50+ Voters' Concerns Will Show Up on 2020 Ballots

Surveys among voters in presidential and senate battleground states show that voters 65+ could decide this year's election. Concerns about the coronavirus and their health overall are driving these voters away from their natural base. 

Despite extreme partisanship, the data show that protecting Social Security and Medicare, and lowering prescription drug prices transcend partisan politics.

All other issues in the news — vaccinations, racial tension, and the voting process — show deep partisan divisions. These surveys show that voters over 50 will be voting and earlier than ever — so candidates need to pay attention to them now if they want to win.

Methodology

AARP commissioned two polling teams to conduct telephone surveys with likely voters in 11 battleground states for the 2020 election. Respondents for all polls were registered likely voters age 18, however, most of the survey questions were asked only if the respondent was age 50 or older. Each state survey included interviews with at least 1,200 respondents.

Fabrizio Ward and Hart Research conducted polls August 30–September 5, 2020, focused on Senate races in Georgia, Maine, Iowa, Colorado, and Montana. Benenson Strategy Group and GS Strategy Group conducted polls August 30–September 8, 2020, focused primarily on the presidential race.

For more information, contact Kate Bridges at kbridges@aarp.org. For media inquiries, please contact media@aarp.org.

Suggested citation:

Bridges, Kate.  AARP Surveys of 2020 Battleground States. AARP Research: Washington, DC. https://doi.org/10.26419/res.00401.000