Am I wrong?

I've always believed that voting third party is a lot like not voting at all, which is pretty much a vote by default for the sitting president who's up for reelection. I was told today, though, that I'm wrong on that. I really want to support a certain third-party candidate, but I know she's not going to win. I feel like it's a wasted vote, unfortunately. Am I wrong?

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Graylight · 51-55, F

It's a wasted vote, yes. At this level, when only one of two candidates can possibly win, voting a 3rd party candidate is the same as not showing up to vote at all. The time to support that campaign would've been at the local level, making the party legitimate and heard before positioning an unknown man or woman against giants.

We need more parties, to be sure. But they need to be wholly formed ideological parties. "Legalize weed," "save the planet," and "no government" are platforms, not political parties.