Voters are Guided by Their Fear of Voting for a Hairball Candidate

  Sometimes, I think voters select their candidates not so much because they like them, but because they aren't afraid of them. They vote not to make the right choice, but out of fear of making the wrong choice.
   An independent or minor party candidate? No way. It might be an hairball. Better to play it safe and go with the Republican or Democrat.
   This principle prompts voters to return the incumbents to office the majority of the time. Congress might have a 90 percent disapproval rating, or whatever it is, but the majority of incumbents still are returned to office. Why? I believe it is, more than anything, because voters figure they at least know a little about the incumbent. They know the incumbent hasn't done anything real egregious, and they just don't know much at all about the challenger.
   So, they take the safe bet and punch their vote for the person already in office.
   It's called electing by fear of the unknown. Better the devil you know than the devil you don't. Voters vote not to make the right choice, but to avoid making the wrong choice.