As an older voter, Marcia Kaiser, 74, may be worried about things like handling her money and health care. However, she is also very focused on other problems this election season, such as climate change and women’s rights.
It’s important to her that people have power over their bodies this year, says the retired teacher and grandmother. She said, “You don’t have a life if you don’t have control over your body.” “That’s your body, and that’s your right.” “Men or women.”
Kaiser does, of course, think about other things. The weather makes her worry about what will happen to her grandkids in the future. She also thinks about plans for end-of-life care and how people can pay for it without putting too much stress on their families to help. She said that these issues are being “pushed out by women’s rights,” which made her angry because it was so clear. That’s not worth fighting over.
A lot of older voters put Social Security and Medicare at the top of their list of problems because they depend on these programs to pay their bills and cover their medical costs.
A June AARP poll of 44 competitive congressional districts found that people 50 and older were mostly concerned about money. Eight out of ten people said that Social Security was important or very important. Seventy-three percent said the same thing about Medicare, and 67 percent were afraid about older people living alone at home. Most people also said that the high prices of prescription drugs, housing, and utilities were very important to them.
But there’s something that the polls haven’t shown, and it has to do with things other than money. Many older voters take their right to vote very seriously every time there is an election. They are thinking about their families and the next generation and what their vote might mean for the future.
One thing that 72-year-old Pam Karr does is talk to younger people. She and some friends made a TikTok about reproductive rights. In her spare time, she writes letters to young and idle voters in Pennsylvania that are not political in nature and share her thoughts on voting. She said, “I’ve been involved in politics all my life.” “I’m not going to stop now.”
Karr says that the right to have children is also one of her main worries. “I grew up in a time when people could not have abortions and they died,” she said. “I remember when abortion became legal in New York state. I don’t remember how many people came to my mom’s house because she knew people in the Midwest.” She also said that the candidates should talk about their plans for Medicare and other services and perks for seniors.
Your right to vote as an older person
Over the years, voters aged 65 and up have been an important group for candidates, in part because they are likely to cast a ticket.
The Pew Research Center says that in 2019, 24% of U.S. voters were 65 years or older, 28% were 50 to 64 years old, 31% were 30 to 49 years old, and 17% were between the ages of 18 and 29. In 1996, only 19%, 21%, 42%, and 16% of votes were 18 or older. Now, most voters are 18 or older.
Even during general elections, they still vote the same way. Another Pew Research Center study found that more than a third of voters in the 2022 midterms were 65 or older. That’s compared to 30% who were between 50 and 64 years old, 26% who were between 30 and 49 years old, and 10% who were 18 to 29 years old. The pattern was the same in 2018: 31% were 65 years or older, while 29%, 30%, and 11% of the vote came from younger voters.
Richard Fiesta, executive director of the Alliance for Retired Americans, said that older voters are more likely to send in their votes early. “That will happen a lot again this year,” he said. The Associated Press says that so far, more than 46 million voters across the country have turned in early votes for the 2024 general election. It is still not clear how the voters’ ages are distributed.
The campaigns for president, the House, or any other office know that people aged 50 and up are very important to their success, according to John Hishta, senior vice president of campaigns at AARP. “You can look at the past of the races that were most competitive.” It’s a done deal if they don’t get 50 or more votes.
How candidates are dealing with problems that affect seniors
The candidates for president have talked about important topics, but they could say more. They have talked about saving programs like Social Security and Medicare, but they haven’t talked about how to fix the problems with funding those programs.
“Once you say you need to fix the problem, people will ask you how you’re going to do it,” said Brian Graff, CEO of the American Retirement Association, a non-profit group that helps people plan for their retirement. “I don’t think either candidate really wants to take that on.” He also said that voters are worried about that because a lot of people want to make sure that Social Security will be there for them when they get older.
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris of the Democratic Party has talked up the work she and Vice President Joe Biden have done to improve Medicare, like lowering the prices of prescription drugs. In a statement earlier this month, Harris said, “Our administration has also reached unprecedented agreements with pharmaceutical companies to lower prices for the first 10 drugs selected for the Medicare price-negotiation program. These are 10 of the most widely used and expensive drugs that treat conditions ranging from cancer to diabetes.”
In his plan, Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump talked about protecting seniors, strengthening Social Security and Medicare, encouraging active and healthy living, and making the economy stronger. Harris talked about improving Medicare and Social Security on her campaign website. She also talked about healthcare and long-term care.
Being a caregiver will always be a touchy subject, according to Hishta of AARP. “One in three older voters also care for someone else,” Hishta said. “That’s something that more and more people are talking about.” It’s a very private matter.”
At a recent rally in New York, Trump said that he would give a tax credit to family caregivers. He also said that protecting elder care for seniors was one of the most important problems on his platform. Harris also said at a campaign event that she would help family caregivers and their loved ones by expanding Medicare to include more in-home health care for seniors.
What more people over 50 need and want
Focusing on benefit programs for older Americans would be helpful, along with finding a real solution to Social Security’s problems with being insolvent, said Cindy Hounsell, head of the non-profit Women’s Institute for a Secure Retirement.
“I always think about Meals on Wheels,” she said, adding that in some places there is a line to get those services. The Older Americans Act has been around for 50 years and helps fund programs for adults. It needs to be renewed every three years. “People worry about whether that will last, depending on who wins,” Hounsell said.
For older voters to support the candidates, they will need to do more than just talk about the economic problems those people face. They will have to think about the problems that could also affect their children and grandchildren.
Senior Diane Fish, 78, said, “I just can’t see any president letting Social Security go off the rails.” “Too many people care about it.”
Going against Roe v. Wade, on the other hand, “that’s an issue,” Fish said. “A lot of my friends are going through the same thing I am.” “All of them care about their kids and grandkids,” she said. That’s why it’s important for older people to know how their kids and grandkids would do.
