Being downvoted isn’t not being allowed on Lemmy.

Until we get rid of plurality/first-past-the-post voting, voting for the (perceived) lesser of two evils is more or less the reality and only reasonable take for the vast majority of Americans. That even goes for conservatives. With plurality voting, it inevitably leads to two party systems.

And on a macro scale, the major parties are only going to shift ideologically where they think that that shift gets them the plurality of votes. That usually means that either party is unlikely to directly serve their more extreme ends of their respective wings. Democrats are almost certainly not going to get more progressive, simply because progressives have no where else to go. Expecting them to get more progressive without incentive is unreasonable and just not going to happen.

That fucking sucks, but that is the reality of our voting system. So if you're tired of that shit like I am, advocate for and vote for officials that are advocates of voting system reforms where you can. That's the only way to change this pattern. And there is momentum to push to and even already adoption of other systems like Ranked Choice (my least favorite alternative system for single seat elections, but definitely an improvement). But while we are currently stuck with plurality voting, you will be forced to live with the consequences of that reality. Part of that is that you ought to vote for your preferred major party candidate in single seat elections that truly matter, even if it's just the lesser of two evils.