Ellen White's Thoughts on Voting

Abundant Rest has an interesting set of quotations from Ellen White which gives her followers the instructions listed in green below:

The Lord would have His people bury political questions. On these themes silence is eloquence. Christ calls upon His followers to come into unity on the pure gospel principles which are plainly revealed in the word of God. We cannot with safety vote for political parties; for we do not know whom we are voting for.

I don’t know what that one means most people know who they are voting for though certainly for some of the lesser local offices we may not know much about the person. That to me is most troublesome in the area of Judges. But overall the days of flipping the lever to vote for one party only is rare if it even exists at all.

We cannot labor to please men who will use their influence to repress religious liberty, and to set in operation oppressive measures to lead or compel their fellow men to keep Sunday as the Sabbath.

You would think that it would be appropriate to vote against those who seek to repress religious liberty in favor of someone who supports religious liberty. Though here again it has probably been over a hundred years since a candidate supported compelling anyone to keep Sunday as the Sabbath.

The first day of the week is not a day to be reverenced. It is a spurious sabbath, and the members of the Lord’s family cannot participate with the men who exalt this day, and violate the law of God by trampling upon His Sabbath.

This may explain why for so long Adventists have been separating themselves from the other Christians in the community of believers. I wonder if it is better now that some churches offer worship services on Saturday evenings?

The people of God are not to vote to place such men in office; for when they do this, they are partakers with them of the sins which they commit while in office. {FE 475.2}

So apparently if you did vote, which you should not do, don’t vote for anyone who attends religious services on Sunday.

God employs the strongest figures to show that there should be no union between worldly parties and those who are seeking the righteousness of Christ. What communion can there be between light and darkness, truth and unrighteousness? — None whatever. Light represents righteousness; darkness, error, sin, unrighteousness. Christians have come out of darkness into the light. They have put on Christ, and they wear the badge of truth and obedience. They are governed by the elevated and holy principles which Christ expressed in His life. But the world is governed by principles of dishonesty and injustice. {FE 476.1}

Apparently Ellen White has determined government is evil. Apparently there is little difference between a democracy and a dictatorship; The United States or Hitler’s Germany. All are governments of dishonesty and injustice.