Every vote counts, even if the choice is less than perfect.
Imagine if only 269 Floridians in 2000 had voted for Gore instead of Bush. Or imagine if out of the 97,421 who voted for Nader, a mere 538 (less than 0.6%) had instead voted for their less ideal candidate Gore.
My guess is that 9/11 would still have happened, and probably the 2008 Great Recession. But I have no doubt that if either of the above scenarios had happened (or a sufficient combination of both partly), then the U.S. would most certainly NOT be bogged down in two nearly forever wars, killing 5,629 valiant U.S. armed forces -- and counting. Those wars are estimated to have cost $1,024,363,393,103 as of today.
Think of it: Each of those needed 538 votes has cost over 10 American lives and over $1.9 billion!
Yes, every vote counts, even if the choice is less than perfect.
Confession: Here in Texas, knowing that the state was rock-solid for Bush, I, myself, voted for Nader in 2000. Knowing that my vote could not possibly affect the outcome of the election, I thought that voting for Nader would make more of a statement about my values as a citizen.
But if I had lived in a state where the election was predicted to be close, I most certainly would have voted for Gore.
I'm not trying to be critical of Nader. If anything, just critical of those who voted for him in Florida in 2000 without thinking it through.
My main point is that every vote counts, and might even be incredibly important.