The coronavirus crisis and the administration’s halting response to
it have cost President Donald Trump support from one of his most crucial
constituencies: America’s seniors.
For years, Republicans and Trump have relied on older Americans, the country’s largest voting bloc, to offset a huge advantage Democrats enjoy with younger voters. In critical states like Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Florida, all of which have large older populations, Trump’s advantage with older voters has been essential to his political success; in 2016, he won voters over the age of 65 by seven percentage points, according to national exit poll data.
But seniors are also the most vulnerable to the global pandemic, and the campaign’s internal polls, people familiar with the numbers said, show Trump’s support among voters over the age of 65 softening to a concerning degree, as he pushes to reopen the country’s economy at the expense of stopping a virus that puts them at the greatest risk.
A recent Morning Consult poll found that Trump’s approval rating on the handling of the coronavirus was lower with seniors than with any other group other than young voters. And former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, in recent polls held a 10-point advantage over Trump among voters who are 65 and older. A poll commissioned by the campaign showed a similar double-digit gap.
Read more: Anxious About the Virus, Older Voters Grow More Wary of Trump
For years, Republicans and Trump have relied on older Americans, the country’s largest voting bloc, to offset a huge advantage Democrats enjoy with younger voters. In critical states like Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Florida, all of which have large older populations, Trump’s advantage with older voters has been essential to his political success; in 2016, he won voters over the age of 65 by seven percentage points, according to national exit poll data.
But seniors are also the most vulnerable to the global pandemic, and the campaign’s internal polls, people familiar with the numbers said, show Trump’s support among voters over the age of 65 softening to a concerning degree, as he pushes to reopen the country’s economy at the expense of stopping a virus that puts them at the greatest risk.
A recent Morning Consult poll found that Trump’s approval rating on the handling of the coronavirus was lower with seniors than with any other group other than young voters. And former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, in recent polls held a 10-point advantage over Trump among voters who are 65 and older. A poll commissioned by the campaign showed a similar double-digit gap.
Read more: Anxious About the Virus, Older Voters Grow More Wary of Trump
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