New Hampshire Primary Election 2012: The Undecided Voter (VIDEO)

BRADFORD, N.H. -- Jon Marden has a problem. The New Hampshire primary is today and the registered Republican can't decide who to vote for.

It isn't that he hasn't been paying attention -- he follows the news like a moth to a flame. It's just that, well, they all seem so incredibly...mediocre.

Although Marden is a Catholic, he's not a values voter. His primary concern right now is getting the economy fixed, and yet the only candidate he's managed to eliminate so far is Mitt Romney, who, oddly enough, is widely considered to be the most financially experienced of all the contenders for the nomination.

But Marden doesn't like Romney because he thinks the former Massachusetts governor changed positions too many times. What Marden wants is a candidate who can keep a cool head in a crisis. "Who would you want to answer the phone at 2 a.m.?" he asked, referencing a Hillary Clinton ad from 2008 that accused Barack Obama of not having the experience -- or judgment -- to act shrewdly during a national emergency.

Santorum? Maybe. Ron Paul? He'd answer the phone all right, but the problem is what he'd say into it.

So here's Marden's plan: if he can't decide who to vote for when he walks into the ballot box on Tuesday, he'll decide what to vote for. "If I can't decide by Tuesday, then I'll be voting for a plank -- an issue that I want to see go through to the national campaign platform -- not a person."

Watch the video above for the whole story.

Comments

[nerdsgetrevenge]

11:41 PM on 01/15/2012

It’s good that he isn’t basing his choice off of his personal beliefs, and is basing it off of what it best for the country, more importantly the economy. If he can’t decide, he will vote plank: great idea for those of us who could care less what the look like and more what they can do.

[Julia Caskey Marshall]

10:35 PM on 01/10/2012

It's really very simple: "The problems in the world today are so enormous they cannot be solved with the level of thinking that created them." -- Albert Einstein

[terriheyu]

04:11 PM on 01/10/2012

...undecided really? How can anyone still be undecided? What great sign are they looking for? By now everyone's positions are clear and everyone's allegiances have been exposed. I just hope those "working class" people vote in thier own best interests, even if it means...God forbid... crossing party lines.

[juliebird]

03:19 PM on 01/10/2012

Obama.

[booksnmoreforyou]

03:14 PM on 01/10/2012

Undecided? Really???

I suggest the gentleman stay home.

[Brandon Granado]

02:22 PM on 01/10/2012

vote Ron Paul! He's the only candidate that could possibly not result in a "business as usual" outcome once he's elected. I don't see the others fixing or changing anything.

[noway lv]

02:42 PM on 01/10/2012

And Ron Paul would? Riiiiiight . . . .

[steve11407]

01:13 PM on 01/10/2012

This will not be a vote for. It will be a vote against. 01.20.2013. The end of an error.

[Reading girl2485]

12:01 PM on 01/10/2012

For crying out loud, if you haven't figured it out by now, stay home.

I think undecideds are on a continual power trip. Everyone asks them if they've made up their minds and they like stretching it out, saying "Well, I don't know..." I have a relative like this.

I don't believe for a second these people don't know who they'd like to vote for. What they DO like is to keep everyone guessing. More attention on them.

I also can't believe that this blue collar working class guy has lost 40% of his business, can't retire early - and he thinks a Republican is gonna solve that for him.

Hey John, why don't you wear a huge "Kick Me" sign on your posterior when you go into the voting booth? I'm sure any of the lame crop of GOP candidates is bound to take you up on it.

[vesaversa1]

12:00 PM on 01/10/2012

"What Marden wants is a candidate who can keep a cool head in a crisis. "Who would you want to answer the phone at 2 a.m.?" he asked, referencing a Hillary Clinton ad from 2008 that accused Barack Obama of not having the experience -- or judgment -- to act shrewdly during a national emergency."
Obama/Biden 2012

[B Wayne]

11:50 AM on 01/10/2012

I am THOROUGHLY finished with the "undecided voter". They are the uninformed voter.

If you cannot pick now, for goodness sakes I have no idea what to say to you.... stop giving these people a nice moniker

they are lazy and not paying attention... and likely the biggest problem with our elections based on the fact they make their decision based on whatever rubs them right the week before an election.

Undecided - pleh

[vesaversa1]

12:01 PM on 01/10/2012

I agree the Undecided gave us the teaparty in 2010 and look how that worked out .

[B Wayne]

12:33 PM on 01/10/2012

Tell me about it... my point exactly!

[dallassinglemom]

02:27 PM on 01/10/2012

I kind of agree with you there and I'm an undecided voter. I feel the need to read more about their positions and their bakground before I make a decision. Of course I don't live in New Hampshire so I have a little bit more time to decide. However, I know who I'm NOT voting for. So it's a process of elimination.

[B Wayne]

03:52 PM on 01/10/2012

But it sounds like you are taking steps now to get informed, which is excellent - by all means research everyone... Democracy requires our active participation. for what it is worth, I have found a handful that I can trust to go after anyone - Thom Hartmann is an easy pick. At any rate, thanks for posting. Cheers

[SquareDeal]

11:44 AM on 01/10/2012

You know, you can walk into the voting booth and pull the lever or push the button for no one. If enough voters vote that way it sends the message that none of the current batch of candidates will do.

[BeasleysMom]

11:07 AM on 01/10/2012

I can't believe the number of undecideds. For heaven sake, do they really have trouble with decision making or are they just none to bright after viewing the ongoing gop spectacule???

[BBackSoon]

10:58 AM on 01/10/2012

'Jon Marden has a problem. The New Hampshire primary is today and the registered Republican can't decide who to vote for.'

Wait let me fix that.

'Jon Marden has a problem. The New Hampshire primary is today and he is a registered Republican.'

All better.

[vesaversa1]

12:03 PM on 01/10/2012

Jon Marden is the type of voter who let Fox news and the Koch brothers money decide for them .

[Todd Abrams]

10:51 AM on 01/10/2012

It looks like ignorance is among the republican voter because you have all these republicans with extreme views on a number of issues, and is the opposite of the presidents stance on almost all issues. The president has actually done well under all the extreme rhetoric coming from all these republicans, and he is helping some. The problem is the partison politics that is trying to win an election, and most is coming from republicans. The Mardens are voting for the oppressor to our problems, but they can't find a good candidate, thats funny!!!

[Crisdean Wulver]

10:49 AM on 01/10/2012

Either Mitt Romney's latest scandals, flubs, and gaffes aren't affecting his poll numbers, or else they came too late to affect them. But if they aren't changing people's minds about him, that could be a telling fact. It would mean that his supporters have staying-power. This should worry the other republican contenders for the nomination. If this keeps proving true, we may already have a winner. But only time will tell. I once thought Gary Hart was certain to be the Democratic nominee.

:-)