President Joe Biden’s decision to exit the 2024 presidential race came after weeks of public criticism regarding his age, which appeared to be a concern for younger voters on both sides of the political divide.
A July NPR/PBS News/Marist poll found that almost two-thirds of Americans believe Biden doesn’t have the “mental fitness” needed to be president. Despite that, Biden had gained a percentage point in the poll since the debate.
Henry Mielarczyk, a Bard College student and member of the Morris County Democratic Committee in New Jersey, described Biden’s age as his “biggest weakness” but also believes age to be an issue for former President Donald Trump, who is 78.
“I think that Biden’s age was for sure his biggest weakness, because otherwise, he’s probably the greatest president that I’ve lived through and that my parents have lived to see,” Mielarczyk told VOA. “I think that Trump’s age is certainly a factor as well. He stumbles over his words in pretty weird ways and goes on odd rants when he’s off script.”
William Howell, professor of political science at the University of Chicago, said concerns about age will now be “a weight that’s going to fall squarely on the Republican Party.”
“A new Democratic nominee doesn’t have some of the liabilities that Biden has. Most importantly, won’t be running at the age of 81 years old, and suddenly the Democratic nominee’s biggest liability is going to be turned on Trump,” he told VOA.
Utkarsh Jain, UC Berkeley student and treasurer of Berkeley College Republicans, said Biden’s age wouldn’t have been an issue if he had been able to demonstrate that he was cognitively up to the job.
“When you decline so rapidly since 2020, to the point where now you’re even showing that on the debate stage, and now your own party’s calling for you to step down, that shows us that at the end of the day, we were right on the right,” he told VOA.
“As long as they can lead and do the right thing, and they can show that through their health and their cognitive ability, I have no problem with it, and I think President Trump has been able to demonstrate that, quite frankly,” Jain said.
Mielarczyk thinks Vice President Kamala Harris, who was endorsed by Biden shortly after his announcement, would be best suited as the Democratic nominee and that younger voters can rally behind her.
“Kamala Harris is younger and energetic, and I think presents a decently progressive vision for the country, but also a vision that is palatable for all Americans, which is the job of the president,” he said.
The Harris campaign says that it has received more than $100 million in donations since Biden announced he was stepping aside, with a record $81 million raised in 24 hours. The campaign has begun efforts to appeal to younger voters, creating memes and participating in internet trends on apps such as TikTok. She has also obtained celebrity endorsements from Charli XCX, John Legend and George Clooney, to name a few.
University of Chicago’s Howell says that instead of Democratic officials lining up to support Harris so soon after Biden’s announcement, it would serve the party well to explore multiple options.
“To lift up a variety of visions would be good for the party,” he said. “That would service not just the Democratic nominee’s chances in November, but the health and well-being of the party itself over the longer term.”
Jain believes he is seeing many young men shift toward the Republican Party as the election season goes on, with Trump appealing to them.
“A lot of young men [are] drifting towards Trump because he is the embodiment of what they want. They want to be successful like him,” he said.
A June Pew Research study revealed that about 40% of men under 50 who support Trump believe that women’s societal gains come at the cost of men.
Mielarczyk thinks Democrats are united in their desire to defeat Trump, and that includes young people.
“I think that if anything is the message, it’s that young people are strategic enough to make their voices heard, and we’re going to be a part of this exciting coalition that is going to save our democracy,” he said.
With more than 40 million members of Gen-Z eligible to vote in the 2024 presidential election, this demographic has the potential to influence who sits in the Oval Office come 2025.
