A recent poll in the New York Times is suggesting that American voters are not as stupid as many people think. In fact, they believe that most voters think other voters are idiots for voting the way they do. Some colleges have conducted polls and even done research on this concept: Are people stupid when it comes to politics? The answer is more than likely. When asked where candidates stand on certain issues most people get it wrong. Many didn’t know what Obama stood for, or even McCain. Does this explain why the democrats always draw young naïve voters? Probably.
When I was younger it seemed that 90% of the people I knew either later in high school or in college backed a democrat for office. When I confronted them on issues as far as where does he stand on point A or point B, they couldn’t answer me. So then, naturally I asked them, why are you voting for him then? The girls response? Oh he’s cute! The guys response, well, we’re not headed in the right direction, I want to vote for the other guy. For ‘change’ did you say? Maybe Obama is talked to the youngsters before preparing his campaign message.
Many Americans would probably tell you that they vote for the party they are registered. Many go to the polls and hit the all button on the ballots so that they can get out of there faster. Does that make them stupid? Certainly not, they are voting the party. Candidates are betting on what has been called “the stupid vote.” This is why Obama has done so well. Stupid may be a strong word for this, as uninformed would probably be more P.C.
Demographically, democrats receive votes from lower income individuals. Where as republicans get more votes from people with a higher income. Does that mean that people who don’t make as much money are democrats and thus are stupid? And those ‘rich republicans’ Hillary refers to smarter than the lower income voter? Nope! This is just how it works. Although many polls have suggested that most lower income voters do not follow politics as much as the higher income voter. Thus being less informed on where the candidate stands on certain issues. This is why many democrats court this demographic by promising them the world but with no intention to deliver it.
As I mentioned above age also plays a factor in where the vote goes. A college survey revealed that the majority of young people vote democrat, but are registered as independent. When asked if they follow issues closely, most said not really, or not very often. Not enough time with all those keggers to go to.
Another question posed to voters who were older than 30 was if they switched parties or picked a party to join. If the answer was yes, then they had to state what party they switched to etc. A surprise here, almost 50% said they either switched to the GOP or joined the GOP, less than 40% said they became democrats and the rest said they were still independent.
What does this mean? It could mean that kids are learning from liberals in college and once they depart college and work in the ‘real world’ they discover that these liberal teachings are not all that there is. Or it could mean that they meet and get married to someone who is not a liberal. Or it could mean that as you get older your values change to a bit more conservative as opposed to the reckless liberal you were in college. Or it could mean that the bong resin has finally cleared their brains and they have corrected their way of thinking. Are we as a nation becoming more conservative? It appears so, but these conservatives are not voting republican. This is a problem.
Is the stupid vote real? The New York Times doesn’t think so. But I believe it is out there and democrats have to seize it (as usual) if they plan on winning in November. What Republicans need to do is make sure none of their ‘smart votes’ go to the left or a 3rd party. So be prepared to be called stupid regardless of who you vote for.