So we are in the midst of the presidential campaign of 2020. The Democratic National convention is on TV this week and the Republicans will have their convention next week. Former Vice President Joe Biden is the Democratic candidate and President Donald Trump is the Republican candidate. It will be a nasty extremely partisan election.
Got me thinking about how I have voted over the years for President. I am a liberal, that is left of center thinking person. I think and vote as a Democrat. My mother and father were life long Democrat’s with liberal leanings. However, in 1980 when I graduated law school, I worked for Al D’mato as he ran successfully for US senate from NY as a Republican. I registered as a Republican than and never changed my affiliation back. As a liberal there really is no place for me in the Republican party today and I probably should switch back to the Democratic Party. The Republicans are far too conservative and in some cases embrace the radical crazy anti Semitic far right.
So my first vote for president was in 1972 when I was 19 years old and Nixon ran for re election against George McGovern. I voted for McGovern who lost in a landslide. Every state except Massachusetts and Washington DC voted for Nixon. In 1976 I voted for Gerald Ford. He had replaced Nixon who resigned in 1974 and Jimmy Carter was Democratic nominee in 1976. I thought Ford was a decent man who deserved to continue. I was Wrong Jimmy Carter won. I wasn’t so disappointed. In 1980 I voted for Carter and Ronald Regan beat him. In 1984 I voted forWalter Mondale and Regan won re-election handily. In 1988 I voted for Michael Dukakis who was beaten by George H.W. Bush.
I hadn’t gotten my presidential election vote right yet. In 1992 I voted for Bill Clinton. And he won. He beat Bush the first. In 1996 I voted for Clinton again and he beat Kansas senatorRobertDole. In. 2000 I voted for Al Gore who lost in the famous election that was decided by the Supreme Court to George W Bush. In 2004 I voted for John Kerry senator from Massachusetts who lost to Bush. In 2008 and 2012 I voted for Barack Obama and in 2016 I voted for Hilary Clinton. And I plan to vote for Joe Biden this November.