I've considered myself a member of the Republican Party since before I could officially be a member of the Republican Party. I can distinctly remember sitting in my Grandfather's den while he smoked his cigar and watched the evening news. During the commercials we would discuss my day at school and what was happening in the world.

He was a war veteran. He had served in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. He knew what it was to struggle. He knew what it was to succeed. Fiscal responsibility and social conservatism made sense to this man and he explained those values to me. He was certainly a member of the party of Eisenhower and Reagan. Due to those evenings spent discussing the world, I was too.

My grandmother, his wife, was not. She was a yellow dog democrat. She was her whole life. She would explain to me the values of Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy, who were her heroes. Some of those values spoke to me. Some of them didn't. I did not have to agree with them, as long as I listened to both sides and participated in civil discourse.

Now the Grand Old Party has chosen Donald Trump to represent itself on the national stage. But he does not represent me. That man does not represent in any way, shape, or form of who I am as a Republican or who I am as an individual.

In the words of Woodrow Call from "Lonesome Dove," "I hate rude behavior in a man and I will not tolerate it." If the Republican Party of today is willing to nominate a man who does not know the meaning of civil discourse, then I am no longer a Republican.

I thought I would be part of the Grand Old Party my whole life. It had never crossed my mind that one day the GOP would not be the party that held my loyalty. I had hoped I would wear red on Election Day with a sense of pride until I was 80. Donald Trump and his inability to refrain from treating his perceived lessers with a modicum of respect has taken that from me.

I now consider myself to be an independent. Donald Trump and this country's apparent complacency with incivility on the public stage has made it clear that I can no longer be silent on this matter. I will not have my name on the voter rolls as a Republican, as I believe it would make me complacent with the rhetoric of the GOP and its nominee and that I cannot stand for.

This decision leaves me with three other options. I could vote for the Democratic candidate, give my vote up, or go third party. The other viable option from the Democratic Party is not likely to get my vote. I personally do not believe Hillary Clinton would be the best candidate for the job.

As for giving my vote up and not voting at all in this coming election, I do not believe that to be an appropriate course of action either. I am a woman. Many women fought for suffrage during the late 1800s to the early 1900s. Some even died for that cause. They deserve to see me exercise that right. I'm also just an ordinary citizen whose franchisement has been fought for since this country was started. To opt out of an election simply because I don't like the options seems a bit childish.

Another option is voting for a third party candidate. The chances of a third party candidate winning in this election is slim, but I'm not here to pick a winner. I'm here to choose the person I think would make a good president. If they win, then I'm a happy lady. If they don't, then I still did my civic duty and made my voice heard. This is the path I have decided to take.

To me this is not a question of who the best candidates are. This is not a questions of who Donald Trump is. This is a question of who I am. If I vote for someone like him, which to me is supporting him and the majority of what he stands for as a candidate, then I would be supporting someone who stands for everything which I am morally opposed to. I do not agree with him policy wise and I vehemently disagree with how he chooses to conduct himself on the public stage. If I stayed in the Republican Party and supported Donald J. Trump, I would be someone who was condoning the behavior of a man who should have long since been made to answer for his lack of civility. I refuse to be that person.

This election, my vote is going to mean something to me. More than it ever has and maybe more than it ever will again. The odd thing is I know I will not be casting my vote for the person who will be our next Commander in Chief. But I will be keeping my self-respect firmly intact and that is a price I am more than willing to pay.