Trump loses seniors in early count A warning sign: politics

AP Photo/Alex Brandon

Former President Donald Trump follows vice president Kamala Harris with a surprising and crucial voting bloc in Pennsylvania, according to the first voting figures.

Politico reported Friday that “in Pennsylvania, where voters over 65 cast nearly half of early ballots, registered Democrats represent about 58 percent of votes cast by seniors, compared to 35 percent for Republicans. This is despite the fact that both parties have approximately the same number of registered voters aged 65 and over.”

Historically, older voters have been the most important Republican demographic in winning elections. Trump’s the total among voters over 65 in Pennsylvania in 2020, a state he lost, was just over 50 percent.

Politico called the trend a “warning sign” for Trump, but noted that Democrats are voting early in greater numbers than Republicans. The report notes that the “partisan gap is narrower than in 2020, when views on early voting were more partisan, and Republicans see that as a good sign. But the Republican Party is still counting on more of its older voters to show up on Election Day, while Democrats have more votes in the bank.” The article explains that the early voting numbers also match recent polls:

The data is consistent with polls in the state showing Trump losing support among older voters. According to a Fox News poll in Pennsylvania, Trump is trailing Harris by 5 percentage points among voters 65 and older, down from the month before, when he and Harris were tied among that demographic group.

During the summer, before he left the race, President Joe Biden Trump also led with older voters. “If current polls hold true, November’s election between two historically old candidates would upend long-held assumptions about how Americans vote.” reported Axios added in June: “Older Americans — perhaps driven by old-fashioned respect for institutions and distaste for Trump’s unorthodox style — are flocking to Biden, a series of recent polls show.”

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