Elderly Voters: Most Likely to Vote, Most ignored in this Election

"They're focusing too much on the younger generation I think," said Judy Cuyle of Spencer New York.
Cuyle is a 63-year old resident and a registered voter. She plans to go to the polls this coming Tuesday to make her selection on the ballot but Cuyle is still on the fence.
"I was a registered Republican but changed to Democrat in Bush's first term," Cuyle says. "Now I'm not sure how I'll vote."

Like Cuyle, many over-sixty voters feel the economy is the most important factor in the upcoming election. With the recent nose dive on Wall Street, those close to retirement or already depending on Social Security are looking to the next President to do something to save the floundering U.S. economy.

"Neither [candidate] seems to know much about the economy," says Cuyle. "They're both out of touch with what it's like to live in the real world."

The trend in Obama's campaign trail, as noted in several major newspapers, is that a great number of his supporters are in the 18-21 age range.  Yet trends at the polls suggest that over 60 percent of those over sixty actually appear and fill out the ballot. The national average for the rest of the U.S. population is about ten percent lower. 

Dave Wilson, 67, agrees with Cuyle. 

"The main issue is the economy," he said. The Dryden resident has been a registered Republican in the past and is sticking by his party this election.

"I don't feel that [the candidates] are ignoring me," Wilson said.   

Above, Dave Wilson explains why he doesn't feel ignored.

Kristin Olson, 20, of Ithaca, hasn't voted in a Presidential election before. Yet she too has noticed an intense focus on younger voters as she has followed the election. 

"It seemed that Obama was doing it first. What else could McCain do except make some effort to vie for the same votes?", Olson said. 

Olson admits that several of her friends will not be participating in the election process, but most are.  A common misconception is that the Nixon-Kennedy election was the last to draw in young voters-- the reality is that this election will be the first that a major projected youth vote has occured.

Ignored or not, each individual has an equal opportunity to go to the polls this coming Tuesday (November 4) and have a say in who the next President of America will be.

Joy Kucinkas

In-depth Political Story

Picture Courtesy of the Washington Post