWEEN LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES.

[oscarnerdjulief]

Jun 5, 2015 15:23:16 GMT -5 pennypenny said:

oscarnerdjulief why don't you like Bush? I don't really know a lot about any of the GOP candidates, but the other 2 cons who posted said they would go for him right now and you wouldn't. So just wondering why.

And are you the julief from before? I am terrible with SNs.

Yes, I am the JulieF from before.

My issue with Bush is his last name.  I don't believe in dynasties, and having Bush as the candidate would go against that argument.  I also feel that Rubio may be on to something with his "fresh ideas, new leader" argument, like Hillary being old news, so Bush would totally squander that.  I also feel that George W. Bush is still unpopular.  Jeb has too much baggage, and I don't see him getting through a GOP primary with his stances on Common Core and immigration.  I feel that Jeb is the establishment candidate.

If he were Jeb Smith, he'd probably easily be the nominee.  He doesn't really bother me.  I just don't think three people in the family should run for president.  If he had beaten Chiles in 1994, he probably would've been president.  But he didn't, and W beat Ann Richards.

[oscarnerdjulief]

I don't really like Walker much at all, but I do think our strongest candidates would be governors because they could say "I worked across the aisle." "I made hard decisions with budgets," etc. In Kasich's case, he could point to a sweeping victory for re-election where even liberal Cuyahoga county (home of Cleveland) went for him. I would be for Kasich, Martinez, Sandoval, and maybe a few others over Walker.

It's hard for me to know what Walker did and didn't do with Act 10, to be honest. The problem is that sometimes there will be some overheated rhetoric, like the recent news about the teachers not being licensed, then you find out that it's mainly just to fill niche positions (like photography or art), can only be for three years and in one district, etc. I know I desperately want my pension and health care insurance to say the same, while simultaneously seeing beyond a shadow of a doubt that it's a bad deal for taxpayers who will have to pay me $35,000+ a year for not working when I retire at 55.

[tacosforlife]

Jun 5, 2015 15:42:25 GMT -5 oscarnerdjulief said:

I don't really like Walker much at all, but I do think our strongest candidates would be governors because they could say "I worked across the aisle." "I made hard decisions with budgets," etc. In Kasich's case, he could point to a sweeping victory for re-election where even liberal Cuyahoga county (home of Cleveland) went for him. I would be for Kasich, Martinez, Sandoval, and maybe a few others over Walker.

It's hard for me to know what Walker did and didn't do with Act 10, to be honest. The problem is that sometimes there will be some overheated rhetoric, like the recent news about the teachers not being licensed, then you find out that it's mainly just to fill niche positions (like photography or art), can only be for three years and in one district, etc. I know I desperately want my pension and health care insurance to say the same, while simultaneously seeing beyond a shadow of a doubt that it's a bad deal for taxpayers who will have to pay me $35,000+ a year for not working when I retire at 55.

Walker definitely didn't do this. Not at all.

Also, Wisconsin has dropped in almost every economic indicator since he took office.

Like I said, I hate him. My husband and I both took pay cuts under him. And when you're making $40,000/year, a 10 percent paycut is enormous.

[oscarnerdjulief]

I think the biggest issue for me is electability. I want someone whom I think can win. There's no point in choosing somebody who will be ridiculed by the independents and mainstream voters. But I don't like the party elders telling us who to pick because they've done that for a bunch of times now with little success.

I'm not excited about this 2016 cycle at all. I do not think Hillary will lose. The only time I am really into politics anymore is when there is a Supreme Court case of interest (like this year I am interested in the ACA and redistricting results) and an off-year election like 2014 where the Dems took a beating. (9 senators, Governors Hogan and Rauner, almost Senator Gillespie) It's not fun for me anymore.

[oscarnerdjulief]

Oh, to clarify, I was speaking generically about governors having to work across the aisle, not Walker specifically.

However, now that I have thought about it a little bit more it might help him in a Republican primary that he was able to get things done while working in a toxic environment. (kinda like I do at school---and I don't mean JUST the kids. I've been off a week, and I feel like I am finally starting to relax and "detox" from the year from hell that I had.)

[eclaires]

I plan to vote in the GOP primary. At this point, the only one that doesn't nauseate me is Bush, and on some level the absurdity of Bush v. Clinton 2.0 is what thrills me the most about 2016. YEAH BUSH.

I suppose depending on how things shake out, I'd consider voting for the R in the general, but I'm also open to voting for the D or an Independent. I'd say the latter two are more likely at this point, but who knows.

FWIW, my mom who is a diehard R likes Kasich and Walker and got mad at me when I said that I think the Rs will be massacred in 2016, which I do think is going to happen. Side note, I think this is another issue with our board... the Rs are basically impossible to defend at this point. So I have conservative viewpoints and identify (in theory) with certain R policies more, but they also have no credibility with me at this point. It's hard to debate - for me at least - because I don't agree with most things coming out of the R party. I mean I can think things all I want, but it's virtually meaningless since I don't see the R party or any R for that matter getting on board with me right now. I think it's going to take a massacre in 2016, and even then, who knows if they will wake up. I'm not holding my breath, but it does frustrate me because I've seen what happens when one party dominates and has a super majority. I don't like it. I think we are all best served by compromise and working together.

[penguingrrl]

Jun 5, 2015 16:10:26 GMT -5 eclaires said:

I plan to vote in the GOP primary. At this point, the only one that doesn't nauseate me is Bush, and on some level the absurdity of Bush v. Clinton 2.0 is what thrills me the most about 2016. YEAH BUSH.

I suppose depending on how things shake out, I'd consider voting for the R in the general, but I'm also open to voting for the D or an Independent. I'd say the latter two are more likely at this point, but who knows.

FWIW, my mom who is a diehard R likes Kasich and Walker and got mad at me when I said that I think the Rs will be massacred in 2016, which I do think is going to happen. Side note, I think this is another issue with our board... the Rs are basically impossible to defend at this point. So I have conservative viewpoints and identify (in theory) with certain R policies more, but they also have no credibility with me at this point. It's hard to debate - for me at least - because I don't agree with most things coming out of the R party. I mean I can think things all I want, but it's virtually meaningless since I don't see the R party or any R for that matter getting on board with me right now. I think it's going to take a massacre in 2016, and even then, who knows if they will wake up. I'm not holding my breath, but it does frustrate me because I've seen what happens when one party dominates and has a super majority. I don't like it. I think we are all best served by compromise and working together.

I'm not voting GOP, but have long been convinced that 2016 will be Bush v Clinton, which bothers me. I feel like other really good candidates have been shut out in favor of two dynasties and that goes against what the founders wanted.

And you are my bellweather for Cons who are our generation and are saying the exact same thing my Con friends in NJ are saying. They feel like "their" party abandoned the mainstream for wingnuts and feel kind of lost in the 2-party system, but aren't confident enough in a third party to necessarily put all of their support there either.

[Meganne]

I want to learn more about Pataki - he seems moderate. The only other candidate at this time I would consider is Jeb Bush.

[tacosforlife]

Jun 5, 2015 16:19:23 GMT -5 Meganne said:

I want to learn more about Pataki - he seems moderate.

So my dad helped us move last weekend. And he was reading the news and saw that Pataki announced. He said something like, "George Pataki is running for president. What a joke!"

Now, my dad is a super conservative lives-in-the-boonies Texan. (We all remember the mule incident, right?) Every now and then, I peek at his Facebook page, and it's all crazy Obama-hates-America type stuff.

So I'm thinking, "Really? Pataki running is a joke, but you are from the state that elected Ted Cruz? And I'd be dollars to donuts that you voted for him!"

But I kept my mouth shut because he helped us drive all our stuff halfway across the country.

I know Pataki has been out of the public eye for a long time, but I was baffled as to how his running is a joke. He strikes me as one of the more serious candidates!

[eclaires]

Oh I forgot I read Pataki was running. I'd consider voting for him in the primary if he lasts until TN votes.

I'll be voting in the R primary regardless.

[NitaX]

Jun 5, 2015 14:43:43 GMT -5 KateAggie said:

I don't know yet. I'm not excited about anyone at this point. TBF, I consider myself an independent now, that could end up going either way.

If I had to vote today, Jeb Bush. I think he would focus on what I think are top priorities. Economy, foreign relations, and ISIS. And I'm sure most of you don't agree with my assessment, but I think Jeb is a whole lot like his Daddy, and I think that's a good thing.

You know, looking back at Daddy Bush, I don't think he was that bad. So, I can roll with this answer.

[Meganne]

Jun 5, 2015 16:22:58 GMT -5 tacosforlife said:

Jun 5, 2015 16:19:23 GMT -5 Meganne said:

I want to learn more about Pataki - he seems moderate.

So my dad helped us move last weekend. And he was reading the news and saw that Pataki announced. He said something like, "George Pataki is running for president. What a joke!"

Now, my dad is a super conservative lives-in-the-boonies Texan. (We all remember the mule incident, right?) Every now and then, I peek at his Facebook page, and it's all crazy Obama-hates-America type stuff.

So I'm thinking, "Really? Pataki running is a joke, but you are from the state that elected Ted Cruz? And I'd be dollars to donuts that you voted for him!"

But I kept my mouth shut because he helped us drive all our stuff halfway across the country.

I know Pataki has been out of the public eye for a long time, but I was baffled as to how his running is a joke. He strikes me as one of the more serious candidates!

The little I know about Pataki makes me believe he will never get far because he won't be conservative enough for most of the R's. Last election I really like Jon Huntsman but look how far he got.