SENIOR JOURNAL.COM - Senior Citizens Information and News

Front Page    Search     Contact Us     Advertise in Senior Journal

E-mail this page to a friend!

Iraq Was Big Issue for Senior Citizen Voters, Says New Poll

Nov. 11, 2004 - A poll released yesterday indicates senior citizens 60 and over were beating to a different drummer than younger voters who went to the polls in the presidential election last week. For seniors Iraq was the top issue on their minds (22 percent) but for all voters in was moral values at the top (22 percent) and Iraq coming in fourth (15 percent).

Importance of Issues to Senior Voters Issue % Iraq 22 Moral Values 20 Terrorism 17 Economy 13 Health Care 11
Importance of Issues to All Voters Issue % Moral Values 22 Economy/Jobs 20 Terrorism 19 Iraq 15 Health Care 8 Taxes 5 Education 4

In the new poll, seniors said among the issues have the greatest effect on their vote that Iraq was on top, followed by moral values (20 percent), terrorism (17 percent), the economy (13 percent) and, surprisingly, health care was last (11 percent).

In exit polls conducted by CBS and CNN, moral values was the top issue, followed by economy/job (20 percent), terrorism (19 percent), Iraq (15 percent), health care (8 percent), taxes (5 percent) and education (4 percent).

The staggering difference was Iraq. It was the top concern for senior citizens but only fourth for all voters, which also had to include the opinions of the seniors.

The latest poll was conducted by Ayres, McHenry & Associates and released Nov. 10 by the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association. They were particularly trying to measure senior sentiment about health care and Medicare. An interesting finding about health care was the among Bush voters only five percent ranked it as a top issue, while among Kerry voters its was chosen by 17 percent.

Mr. Bush’s appeal to seniors, according to the exit polls, seemed to stem from his positions on social issues. Twenty one percent of voters over sixty named moral values as the issue that mattered most in their vote decision. This differs vastly from the new polling data with Iraq on top.

Mr. Bush’s stance on terrorism also appeared to appeal to seniors in the exit polls although there was no report specifically on Iraq. Nineteen percent of voters over sixty named terrorism as the most important issue to their electoral decision, while 55 percent said the Osama bin Laden video was very or somewhat important to their vote decision. Fifty-two percent of seniors said they felt safer from terrorism compared to four years ago. Fifty-eight percent trusted Mr. Bush as much or more than Kerry to handle terrorism

In the exit polling, health care was on the minds of seniors as well. 71 percent of voters 60 and over were very concerned about the cost of health care. Although only 12 percent of them said it was the issue that mattered the most in their vote choice, this was double the proportion of voters under forty-five who named it as a key factor.

The analysis of exit interviews by CBS and CNN from the presidential election indicated it was senior citizens that carried the re-election for President George W. Bush. It is yet to be seen in the early analysis, but they may have also been leaders in the voting surge.

Mr. Bush received support from 53 percent of voters 60 and over, compared to 46 percent for Kerry, according to the exit polls. The vote was slightly different for those 65 and older, with only 51 percent supporting Bush and 48 percent for Kerry.

In the last three elections, voters 60 and over have supported the Democratic nominee. Bill Clinton held a 12-point advantage over Mr. Bush’s father, and a 4-point advantage over Bob Dole. Al Gore received 51 percent of the senior vote to Mr. Bush’s 47 percent.

The support for Bush in this election by those 60 and over increased by six percentage points, and by four percentage points for those 65 plus.

Amazingly, says CBSNews.com political analyst Samuel J. Best, nearly all the key swing states broke according to seniors’ preferences. In Florida and Colorado, where Mr. Bush received support from a majority of seniors, he won. Conversely, in the battleground states of Pennsylvania and Minnesota, where Mr. Bush failed to secure a majority of seniors, he lost.

So, if it was the senior vote that carried the day for President Bush, Iraq may have been a larger issue than most pundits are suggesting. Although, the issue of moral values still looms large, with it being most important to all voters and second to seniors.

Click to More Senior News on the Front Page

Copyright: SeniorJournal.com