Have you always been for the Party or wing of politics you support now?

i was a long time democrat.i have 30 years in a union.

the democrat party moved so far left i can't see them from where I'm standing.i haven't moved...i was running for office years ago.

the Dem's basically refused to support me over gun control laws i said were unconstitutional...20 years later the supreme court agrees.

the republicans . supported me and i did not have to change my views to comply with the party line.

PS i did not win as a republican. but i do have a good in-site into both political machines.

i have done the TV and radio debates.

my most memorable was against Diane Feinstin.

on PBS.

i was so proud.

I was well prepared ,and beat her like a rented mule.

i caught her in major lies live on the air.

we left the studio with high fives and cheers.

the next day the news had twisted everything that happened.

i have not bought a news paper since that day.

she went to Washington..i went into a bar, then depression.

No - I've always been a bit of a centrist, and vote for the specific person I think will do the least harm to the county. In 2004, I voted for probably 60% Dems and 40% GOP on my state's ballot.

It's funny, though - from 1910-1970, the Dems were mostly the socially conservative, even racist members that controlled the South, and Republicans were fiscally conservative. Now the Dems are led by socially left-wing ideologists who try to advance the causes of minorities, poor, and gays, while Republicans have controlled the most fiscally irresponsible period of government in the last 100 years (1998-2006). So the parties have switched quite a bit, too.

Your story is almost identical to mine except for the Perot vote. My time of epiphany came during the Reagan election when I was in college.Then came all the conflicts of the 80's & I remained conservative through the whole change. I am still conservative today. But, I was a liberal & just as full of piss & vinegar like the ones today . I'm glad I saw the light & stopped battling windmills.

Yes, I was a Republican until about 1992. I was frustrated that the Christian right was taking over the party, so I became an Independent. I voted for Perot twice, then Gore and Kerry, and now Obama. I live in Arizona (McCain country), and it is very conservative here, so I tend to lean left and usually vote Democratic, but still vote for Republicans for some local offices.

Obama '08

I am a Dem but voted for Bush in 2000

I voted for Kerry in 2004

I waxn't going to vote at all this time but I listened to the DNC and something Obama said made me change my mind and vote. I listened to the DNC and kind of liked what I heard I then watched the RNC I hadn't made up my mind fully I didn't like what I heard and saw I checked both candidates websites and read up on their stands. I came on yahoo to get other peoples take Seemed to me the most hateful people where the Reps So I decided to go Dem For the first time in my life I have gotten actively involved in an election I have helped over 500 people register and donated money and made calls. In the future I will also work to help support the ones I want to get in

I was always a Republican; I even voted for Bush, twice. I have decided to stop being stupid by just voting "within party lines" and think outside the "box." I have turned Independent and will be supporting Senator Obama this election. What opened my eyes and made me rethink my views on everything was when Senator McCain was asked how long would the war in Iraq last and he responded by saying "if the war takes 100 years, then so be it." With his flippant answer, came my indignation. This was not the only reason for switching, it was just the tip.

I used to be a monarchist, then I was a marxist, then a tory, then I was a non-marxist socialist, then I was a federalist, then I was an oligarch, then I was a republican, then I was a democrat, then I was a fascist, then I was a libertarian, then I was an anti-federalist, then I was a whig, then I was an anarchist, then I was an imperialist.

Now I don't know what I am, but I'm voting for Alan Keyes.

Nope. I was raised into a god-fearing republican family when I was young & impressionable, and later changed into a democrat when I started thinking for myself and realizing that most of what the ring-wing says doesn't add up or make any sense...at all...

- the american middle class is drowning = give 300 Billion to the rich?

- white collar crime at an all-time high & the destruction of all major US financial institutions = de-regulate big corporations?

- gays, divorce, and lack of 'abstinence only' education are ruining american values = finger-snaps underneath toilet stalls, McCain is divorced, and Palin's 17 year old daughter (16 at the time of conception) is knocked up?...

...what?! huh?!...did I miss something here?...

...no thanks, I've had enough of "do as i say, not as i do" republican politics for one lifetime!

Not at all, I was a rabid republican for most of my life. Changed 2 years ago after realizing that I was simply feeding off a bunch of lies.

They aren't small government, they simply want to spend our money on different things than the democrats. Bush proved me wrong about everything I believed republicans stood for.

They talk a better game than the democrats, but at the end of the day, they don't practice what they preach.

I have always been an Independent and voted for candidates I am convinced will best serve my city, state, or country as the case may be.