Contributors

Wednesday 5 June 2013

Republican Party - leaving the young behind?

Rolling Stone Magazine has an article detailing how the Republican party is leaving behind young people, who overwhelmingly supported Obama in the 2012 election. The article discusses a survey done for the Republican Party and published here, which essentially highlights the fact that the GOP's opinion of gay marriage turns off young voters. Abortion as a divisive electoral issue is less important for Americans born after 1980, than it is for older voters.

Probably more useful for Unit 3C than Unit 4C, but could be useful background for any essay contemplating how representative Congress is, or the nature of Presidential power:

President Barack Obama won 5 million more votes than Gov. Mitt Romney among voters under the age of 30 in the 2012 election. Despite Romney holding a 2 million-vote advantage over the President among voters aged 30 and older, Obama’s significant lead with the youth vote was enough to ensure his re-election. While Obama’s advantage among young people shrank from 34 points in the 2008 election to 23 points in 2012, the election reinforced the generational challenge faced by the GOP.

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