Vice President Kamala Harris has run a near-perfect campaign ever since her historic rise to the top of the Democratic Party. But she can and must do a better job of convincing older people to vote for her.
Voters 65 and older, once a reliable demographic of the Democratic Party's electoral coalition, have trended toward Republicans since 2000. The Harris-Waltz campaign ticket offers a great opportunity to win back these voters. Even if older voters do not participate in the Democratic presidential ticket, there is a good chance that simply reducing the margin of loss could determine the outcome of the election.
We call older voters “constant voters.” Because it is no exaggeration to say that they are always voting. They have a disproportionately high turnout and include in seven battleground states: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
In 2020, Older voters had Voter turnout was 71.9 percent, compared to an overall turnout of 67 percent. In Arizona and Georgia, voting rates among older adults were 20 percentage points higher and 17 percentage points higher, respectively.
In 2020, the aging of the electorate Those aged 65 and over accounted for 22% of all eligible voters. Voters aged 50 and over accounted for more than half of all eligible voters.
Older voters will continue to make up a disproportionate share of the 2024 electorate. Even small changes in voting behavior can have large effects in key states.
The Democratic Party should win over this age group. They align themselves with the vast majority of older voters as the founders and protectors of Social Security and Medicare, essential issues vital to seniors.
Nevertheless, the Harris-Waltz ticket is unpopular among older voters. of According to the latest opinion poll, The ticket lost voters 65 and older by 7 percentage points. Before withdrawing from the race, President Biden won this segment by a 3-point margin.
Democrats are doing a great job of letting voters know that the Biden-Harris administration is lowering drug prices, including by giving Medicare the right to negotiate prescription drug prices. However, Social Security is a different story.
As with Medicare, Democrats are aligned with the American people on this issue. Poll after poll shows that an overwhelming majority of Americans do not want the benefits they earn to be cut. They overwhelmingly support the Harris-Waltz proposal, which would require everyone earning more than $400,000 to pay their fair share.
That's the problem recent votes It shows that the American people do not understand the position of the parties concerned. And Harris-Waltz's campaign has yet to run an ad that makes that contrast clear.
Mr. Trump is deftly trying to fill that void. his campaign is mail flyer For families in battleground states flood the radio waves Advertisements on TV and radio touted that he would protect Social Security while illegal immigrants were stealing it.
That claim is an easy lie to answer. By law, undocumented workers are prohibited from receiving social security benefits, even if they are documented and proven to have made contributions. And, like all workers, documented immigrants must work and contribute for years to receive a penny of Social Security (at least 40% to receive even a small retirement benefit). quarterly, or 10 years).
Furthermore, President Trump's record shows that he is not a champion of Social Security. As president, he proposed cutting Social Security in every budget. Before he ran for president, advocated He denigrated the privatization of Social Security as a “pyramid scheme” and supported raising the retirement age. And the architects of Project 2025 came firing for Social Security for decades.
Given the amount of money the Harris Waltz team is raising and how important this voting bloc is, the campaign has the resources to run multiple ads on Social Security. Some may think that it is not possible to court both young and old people, but this is incorrect. Despite Republican efforts to convince elites that younger generations resent the benefits older people receive, this is Washingtonian at its worst.
Americans are part of an intergenerational family. It's no better for grandparents if their grandchildren are financially unstable. And if grandparents live in poverty, that doesn't mean their grandchildren will be better off. Everyone should be able to count on the benefits they receive now and in the future.
And every time one voter switches from Trump to Harris, it affects two new voters. Campaigns should recruit new voters. But it takes just as much, if not more, effort to consistently persuade voters to vote Democratic.
Harris and Waltz are an inspiration to us all, reminding us that we have more in common than what divides us. One manifestation of our collective interest is a social security system in which we all share the risks and all benefit.
The Harris-Waltz campaign needs to let voters know through ads and mailers that it is Democrats who will protect, strengthen, and expand the hugely popular and successful Social Security system.
Nancy J. Altman is president of Social Security Works and William J. Arnone He is Chief Executive Officer Emeritus of the American Social Insurance Association.
