Quick Survey Matches People to Candidates

By Jay Allbritton
May 23rd 2008 3:18PM

Filed Under:e2008 President

I try to avoid political labels. In my opinion, the terms liberal and conservative are a lazy shorthand that hyper-partisans use to dismiss people and their ideas in total without having to ever engage in a real conversation. If I were pushed to provide a label for myself, I would say I'm a progressive. But the things I want most from the government--a plan for peace on Earth, better education, a stronger dollar, competent energy policy and a judiciary dedicated to protecting our civil rights--turn out to be the same things that plenty of conservatives want too.

So, when I heard about Electoral Compass, USA, a website that claims to be able to help you find the presidential candidate that most closely matches your position in the political landscape, I was skeptical. The survey poses garden variety political statements like "People should have a background check and obtain a license before they can buy a gun" and "The new president should begin to bring home all US troops from Iraq immediately." You are then asked how strongly you agree. Questions run the gamut from carbon taxes on fuel to embryonic stem cell research.

When the results were tabulated I had to admit, I was dead wrong. Electoral Compass, USA, got inside my head faster than Hannibal Lecter. I landed directly on Barack Obama, the candidate I actually support. According to the website I am "2% more economic left" than Obama and "3% more progressive". Barack Obama and I "have a substantive agreement of 76%". The results appear on a nifty graph. By clicking on the images of the candidates you can see how close you are to their positions.

Are you still undecided? Think you know who you match up to? Take the survey and let us know how you do.

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