do YOU know who you're voting for

really know?

this is rather disparaging

Racists on the Ballot: Hard-Right Radicals Run in 2006

By Alexander Zaitchik, Intelligence ReportPosted on October 20, 2006, Printed on October 22, 2006http://www.alternet.org/story/43227/
In 1989, notorious white supremacist David Duke ran for a vacant seat in the Louisiana state legislature and won. Despite repeated efforts -- and winning more than 670, 000 votes, a majority of the state's white voters, in a 1991 gubernatorial bid -- Duke would fail to convert this electoral victory into higher office. But the former Klan leader remains convinced that the road to national power for those who share his views runs through local and state assemblies. At last year's European American Conference, a racist pow-wow Duke organizes annually, he implored audience members to enter politics -- and start small.
"State representative races can be won with modest budgets and small staffs, while affording the winner possible major media attention and the ability to file and promote legislation that can materially improve our people's plight," proclaimed Duke, citing personal experience.
"Most importantly, a state representative office is winnable for political novices and provides an excellent springboard for higher office."
This electoral strategy for building an extremist political movement in the U.S. was recently echoed by neo-Nazi John Ubele in an essay posted on the website of the Nationalist Coalition, a white nationalist group. In "The 2006 Elections: A Call to Action," Ubele expounds upon the positive uses of local campaigns, even failed ones, in helping lay the groundwork for a "national pro-White political party." These include heightened exposure for extremist ideas and organizational and management experience for activists.
One extremist who has gained both exposure and experience in 2006 is Larry Darby. As a candidate in a two-way Democratic primary race for attorney general of Alabama, Darby lived up to his recently earned reputation as an anti-Semite and Holocaust denier. While campaigning, Darby made headlines by stating the Holocaust did not occur, telling an Associated Press reporter that no more than 140,000 Jews died in Europe during World War II, most killed by typhus. His outspoken atheism -- and support for legalizing marijuana -- pushed Darby even further outside the conservative mainstream of Alabama politics.
Yet, despite his views, his (later abandoned) atheism, and his near total lack of resources, Darby managed to poll 44% of the vote -- more than 163,000 votes.
While some of the lessons of Darby's success are particular to the race -- Darby ran against a political unknown, was listed first on the ballot, and was at least a vaguely familiar name to many Alabamians -- one lesson from his race and those of David Duke applies across the country: Dark-horse candidates with extremist views and unsavory allies can make surprisingly strong runs for office and poison public discourse in the process.......

Tech Tags: racist neo+nazi extremist candidates