Do we vote for the Islamists in elections on the basis of the lesser of two harms?

The questioner : The Shaykh may say, meaning some people say: It is true that the issue of elections occupies the callers to Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) from calling to Allah and delays the call, but they say that there are Islamic groups leading these elections, so we give our votes to these Islamists instead of not participating with them even in votes, because our non-participation even in votes leads to expanding the circle of the leftist groups.

The Shaykh : Understood.

The questioner : So, is it permissible, for example, for a Muslim to cast his vote for a man he sees as qualified? This is regarding men; questions regarding women will come later.

The Shaykh : Meaning, does a supporter of the Sunnah choose, for example, one of the Muslims over one of the communists?

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : Is that what you wanted to ask? I say: There is no harm in that, as long as he does not burn from one side, and as long as he takes the principle: "Some evil is less than some evil," there is no harm in that. And this is what we used to do in Syria when there were elections.