Lesser of two evils principle

"Lesser evil" and "Lesser of Two Evils" redirect here. For the Futurama episode, seeThe Lesser of Two Evils.For other uses, seeThe Lesser Evil (disambiguation).

Thelesser of two evils principle,also referred to as thelesser evil principleandlesser-evilism,is the principle that when faced with selecting from two immoral options, the least immoral one should be chosen. The principle is most often invoked in reference to binary political choices under systems that make it impossible to express asincere preference for one's favorite.

Origin

The maxim existed already in Platonic philosophy.InNicomachean Ethics,Aristotlewrites: "For the lesser evil can be seen in comparison with the greater evil as a good, since this lesser evil is preferable to the greater one, and whatever preferable is good". The modern formulation was popularized byThomas à Kempis'devotional bookThe Imitation of Christwritten in early 15th century.

In part IV of hisEthics,Spinozastates the following maxim:

Proposition 65: "According to the guidance of reason, of two things which are good, we shall follow the greater good, and of two evils, follow the less."

In modern elections

Further information:Strategic voting § Lesser evil voting,andSincere favorite criterion

The concept of "lesser evil" voting (LEV) can be seen as a form of theminimaxstrategy where voters, when faced with two or more candidates, choose the one they perceive as the least harmful or the "lesser evil." To do so, "voting should not be viewed as a form of personal self-expression or moral judgement directed in retaliation towards major party candidates who fail to reflect our values, or of a corrupt system designed to limit choices to those acceptable to corporate elites" rather as an opportunity to reduce harm or loss.

In 2012,Huffington Postcolumnist Sanford Jay Rosen stated that the idea became common practice for left-leaning voters in theUnited Statesdue to their overwhelming disapproval of the United States government's support for theVietnam War.Rosen stated: "Beginning with the1968 presidential election,I often have heard from liberals that they could not vote for the lesser of two evils. Some said they would not vote; some said they would vote for a third-party candidate. That mantra delivered us to Richard Nixon in1972until Watergate did him in. And it delivered us toGeorge W. BushandDick Cheneyin2000until they were termed out in 2009 ".

In the2016 United States presidential election,both major candidates of the major parties —Hillary Clinton(D) andDonald Trump(R) — had disapproval ratings close to 60% by August 2016.Green Party candidateJill Steininvoked this idea in her campaign stating, "Don't vote for the lesser evil, fight for the greater good".Green Party votes hurt Democratic chances in 2000 and 2016.This sentiment was repeated for the next two election cycles, both of which were between Democratic candidate (and current president)Joe Bidenand Republican candidate (and former president) Donald Trump.Accordingly, the lesser evil principle should be applied to two front-runners among many choices, after eliminating from consideration "minor party candidates (who) can be spoilers in elections by taking away enough votes from a major party candidate to influence the outcome without winning."

In elections between only two candidates where one is mildly unpopular and the other immensely unpopular, opponents of both candidates frequently advocate a vote for the mildly unpopular candidate. For example, in the second round of the2002 French presidential electiongraffiti in Paris told people to "vote for the crook, not the fascist". The "crook" in those scribbled public messages wasJacques ChiracofRally for the Republicand the "fascist" wasJean-Marie Le Penof theNational Front.Chirac eventually won the second round having garnered 82% of the vote.

Mythology

"Between Scylla and Charybdis"is an idiom derived fromHomer'sOdyssey.In the story,Odysseuschose to go nearScyllaas the lesser of two evils. He lost six of his companions, but if he had gone nearCharybdisall would be doomed. Because of such stories, having to navigate between the two hazards eventually entered idiomatic use. Another equivalent English seafaring phrase is "Between a rock and a hard place".The Latin lineincidit in scyllam cupiens vitare charybdim( "he runs into Scylla, wishing to avoid Charybdis" ) had earlier become proverbial, with a meaning much the same asjumping from the frying pan into the fire.Erasmusrecorded it as an ancient proverb in hisAdagia,although the earliest known instance is in theAlexandreis,a 12th-century Latinepic poembyWalter of Châtillon.