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Comment by gnicholas | Hacker News Reader

> It's also a question I will be asking any potential employer I interview with, going forward, for the same reason.

This would be a very strange question to be asked of an interviewer.

> Yes it means I can't hire employees in California

Per the article I linked to up-thread, it's not just CA:

California, Colorado, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, South Carolina, West Virginia, Seattle, Ann Arbor, and Madison.

Maybe you don't care about some of those locations, but CA, CO, and Seattle seem like pretty important ones in the tech world.

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It would be a strange question, depending on the scenario. You can imagine I probably don’t anticipate being in interviews where I’m asking that of somebody who isn’t the primary executive. (In other words, I wouldn’t want to work under someone whose judgement I don’t trust, and this would be a dealbreaker on judgement.)

You’re correct that it rules out some important locations in tech, and I do think geography will continue to matter to a degree.

I think there’s also some appeal to a company that has strong, publicly stated principles that can benefit recruiting, but it remains to be seen. But when I consider potential future ventures, these are things I’ve considered and intend to apply.

IMO it would show exceedingly bad judgment to ask someone how they voted in an interview. I wouldn’t categorically refuse to hire such a person, but it would be a strike against.

I understand that perspective, but it doesn't affect my position. I'm free to choose who I work for, and I wouldn't choose to work for someone who found the question disqualifying. I get to define my own utility function.

Sure, you're free to choose your employer however you wish, and there are plenty of tech companies whose executives didn't vote for Trump.

But you may find that many executives — including those who did not vote for Trump — are not interested in hiring people who believe they are entitled to know how their colleagues/bosses voted.

Sure, I won't argue that. But it's another useful filter for me.

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