In blind poll, Mike Gravel is your next president

Every four years, much is made about fringe presidential candidates who are perceived as having no real chance of winning. Ralph Nader, Dennis Kucinich, Wesley Clark, John McCain - the list includes some high-profile names and, if you actually ask around, some pretty popular choices. Yet, when it comes down to voting, the candidates with the most exposure and the most cash ultimately get the prize.

With that in mind, consider Former Alaska Senator Mike Gravel, who famously tried to end the draft during the Vietnam War. Some have described him as too progressive to lead the United States; others simply think he’s crazy. But he has a growing, loyal fanbase of followers who love his no-nonsense, straight-talking approach to politics. He’s a politician who is far enough removed from the political machine, they say, that he can see the forest for the carbon-cutting trees.

But, as tends to be the case in American politics, Gravel isn’t polling well. Is he truly unpopular, or just unheard?

A blind political poll at VAJoe.com clues us in. Twenty-four major voting issues are presented to poll takers, without famous names or faces attached to them. Voters choose whether they agree, disagree, or are unsure about each particular issue, and then have an opportunity to weigh some decisions more heavily than others.

So who wins in this honest - but blind - poll of American Internet users? Former Alaska Senator Mike Gravel.

Is it somewhat ironic that the man who favours direct democracy wins in a poll representing, well, direct democracy? As with most of his policies - if you bother to read beyond the Clinton and Romney signs peppering your neighbours’ lawns - Mike Gravel just might be on to something.

The current Top 5 results from over 2.1 million poll takers:

• Mike Gravel - 14.44%
• Rudy Giuliani - 11.64%
• Mike Huckabee - 10.00%
• Dennis Kucinich - 9.78%
• Mitt Romney - 9.30%

At the time of this blog entry, 53.38% of poll takers identified as Republican, compared to 46.63% identifying as a Democrat.

Try VAJoe.com’s 2008 election Candidate Calculator.