It’s a safe bet that you have a pretty clear preference in this year’s presidential race. In fact, it’s also likely that nearly everyone you know — at least those who intend to cast a ballot — already has a good idea about who’ll they’ll support. The number of true undecided voters, folks who just aren’t sure which candidate to back, is fairly small.
But these Americans still exist. In fact, we can even find them on Capitol Hill.
Take Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), for example. The Republican senator, facing a tough re-election fight in a blue state, announced his support for Donald Trump’s candidacy several months ago, but in June, Kirk became the first and only GOP senator to withdraw that endorsement and declare he wouldn’t support his party’s nominee after all.
Soon after, the Illinois senator said he’d write in former CIA Director David Petraeus’ name rather than support Trump.
Last week, Kirk changed his mind again, announcing he’ll instead write in former Secretary of State Colin Powell’s name on his presidential ballot. As the Chicago Tribune reported, this didn’t turn out well.
Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, who has unendorsed Donald Trump, said Wednesday he “can’t support” Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton or anyone for president who backs the Iran nuclear agreement.But Kirk’s stated choice as a write-in candidate for president, former Secretary of State Colin Powell, also supported the U.S.-led multinational agreement aimed at curbing Iran’s nuclear program.
In a CNN interview, Kirk specifically said, in reference to the international nuclear agreement with Iran, “Hillary Clinton was for the Iran agreement. And I can’t support someone who is for the Iran agreement.” (Powell, whom Kirk had just endorsed, is a rather enthusiastic proponent of the Iran agreement.)
Which means it’s time for the Republican senator to come up with his fourth presidential preference in the last three months. And who might that be?
According to the Chicago Tribune, Kirk no longer wants to talk about it. “Don’t really need to discuss my write-in choice because it’s not that important,” he told reporters on Sunday.
Kirk will face Rep. Tammy Duckworth (D) in November. The race is widely seen as one of the key Democratic pick-up opportunities of this cycle.
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Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."