by Race in the Workplace special correspondent Erica Mauter

Everybody will be talking about Super Duper Tuesday.

In response to surveys indicating increased political discussion in the workplace, Anita Bruzzese sayeth:

These growing numbers have me wondering how much influence our workplace culture, co-workers and bosses influence our votes. If we’re spending 10 to 12 hours a day with other employees, might they have a bigger impact on our decisions? Will we vote the way the boss does just to get in good with a manager? Can who we vote for adversely impact a career?

The obvious first response to encountering political discussion in the workplace is to wonder how this new-found knowledge impacts your opinion of your co-workers. When people you know outside of the workplace express political opinions, you have more latitude in your response. Your co-workers you are stuck with.

I’d certainly puzzle over how to manage my response (or lack thereof) to someone with different political beliefs, but it wouldn’t even occur to me that I might act, much less vote differently to improve my boss’s perception of me. If my stellar performance isn’t already doing it, we’re now talking faking a whole outlook on life.

But if your work environment is that hostile to your political beliefs you have