# I get your skewed poll right here **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 1, 2013, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855 "2013-06-01T11:36:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/121 "2013-06-03T11:55:53Z")
They will vote by similar percentages, maybe, but it does not appear that they will vote in as large numbers. They aren’t coming out to vote when Obama isn’t on the ballot. That implies that it’s about him, not about Republicans, and not some long term demographic shift. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/122 "2013-06-03T12:19:27Z")
The evidence does not support your contention: mid terms turn out is always lower than in Presidential election years and turn-out of youth in 2010 mid terms was on par with other mid terms as the 2008 and 2012 youth turn out was on par with historic norms. The outlier were the two cycles of lower than average youth turn out in Presidential elections in 2000 and 2004. Moreover of those youth voters who came out in 2010 they were much more Democratic leaning than in other cycles. Huge turn out is a myth; it is just historically normative. But the youth vote is more across the board Democratic than it has been for many decades. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/123 "2013-06-03T16:17:58Z")
[Turns out that young Republicans believe GOP economics caused the recession, the wealthy aren’t paying their fair share, the war on abortion and contraception needs to end, and the defense budget should be cut instead of social spending,](http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2013/06/03/2089881/gop-survey-of-young-people-reveals-they-support-progressive-policies/) and that the GOP’s failure to do these things is costing them their support. How’s that youthy-votey thing working out for ya, **adaher**? ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/124 "2013-06-03T16:50:04Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > That’s why we’ll give them a libertarian to cheer for, with any luck. A dead one? ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/125 "2013-06-03T17:31:14Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > And yet they govern in a majority of states. And many of those states have hardly any people in them, or are filled with dying old racists. It’s a useless statistic, and I’d say that even if they were mostly governed by Dems. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/126 "2013-06-03T17:44:30Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > [Turns out that young Republicans believe GOP economics caused the recession, the wealthy aren’t paying their fair share, the war on abortion and contraception needs to end, and the defense budget should be cut instead of social spending,](http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2013/06/03/2089881/gop-survey-of-young-people-reveals-they-support-progressive-policies/) and that the GOP’s failure to do these things is costing them their support. > > How’s that youthy-votey thing working out for ya, **adaher**? Young people generally, not young Republicans. The survey sample was registered voters aged 18-29. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/127 "2013-06-03T18:46:04Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > I’m seeing some serious denial in this thread. Maybe an antivirus scan will fix [that situation](http://xkcd.com/481/). ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/128 "2013-06-03T18:47:57Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > GWB excepted, the GOP has never been the warmonger party That one crazy actor excepted, Mrs. Lincoln found _Our American Cousin_ to be quite enjoyable. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/129 "2013-06-03T19:38:33Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > And many of those states have hardly any people in them, or are filled with dying old racists. It’s a useless statistic, and I’d say that even if they were mostly governed by Dems. It’s useless if you’re thinking of national popularity, true, but it’s useful as far as showing that Republicans can indeed govern. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/130 "2013-06-03T19:53:05Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > And many of those states have hardly any people in them, or are filled with dying old racists. Question 1) Are you a racist? Question 2) Are you old and dying? I’d love to see the reactions of people taking that poll… ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/131 "2013-06-03T21:59:29Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > ,yet here he is breaking his word. He did what now? Oh, shit. It’s happening. The apocolypse has started. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/132 "2013-06-04T00:03:17Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > A dead one? The only good libertarian… 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Algorithm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/algorithm/32/12204_2.png) [@Algorithm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algorithm)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/133 "2013-06-04T00:04:43Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > When you make predictions, you are usually going to be wrong. I’m not afraid to be wrong. Are you? Go ahead, make a prediction. Chimera has by inference. I predict that, even as elections continue to show how wrong your political thought processes are, you’ll continue to crow over some aspect of the results that you think vindicates you. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/134 "2013-06-04T04:45:05Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > … but it’s useful as far as showing that Republicans can indeed govern. Very misleading way to phrase the point. Better would be to write “some competent and sincere politicians have not yet left the Republican Party.” ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/135 "2013-06-04T11:10:25Z")
**adaher** I am not yet sure you get what the demographic argument is about. The GOP has functionally written off every other demographic than White Rural (maybe suburban) and White Rich and increasingly male of each as well. In a era when those demographics are shrinking. Now mind you that GOP core is still a big group, but when you lose the youth vote and the urban vote by such huge margins you have to bank on either winning your core by margins nearly as big or on the bet that turn out of other demographics will be poor by any historic measures. Specific to the youth vote is the additional contention that these youth voters will tend to mostly (not completely) stick with the Democratic Party as they age. Your point that that such can change is very valid but the party has structural issues at this part that makes it difficut for such to happen. And making those changes first requires them to accept that this is a problem. Your contention that there is evidence that such _is_ changing, or that the huge Democratic advantage in pretty much every other demographic, from youth votes. Yes Republicans can govern well and at state levels we see some good examples of that. Unfortunately those who do what it takes to govern well are often punished by the core at a national level for having done see. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855/136 "2013-06-04T17:14:33Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > It’s useless if you’re thinking of national popularity, true, but it’s useful as far as showing that Republicans can indeed govern. I think it actually shows no more than that Republicans can win elections. > [@adaher](#): > > I’m not afraid to be wrong. Damnit, you broke my understatement meter! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-get-your-skewed-poll-right-here/659855.md?page=6)