Should We Prioritize Ideological Purity or Practical Outcomes?

Hi, I’ve been trying to have this discussion over at /r/Libertarian but these clowns deleted my vastly different posts twice, clearly violating libertarian principles, so I want to give this sub a try – while I am more of a minarchist, I think we still have 90% overlap in philosophical view, so I would love to hear your thoughts! Let’s see if we can have a real discussion 🙂


Should libertarians prioritize purity or pragmatism in elections?

Voting for an ideologically pure party may reflect your principles but often has little real-world impact if that party lacks influence. On the other hand, supporting a more viable party with overlapping goals, like reducing taxes, deregulating markets, or shrinking government, can lead to meaningful progress toward a freer society, even if compromises are involved.

The question is simple: Do you prioritize sending a message or achieving results? What do you think is the right choice for advancing libertarian values?

For the sake of argument, let’s say you can vote for a non-core-libertarian party that has 70% overlap with libertarian values and has a chance to win representation, vs voting for a libertarian party that has 100% overlap with your values, but practically no chance of winning?

submitted by /u/NikEy
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