If it's true that Nader got nearly 100,000 votes in Florida, George Bush may well owe him a cabinet position. I also think Nader's campaign rationale took on a hypocritical glare in the light of such a close race. He said his motive was what's best for the country, not party loyalty. He also said he hoped to win enough votes to qualify the Green Party for federal campaign funds. That sounds like a party-driven motive, to me.
Any election also makes clear that people vote for valid and bogus reasons.
Valid reasons for supporting a candidate are issues-oriented. If you support a candidate because his or her position on the issues is closest to your own, that's valid. Choosing a candidate on these grounds is an inductive process. You have ideas about public education, health care, and how to maintain our current economic health. You support or oppose gun control, abortion, the death penalty, separation of church and state.