Following up with my earlier post about the Obama youth movement, here’s a telling graphic from Andrew Gelman. Notice the massive drop-off in youth support for the Republican party. The GOP base has always been older- but the y/y change is very telling. I wonder if there will be a greater emphasis on trying to win back some of these youth votes, in the future. Barring a massive change in party ideology, this seems unlikely considering the Republican’s social conservatism is diametrically-opposed with the beliefs of most youth (e.g. young voters believe 2 to 1 in gay rights). It’d be difficult to capture young voters without losing the “traditional base.” Although, perhaps that’s exactly what this party needs…
