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Here's One Thing You Can Actually Do To Stop Trump

by Joseph D. Lyons

It seems that the Republican side isn't stopping Donald Trump very effectively. Not that anyone thought they could. Trump won seven of the 11 GOP contests that bound their delegates on Super Tuesday. If you take a look at the delegate count, America should be really concerned. Well, the America that is reading this article. You. All those Dumpf hats you ordered Sunday night and Monday didn't quite do it either; he is up over 200 delegates, leading Cruz by more than 100. It's up to you to actually stop Trump, and here's how you can do it: vote Republican.

That's right. Stop shuddering. You'll be okay. We're not talking about voting Republican in the generals in some sort of kamikaze vote. No, vote on the Republican ticket now while we're still in the primaries. Choose a different GOP candidate, one a little less extreme. Choose your favorite or the most viable alternative. Go with Kasich or go with Cruz. Either one will hurt Trump.

Now, you can't vote twice, so this means you wouldn't get a say between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. If you have a strong opinion, I know that might be tough to forgo. But wouldn't either of them be better than dealing with a Trump campaign all the way through November? Plus there are some states that are clearly for Hillary or strongly in the Bernie column. Maybe there you'd feel more comfortable going Republican, although with proportional delegate allocation it doesn't make a huge difference.

Whether or not this is an option for you, depends on where you live. Obviously if your state already voted, you're out of luck. If you haven't voted, and you live in an "open primary" state, this will be a cinch. When you go to your polling place, just get the Republican ballot. You don't need to reregister or take any special steps. The remaining states and territories with fully open primaries and caucuses are Michigan, Mississippi, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Montana.

If you don't live in one of those states, you might have to go to a little more effort to vote Republican — but it's not impossible. Do your homework to find out. Some states, like North Carolina, will let unaffiliated or independent voters choose either ballot (whereas Republicans and Democrats have to stick with their own). If you're an independent, you're in luck.

In other similar states like if you're a registered Democrat, you could reregister in advance as an independent (or as a Republican, but why do that if you don't have to?). That's only an option if there's enough time before your state's primary election. Double check. In New York for example, you'd have to reregister as a Republican (they're sticklers), and the application would need to be postmarked by March 25 for the April 19 primary.

Some states let you change your party affiliation at the polling place, which is almost like an open primary. Ohio, for example, says that you declare your political affiliation when you take the ballot. So even though, it's not open (to stay an independent you'd have to sit it out) you still can take the ballot you want on election day. In New Jersey you can also change your affiliation at the polls, although there are some rules about switching back.

As the election has progressed, it has become clearer and clearer that the Democrats will need to take down Trump. Jeb couldn't do it. Sadly neither can John Oliver — although his efforts are by far the funniest. Cruz, Rubio, and Kasich haven't got enough support collectively to keep Trump from benefiting from winner-takes-most delegate allocations. So it's up to you, the America reading this type of article. You can do that in November. Hillary is prepping for that possibility.

But why suffer through eight more months of the Donald when you could nip it in the bud now? Hold your nose and take that GOP ballot.

Image: Caroline Wurtzel/Bustle