by Mark Silva
Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama “appeal to opposite ends of the age spectrum,’’ the Gallup Poll has found. And while Democrat Hillary Clinton fares poorer among younger voters in a match-up with McCain, she stands stronger than Obama among older voters.
Obama's “strength in a general-election match-up against McCain’’ is his appeal to younger voters, Gallup’s Jeffrey Jones reports. Obama holds a 20-percentage point advantage over McCain among 18- to 29-year-old registered voters -- 57 to 37 percent. McCain holds nearly as large an advantage among those 65 and older – 51 to 35 percent.
The two are closely matched among middle-aged groups.
Clinton holds just an 11-point advantage over McCain among the youngest voters. But she “offsets’’ this among older voters, trailing McCain by 6 points among senior citizens.
Gallup has reached into a massive base of interviews from its daily tracking polls to collect these figures, which makes their possible margin of error extremely low, just one percentage point.
The findings are based on more than 21,000 surveys of registered voters conducted between Mar. 7 and 31.
“Overall, both hypothetical general-election contests are close, with McCain holding a one percentage point advantage over both Obama and Clinton,’’ Gallup’s Jeffrey Jones notes.
“The analysis also affirms a significant gender gap in general-election voting preferences, as has been the case for the last several presidential elections,’’ Jones notes.
“Female voters are once again aligning themselves with the Democratic candidate and male voters with the Republican. But here again, the sizes of the gender gaps differ, depending on whether Clinton or Obama is pitted against McCain.
“McCain has a 9-point advantage over Obama among male voters while Obama leads him by 5 points among women, for a total gender gap of 14 points,’’ Jones reports. “But if Clinton is the Democratic nominee, the gender gap expands to 22 points, with men going for McCain by 52 to 40 percent and women for Clinton by 51 to 41 percent.
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Comments
Give me the 65+ set anyday. They've got AARP representing them. They get to the polls and vote. People like Obama Girl are more concerned with getting attention than actually showing up and voting.
Posted by: Jeff | April 3, 2008 10:54 AM
How significant is the issue of age now, when the contest between party nominees is not yet fixed? It seems that when the race is actually on, the topic of age will become valid and immediate, not hypothetical. Age could then become a tipping point in electability---for determining the strongest candidate to fill a fiercely demanding leadership position.
Posted by: Dinny Lawrance | April 3, 2008 10:55 AM
Dinny, I agree with you. All of this means nothing at this stage in the race. Particulalry with all the Obamacins that would vote for McCain when polled about HRC.
Jeff: Just keep drinking your green kool aid. If you do not think that there is a major shift in politics out there, you've been living in your closet far too long! Don't get me wrong, seniors are great, but the younger generation is going to be the one that flushes out all the stale and corupt politicians.
Posted by: Xcellentform | April 3, 2008 11:36 AM
When have polls been right on target this election anyways? This is pure speculation.
Posted by: TJ Weldy | April 3, 2008 11:37 AM
each candidate brings up valid point but obama especially speaks for all people when hillary speaks for the children and the working class. together hillary and obama could make a dynamic duo
Posted by: Myquara Watson | April 3, 2008 11:43 AM
It is not so much about age as it is about yesterdays news type of politics and a brighter future for America. both McCain and Clinton are products of slash and burn politics and win at all costs. That way has gotten our country into the Iraq war debacle and put our nation in the weak spot economically we are in today. I will vote for CHANGE WE CAN BELIEVE IN and am certain that YES WE CAN do things better moving forward. Turn the page Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Indiana etc. Obama brought in 40 million in March and that is a great sign that plenty of voters concur and the movement will show up at the polls and VOTE.
BARACK AND ROLL IN 2008
Posted by: IRAQ Vet for OBMA | April 3, 2008 11:48 AM
Didn't we, as posters, voluntarily ban the use of "drinking the kool aid" as a response a few years back? It was clearly the most overused expression in the Swamp and I think we all agreed we were sick of it and that anyone who used it usually had a weak argument. Tin foil hats may've been banned, too.
Posted by: Jeff | April 3, 2008 12:41 PM
"stale and corupt politicians." You mean the ones like Daley, Stroger and Blagojevich? Last I checked Obama endorsed all three and one of them's about to get recalled and he's an Obama superdelegate.
Posted by: Jeff | April 3, 2008 1:00 PM
Im a 67 year old white woman. OBAMA ALL THE WAY!
Posted by: kathy | April 3, 2008 1:01 PM
Dinny hit the nail on the head. Too bad the same thing cannot be said about the journalist who wrote the piece (Mark Silva). Do you ever wonder why journalists never seem to grasp the obvious? I do. Maybe it is because this would be a non-story if he added a healthy dose of reality to his article. It would be nice to read an article that served the public interest rather than a journalist's deadline.
Posted by: Jeff Faught | April 3, 2008 1:21 PM
Jeff's feeling that the younger set are unreliable voters is borne out by past elections. See http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/02/11/opinion/main3816653.shtml
for an analysis.
However, this election may be different. The young are pouring out of the woodwork to volunteer for the campaign. Obama's background with Project Vote also means that he understands the challenges of both registering new voters and making sure they get to the polls.
Posted by: Trillium | April 3, 2008 2:13 PM
Us old folks will likely vote our prejudices. Many of my friends can't see voting for a woman, The rest can't see voting for a black. So much for wisdom being associated with old age. Where have we failed our grand kids, that they seem to favor either one? I suppose we could blame the parents...in laws, that is.
Posted by: Jean Chevreille | April 3, 2008 2:17 PM
"SAGGY BOTTOM NO BELT WEARING BROTHERS AND SISTERS SPEAK"
1000 POLLED 52% REFUSE TO BUY BELT.
1000 POLLED 52% REFUSE TO GIVE UP THEIR VISA, CREDIT CARD PURCHASING POWER, THEIR COLLEGE EDUCATION, THEIR DAYTIME JOBS.
1000 POLLED 52% REFUSE TO JOIN "JOHN MCCAIN" NEW GANG.
1000 POLLED 52% I WAS BORN AFTER 1964 AND I DON'T WANT A "REAL ID"
1000 POLLED 52% REFUSE TO JOIN THE "GUARD"
1000 POLLED 52% SCARED THERE WILL BE A "DRAFT"
1000 POLLED 52% REFUSE TO UPDATE "DRIVERS LICENSE"
1000 POLLED 52% HAVE NEVER VOTED AND PROBABLY WON'T IN THE GENERAL ELECTION.
1000 POLLED 52% HAVE NO HEALTHCARE, NOT WORRIED ABOUT HAVING HEALTHCARE, CAN'T AFFORD HEALTHCARE, CAN'T RELY ON HEALTHCARE.
1000 POLLED 52% DO NOT WANT TO SPEAK FOR THE REST OF AMERICA ANYMORE AND THINK THE POLL IS A JUST A POLL.
1000 POLLED 52% KNOW THEY ARE A "PROVISIONAL BALLOT" AT BEST.
THE OTHER 48% WELL THEY JUST DON'T COUNT. THEY ARE BLACK AMERICA
HISPANIC AMERICA AND IMMIGRANT AMERICA, FOREIGN NATIONAL AMERICA, CANADIAN AMERICA ...AND THEY JUST DON'T COUNT.
IT DOESN'T MATTER WHO VOTES, IT ONLY MATTER WHO COUNTS THE VOTES.
KARL ROVE!
Posted by: Roger Morris | April 3, 2008 2:19 PM
But Trillium, weren't the young "pouring out of the woodwork" to volunteer for Kerry and Gore, too? Wasn't 2004 supposed to be the election that changed everything?
How many times will the media tell us that young people are finally going to show up in tidal waves to vote every four years only to see them dwarfed by their elders again and again? Maybe it'll never happen, reporters. Just a thought.
Obama's background with something called "project vote" is about the same as the election abuses of organizations like "Rock the Vote" which try to use celebrities to get young people to vote. Sean Combs sold shirts that told young people to "vote or die." You tell me which one they chose.
Posted by: Jeff | April 3, 2008 2:57 PM
Jeffy, is that another guilt-by-association ploy of yours? The politics of this country wreak of swine. It is stagnate, and uninspiring due to corruption and HRC is one of the worst offenders. I think BOTH sides of the isle will be getting cleaned in the next few years.
Posted by: Xcellentform | April 3, 2008 3:20 PM
xcellentform, are you John e? The spelling and usage errors suggest that you are:
It's reek and not wreak. Unless you're wreaking havoc. Both sides of the aisle, not the Isle of Wight. And I think you wanted stagnant instead of stagnate up there.
Posted by: Jeff | April 3, 2008 6:05 PM
Doesn't it seem important to imagine our candidate at work---actually installed in the office of President?
In the last two weeks I have received, as a contributing supporter of Barack Obama, an outline of a program designed to begin this summer that will train an army of front-runners to help move their communities toward the positive changes being proposed by Obama.
Training will be provided for ALL ages to join in using their strengths in their own neighborhoods and to invite others to join organized events and register to vote.
This call for OUR commitment to action whisks us past the ruckus of campaigning and into the action of the change we've heard promised by Barack Obama. He means for all of us to become the change-makers in our own towns; in our own lives. HIS PLAN, with LEADERSHIP PROVIDED and OUR FOOTWORK, is for EVERYBODY'S BENEFIT.
Just look how his perfectly organized campaign functions flawlessly. Its success can be applied to community activities. We can all be a part of the process of raising America to be the fulfillment of the hope Obama believes in. He made it happen in Chicago: Change we can believe in---BECAUSE WE WILL MAKE IT HAPPEN! That is the secret of its success.
We have heard Obama's intent. Here at last is a genuine leader challenging us to step up and rally round America. Contact Obama headquarters. Ask for information about "Obama Works."
Posted by: Dinny Lawrance | April 4, 2008 12:14 AM
In my former email, I mentioned the name of the organization sponsoring community organizational training to promote Barack Obama's future for America, today! The most pertinent new program for that purpose is called the Obama Fellowship organization.
Posted by: Dinny Lawrance | April 4, 2008 12:45 AM
It use to be in our society that the younger generation revered the generations before them. That was when grandparents often lived in households and so youth was respectful of age. I find that young people with daily interaction with grandparents see their presence as very important. Grandparents are the foundation of an extended family. However most kids today have lost that bond with the older generation and so McCain probably seems pretty old to them. On top of that his years as a POW physically damaged him and thus he loses that more youthful look. Many also see McCain as the war hawk and Barack as a dove which can scare of youth as well. Youth today might believe that only the older generation wants to solve problems with force and they feel talking can resolve those same problems. It probably is a bit of both but it definitely can be the timing that helps.
Posted by: Verycold | April 4, 2008 10:31 AM