Swingvote

Active Grannies: the New Soccer Moms?
In the publication Politico on Tuesday, Democratic strategist Mark Penn wrote about the enormous importance of the senior vote in the race for president, especially in states like Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Penn declares that key swing voters in this election may be “active grannies” - empty-nesters who have found a new freedom in their lives after their kids have left, and who look at the world very differently than do their kids graduating college. Top issues in these “older grannies’” lives include: making income after the age of 65, fighting age discrimination, getting plugged into technology, having access to the latest medical treatments and good doctors through Medicare, and dealing with their families’ being torn apart by career-driven migration. In the coming months, active grannies are expected to be major viewers of cable television, the conventions and the debates. Fifteen percent of seniors surveyed in a recent poll were undecided, and 4 to 5% of undecided senior voters could be enough to tip the election.