Common Ground for America's Future: The Opinions of AARP Members in Tennessee About National Election Issues in 2006

More people age 50 and older register and vote than those younger, especially in midterm Congressional and state elections. In anticipation of the upcoming November elections, this June 2006 telephone survey of 400 randomly selected Tennessee AARP members about their opinions regarding national issues found majorities of members – including Republicans, Democrats and Independents – supporting policy positions AARP considers important.

Of those surveyed...

• 79 percent oppose using Social Security taxes to fund private accounts (71 percent would be unlikely to vote for House or Senate candidates favoring private accounts)
  
  
• 66 percent would support a Social Security plan that provides guaranteed benefits to future generations by balancing additional contributions from higher income workers with modest reductions in future benefits
  
  
• 89 percent support allowing Medicare to use its bargaining power to negotiate lower prices for prescription drugs
  
  
• 61 percent oppose changing the traditional Medicare program by imposing an annual limit on federal Medicare spending

Telephone surveys of 400 randomly selected AARP members in Tennessee and 1,000 randomly selected AARP members across the country were conducted for AARP by Woelfel Research, Inc. during June 2006. Further information about the surveys may be obtained by contacting the report's author, Terri Guengerich, at 202-434-6306. (42 pages)