No such thing as a moderate. You either have beliefs or you don't.
I would consider a "moderate" as a person who has no hard political affiliation or loyalty and who can be persuaded to vote in either direction.
I do not buy that. A moderate is an idiot.
Voting for someone who has a different party affiliation, has nothing to do with being a moderate. You could be a hard core lefty, or righty, and change who you vote for.
For example: Say you hear some Democrap saying that the minimum wage will drastically improve everyone's lives. So you vote for a Democrap.
Then they jack up the minimum wage, and you see that people lose their jobs. The next election you vote Republican, because you know jacking up the minimum wage harms people.
That's not you being a moderate. That's you going from being ignorant and fooled into support bad policy, to being educated, and making a better choice.
Equally, say I know jacking up the minimum wage will harm people, and I happen to be in an election where the Republican supports jacking up the minimum wage, but the Democrap does not. Then I would vote for the Democrap.
That's not me being a moderate. I am rigidly supporting my ideological views as a right-winger. There is nothing moderate about it.
Now if you are telling me, that you are not voting based on the issues, or an ideological view.... then what are you voting based on?
Nothing. And that makes a moderate, and idiot.
The clearest example was the Al Gore kiss in 2000.
New polls show Al Gore pushing ahead in the race for White House - and it all started with a very public embrace with his wife Tipper at the Democratic convention. Martin Kettle in Washington reports
US elections: It started with a kiss
So to recap, Al Gore kissed his wife. The polls jumped 5 points.
When you base who you are going to vote for, on how you feel, and what the candidate looks like, rather than the issues or policies.... you are what is known as "an idiot".
That's what a moderate is. Because if you are basing your vote on the issues and policies, you won't be waffling back and fourth on who to vote for. You won't be a "moderate".