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Hal's Column
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Saturday, October 04, 2008, 3:00 AM
Political leanings among young changing Election Day is one month away, and most major races, including U.S. president and N.C. governor, are considered close. This election could hinge on, among other things, the turnout of younger voters. Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama's success in energizing and registering young voters got me to thinking about the political expressions I've seen among young people over the years since I was one of them. It's obvious that political leanings, especially among young people, are cyclical. When I was a new voter, the issue of the day was the Vietnam War, and the threat of being drafted into that war energized millions of young American men, most of whom wanted nothing to do with that war. A few years before, an energetic young president had inspired American college students with the challenge to "ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." Kennedy's inaugural address launched a liberal trend in America, especially among idealistic young people. The Peace Corps, the Alliance for Progress, civil rights, easing of marijuana laws and other issues pushed America to the left and provided the machinery to create the Great Society, Medicare, Medicaid, the Voting Rights Act and other government programs. Although there were reactions to this trend, exemplified by Nixon's "Silent Majority" and the hard-hat disruptions of anti-war rallies, most young people remained solidly to the left of the political spectrum. It was not until the late 1980s that it had become clear that the political ground was shifting beneath the feet of the next generation of young Americans, who were coming of age after the Vietnam War, and during the era of Reagan optimism. I had noticed the trend already when Thad Beyle, a political science professor at UNC-Chapel Hill, mentioned it at a seminar for journalists. In his introductory N.C. politics classes, Beyle said, he made a habit of asking students to identify themselves as liberal, moderate or conservative. For years, the overwhelming majority of students had self-identified as liberal. But Beyle had seen a gradual change. More and more were identifying themselves as conservatives, influenced by Ronald Reagan and the conservative think tanks that were espousing lower taxes, less regulation and stronger defense. This was before conservative talk radio took off. Now, indications are that young people, inspired by another young presidential candidate, may be shifting back toward liberalism. Certainly, Barack Obama's success a month from now depends on turning out the millions of new voters his campaign has recruited to his cause. Polls indicate young people are more inclined to vote for Obama. Professor Beyle's poll of students in the last two semesters found 67 percent identifying themselves as liberal to moderate and 32 percent as moderate to conservative. The pendulum has shifted.
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