This election, we’ve heard a lot about third parties. Many talking heads will tell you that voting for a third party is voting for the candidate you like least. But in a race between two of the least popular major party nominees in recent history, many Americans are considering voting for the Green Party, the Libertarian Party, or any of the 29 candidates on at least one state’s ballot outside of the two major parties.

It’s easy to laugh off most of the candidates, like Da Vid of the Light Party, whose website features an eleven minute video of colorful graphics set to a psychedelic tune with, and this is not a joke, no dialogue. Or Joseph “Joe Exotic” Maldenado, an independent from Oklahoma whose site boasts an endorsement from NWA- not Ice Cube’s famous hip hop group, but the National Wrestling Association. Or Dan Vacek, a Minnesotan from the Legal Marijuana Now Party. But there exist many serious third party candidates. Evan McMullin, a conservative running with no party affiliation, was placed only 4 points behind Donald Trump in McMullin’s home state of Utah. Benjamin Morris of FiveThirtyEight.com recently wrote “It would take a fascinating scenario… for McMullin to be sworn in as the 45th president, but the chances of its happening are slim, not none.”

Trump is not well liked amongst WY students. Jesus Villanueva ’17 said that he is worried that Trump “will screw up diplomatic relations”. Yet despite more students planning on voting for Clinton, she is not necessarily better liked. Martez Knox ’17 said of Clinton, “She doesn’t seem to care about poor people and minorities… she’s a panderer.” Many students like Andrew Burke ’17 believe the choice to be the lesser of two evils; “Better the devil you know and hate than the devil you don’t know and won’t win.” Shania Santana ’17 shared her worries: “The third parties are small, and I’d be worried that my vote would not matter as much.” Ryan Chang ’17 summed up the reluctant, lesser-of-two-evils sentiment with a simple statement: “You can impeach a liar, but you can’t impeach someone for being racist.”

Despite these feelings, there are students who would vote for a third party. Raymond Tam (17) said “I would vote for a Third Party because the first two are irrational. [Hillary] doesn’t seem like a truthful person… and Trump doesn’t know what he’s doing.” Maira Lara, who supports Gary Johnson, the libertarian candidate, told us: “…you’re divided between two people who aren’t good, so you go to the lesser of two evils. Johnson is so different, he needs to get more recognition.” Victor Medina says that the only reason he would vote third party would be “to prevent [Trump and Clinton] from becoming president.”

Some WY teachers weighed in on the feasibility of third party options. Mr. Rodgers of the English Department said: “I think it’s more of an ideological stance that will not yield a practical or pragmatic result. Voting is voting and that’s inherently a good thing, but I don’t see [voting third party] as a good idea.” Mr. Waller, AP and Honors Economics teacher, said: “I would think there’d be a great advantage [to the third parties] because the candidates we have to choose are terrible. Third party is in a position to potentially do well, comparatively. Many wouldn’t normally consider third party candidates, but because our choices are seen as abysmal this year, they might.”

The truth of the matter is that Hillary Clinton leads Illinois, the state she grew up in, by 20 points in most estimates. The previously mentioned FiveThirtyEight.com gives Clinton a 99.2% chance of winning this state. Thus, it would take a monumental shift of public opinion for Clinton to lose here, and individuals voting third party would likely not have a substantive effect on the outcome of the election.

Since Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are two of the least liked candidates in U.S. electoral history, many third parties have emerged as formidable alternatives. The attitudes of the Whitney Young population generally reflect the American thought process, saying that this race is the ‘lesser of two evils’. However, no major third party candidates have captured enough of the public’s attention to come near the presidency. Regardless of who you are planning on supporting, you should stay informed about your options- visit http://www.politics1.com/p2016.htm to view all of the candidates and their websites.