Voters over 70 are backing Harris over Trump, 51 to 48 percent, Emerson College poll finds

A new poll shows some baby boomers and members of the Silent Generation are switching allegiances from former President Donald Trump to Vice President Kamala Harris.

The Emerson College poll released Thursday  shows voters over 70 backing Harris over Trump 51 to 48 percent. That’s a small but positive shift for Harris, as last month, 50 percent of the group supported Trump while 48 percent backed President Joe Biden, who dropped out of the race and endorsed Harris last month.

The group includes some baby boomers, who were born between 1946 and 1964, and the Silent Generation, born between 1925 and 1945.

1 point
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if anybody reads what the DNC voted on for their platform lowering aging people’s cost of healthcare was a big one and the rest of their platform was mostly for seniors to benefit off of it

more gerontocracy horseshit so no surprise people switched

we need a party for the younger people at this point that would fight for living wages and universal healthcare for all not just Medicare expansion and lowering prescription drug costs lowering that will mostly just help seniors

https://democrats.org/news/dnc-releases-2024-party-platform-draft-outlining-historic-record-and-bold-agenda-for-president-biden-and-vice-president-harris-to-finish-the-job/

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40 points

This comment is proof a certain segment of liberals just can’t be happy.

“just Medicare expansion and lowering prescription drug costs” Just?! Oh you mean just two issues which voters have been demanding for over 2 decades? Just what democrats have tried to accomplish forever but Republicans have blocked?

Political parties are capable of having and achieving multiple policy goals at once. Jesus christ.

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-15 points

yes a certain segment of people want living wages and healthcare for all and a plan to take care of this planet we live on and to stop killing other people on this earth

not liberal ideas fucking common sense

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23 points

Me: hey, some sorely needed common sense reforms got passed. Rural hospitals in a majority of states have the desperately needed federal funds to stay open and people are less likely to die because they cant afford their life saving medicines, great right?

You: fucking idiot, not every problem on the planet has been solved! How dare you celebrate solving just one problem we’ve been fighting for a generation to get fixed!

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10 points

Living wages, healthcare for all, AND climate change are also part of the Harris Walz platform

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2 points

we need a party for the younger people at this point that would fight for living wages and universal healthcare for all

Bruh, younger people couldn’t even show up to vote for a Democrat primary candidate who was fighting for those things. If they can’t do that, they’re sure as hell not going to be able to make a party lmao. And I say that as someone who was one of the younger people in 2020 and voted for Sanders in the primary. Young people needed to get their shit together, and based on 2022, it looks like they finally are getting there.

Oh, and lowering prescription drug prices helps a lot of people who aren’t geriatric, you fucking ableist. It would’ve helped me save a thousand or so over the last few years, at least. And that’s not accounting for my surprise medical emergency early this year. If you aren’t going to get off your high horse, then get out.

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2 points
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I think maybe your writeup here would look a lot better without the animosity. I’m not sayin being uncivil is always wrong, but I’m not seeing you reflecting it, you’re making it. here, let’s take a look at my edit:

Younger people couldn’t even show up to vote for a Democrat primary candidate who was fighting for those things. If they can’t do that, they’re sure as hell not going to be able to make a party. And I say that as someone who was one of the younger people in 2020 and voted for Sanders in the primary. Young people needed to get their shit together, and based on 2022, it looks like they finally are getting there.

And, lowering prescription drug prices helps a lot of people who aren’t geriatric. It would’ve helped me save a thousand or so over the last few years, at least. And that’s not accounting for my surprise medical emergency early this year.

Nothing of value was lost. No point was missed. It is now more persuasive. I assume that’s why you made it right?

Again, I’m not claiming i don’t like dunkin on assholes as much as the next guy. I critically agree with your point that reduced drug costs op was shitting on help everyone, and that ops complaint sounds like whining on its face. Im saying maybe you got hotter than you needed to here.

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3 points

Y’know, I don’t disagree. I let myself get a bit too heated.

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2 points

Yes, fuck the seniors dude.

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43 points
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I mean helping seniors is important too. 1/3 have income below 200% of the poverty level, and the average SSI is $600/month.

But yeah, universal healthcare is a no-brainer.

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19 points

Plus, 100% of younger Americans who live long enough will be seniors eventually

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-6 points
-1 points

Left-Center? The independent is a neoliberal tabloid owned by a Russian oligarch and former KGB agent.

What a fucking joke.

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4 points
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You’re referring to this guy? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evgeny_Lebedev

It seems you’re confusing him and his father: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Lebedev

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6 points

Didn’t you know? Everyone that isn’t a foaming at the mouth Nazi is somehow left wing these days.

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-10 points

This isn’t the flex Liberals think it is. Boomers are still boomers.

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24 points

Idk man, I think it’s risky engaging in this kind of essentialism. Votes are votes and, when the alternative is Trump, I’ll take progress over perfection.

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0 points

And if we keep voting in politicians who are only slightly better than politicians that continue to get worse, how will that improve anything?

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4 points

If we allow literal fascists into office who have floated the idea of killing liberals, how will that improve anything?

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2 points

This is a great argument if you understand nothing about how elections work.

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1 point

💯 No doubt. They’re merely pointing out that though the empirical winds of ignorance are currently blowing in our beneficial direction, it’s still not a good idea to pee into it. Their change is not rooted in a newfound sense of humanity, empathy, or understanding. It’s just the entitled temper tantrum du jour. They can still turn on the there-are-two-kinds-of-[nonwhite]-people heel midstream and now you’re just peeing on yourself.

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0 points

Unsure what that even means. That generation did a lot to kickstart a great many good things.

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2 points

If you’ve somehow missed the nonstop “Boomers are bad” memes for the last 10 or so years I’m jealous

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0 points

I haven’t. I’d still like someone to explain how boomers are somehow a unique “generation” that is any different from prior generations that had older people start vying for more conservative options as they get older.

By the way, especially based on recent economic data, I bet Gen Y and Gen Z might even be worse as they get older. Might take a bit to see it show up, though. I’d like things to be otherwise, but I have yet to see credible reason to believe they will be…

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9 points
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I like the idea of not having to hear trumps mouth. Short term win. What’s bugging me is these articles together though, headline after headline proclaiming victory at getting Republican votes. Are there headlines championing how many leftists have come back since Harris’ candidacy?

Maybe I’m missing them. But what i mean is… It seems like with every article they’re showing what they want, that this is what they’re planning, that pulling in right wing voters is the goal. This raises concerns, again, of the Democratic party’s ratcheting-right.

Ya get what I’m saying? I’m uncomfortable with how happy the dnc is to dismiss the left of their big tent and embrace the right. If they continue this process, only this process, the platform they show their constituents will move right to reflect their voting body (hypothetically lol).

Like that’s the best case scenario of this trend. And where that leads is away from leftists. Im not going to ratchet right, my legs are churning leftward, and me n folks like me are clinging on with our fingertips to a party that appears to want to be the nuGOP. How can a party acting like that currently respond to us, its current members?

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2 points
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The only solution is for all of us to start voting for an actually leftist 3rd party, forcing Democrats to come to us if they want our votes. That’s exactly how the Tea Party took over Republicans.

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2 points

I think it’s mainly just conventional thinking showing up: there’s an assumption that everyone that is going to vote will vote, therefore if team A is behind team B, the only way team A can win is if they take votes from team B.

I hear my colleagues speak like this all the time (and they’re quite educated and intelligent). I don’t think it’s the media trying to paint a picture where the left needs to be more right/center, I just think they’re writing articles in terms that their audience understands (or at least understands well enough to be able to sum up in a headline to get that valuable click for advertising)

Obviously our election numbers are more complex than that. You can convince eligible voters that werent going to show up to actually show instead. Convincing the other side to stay home is another effective method. Passing legislation that prevents the other side from showing up is even more effective, which is why we see a lot of voter suppression things going on.

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4 points

To be honest, there is some hope in Harris and this election, even if her platform could move much further to the left. If Trump gets whacked electorally, he might make the GOP implode, and there might be a slight chance of a swing over where the next major challenger of the Dem status quo would be one from the left.

But for that to happen, the Reps and Trump must be fucked up beyond recognition this election.

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149 points

How about that. Harris moves to the left on domestic economic issues, and boomers switch to her. Even as prominent Republicans call her a commie.

Conventional “wisdom” within the centrist wing of the party is that we have to move to the right because boomers will flee in panic if we dare move to the left. Turns out, centrists have been full of shit this entire time. We’ve wasted so many years moving to the right for a lie. What else are centrists full of shit about?

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71 points
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Harris moves to the left on domestic economic issues, and boomers switch to her.

You might be making a classical correlation is not causation mistake here. There are a lot of separate reasons to prefer Harris over Trump.

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16 points

Where were you for the past few decades when centrists were gleefully announcing that all wins are because they moved to the right, and any losses are because they were too far to the left?

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24 points

Here in Europe, where we are not burdened by two-party systems :-|

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5 points

That one 100% is. They post regularly around here claiming that their protests are the reason Biden step down. Not the hulking disaster that was his debate performance. For 6 months protestors screamed at the president and not the congress that was responsible. With no result. Well detached from reality.

It’s depressing that so many with that mentality exist. Or at least are so loud. The myopic focus on the president who doesn’t authorize Aid or fund Aid to foreign governments. Has led to real losses for those of us that want to see Israel held accountable for their genocide. A number of National Congress people who are profile signed have lost their positions. Effectively being replaced by much more pro-israel people. And all this time of After ignoring Senate and House races. Not Fielding and supporting better candidates to take part of the body that actually could fix this. There’s still threatening to hurt the few who remain by threatening to take away the party’s control of another branch of government. They still haven’t realized that holding yourself hostage leaves you with no Leverage realistically.

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-3 points
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That one 100% is. They post regularly around here claiming that their protests are the reason Biden step down. Not the hulking disaster that was his debate performance. For 6 months protestors screamed at the president and not the congress that was responsible. With no result. Well detached from reality.

It’s depressing that so many with that mentality exist.

The mentality that protests are effective?

I could as easily voice my sadness that mentalities like yours are so prevalent. How do you believe politics work? Do politics happen in tv and the ballot box only? Do you claim the protests had no effect at all? Even if that were true your words have the effect of dismissing direct action, deriding that type of participation in politics. What good purpose do these words serve?

Finally, your… outrageous dismissal of bidens role in the genocide “those people” have been “screaming about” is… Well i’m not going there. If youve come to that conclusion somehow it ain’t gone be me what changes it.

How can it be that you spent energy remembering ensign_crabs name but not enough to understand a thing theyve posted? If you’re going to ad hominem, then a cultered commenter demands you provide more evidence than your fee-feez.

Write less, pardner. You don’t see enough to say anything useful, and certainly not enough to cast stones.

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-8 points

Oh good. My stalker is here.

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20 points

Literally everything.

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23 points

What aren’t they full of shit about?

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42 points
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What else are centrists full of shit about?

They’re full of shit about being “centrist”. Every word uttered by a conservative is deception or manipulation. Every word.

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10 points

what.

No, WAT.

… I … they …

there’s … how the

Am I fucking dreaming?

Did I fucking DIE on the morning of July 21st 2024 and ALL of this has been nothing but a manic hallucination as all my neurons fire off for one last time?

what i mean is, i honestly thought the boomers were beyond help???

I could have SWORN they stopped giving a shit about anything but enriching themselves and fucking over their kids and grandkids and great grandkids just for the sake of their own sick amusement an entire decade ago.

I am legitimately astonished that there’s a scrap of decency left in them to even COMPREHEND supporting anything but absolutely the worst of all available wrong decisions.

there’s actually some part of me that wonders if kamala actually winning the support of THEM could actually be some kind of red flag… O_o; I’m not going to entertain that part or cultivate it, i’m going to starve it into atrophy now that i’ve expressed and confronted the thought, but still, this is such a shock that it was actually there.

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0 points

Generations are mostly a fiction anyway.

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26 points

I mean, or it’s just true that no group is a monolith and that even the misguided can change course. It’s a good thing that was never impossible.

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1 point

THIS

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3 points

I give a lot of this to Trump not performing well on stage. He was always rambling, but now it’s not even on topic.

And it used to kinda “hopeful” rambling if that makes any sense, now it’s just sad rambling.

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18 points

Republicans are coming for their old people benefits. They want to gut Social Security and Medicare. Any old person that has a scrap of intelligence hearing that is simply following their own self-interest to vote Democrat. Also helps that most young people in their lives are probably talking about Harris positively. We’ll see if that pans out at the polls.

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6 points

You paint with a broad brush. The numbers are around 50%.

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3 points

50% is incredibly good for Democrats. Boomers and Gen X are about 50/50. Millennials are skewed left, as are Gen Z. And millennials are in their late 20s-30s. They’re a more reliable voting bloc now.

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