Al Gore was one of the last prominent Democrats to back Hillary Clinton this year, not officially doing so until he posted a three-part tweet on the first day of the Democratic National Convention in July, saying that he would vote for her and encouraging others to do so because the stakes are so high. Now, talks between Gore and Clinton aides to get the former vice president on the campaign trail have come to fruition.
CNN was the first to report Tuesday that Gore would be doing more than just voting for Clinton:
Gore’s task, according to various sources: persuading younger voters, especially those thinking of voting for a third party, of how important it is to support Clinton to combat climate change. Millennials—who are more liberal than older cohorts when it comes to some economic issues, and most social and environmental ones—are going to reshape American politics in the long run. But that’s a more distant future than the one just a month away.
Prying away those who are leaning toward a third-party vote may actually be easier than boosting the percentages of young voters who actually cast ballots this year. Historically, they make up the age cohort least likely to turn out at the polls, and many accounts have taken note that they are, as a whole, less enthusiastic about voting than the same cohort was when Barack Obama was the candidate.
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Julie Eilperin at The Washington Post reported late Tuesday:
The decision by Gore to plunge into the campaign during the final weeks shows the extent to which Democrats remain concerned that Clinton has yet to connect with many millennials, some of whom are backing third-party candidates this year. The former vice president, a climate activist, will speak about not just Clinton’s plan to address global warming, but also the idea that voting for an independent presidential candidate could deliver the White House to Republicans in the same way that Ralph Nader’s candidacy helped undermine his presidential bid in 2000. [...]
Wayne Skinner, a longtime Democratic advance staffer, hailed Gore’s decision to stump for Clinton on his Facebook page Monday night, writing: “Let’s get him to Florida ASAP! We are #StrongerTogether. No better validator and reminder that EVERY SINGLE vote counts and matters. #RememberBushVGore #Gore2000#Florida #RalphNader#SpoilerVote.”
Clinton certainly hasn’t connected with “many millennials,” but polls show near-majorities among millennials for her, a sharp contrast with older cohorts, who slightly favor Trump.
Shortly before the first presidential debate last month, a Bloomberg poll of a two-way contest conducted just before the debate showed 50 percent of under-35s backing Clinton, with 40 percent for Trump. And an NBC News/SurveyMonkey poll at the same time showed 49 percent of the millennial cohort of 18- to 29-year-olds backing her, with just 26 percent for Trump, 16 percent for Gary Johnson, and 7 percent for Jill Stein. Among those aged 30-44, about half of whom can be considered millennials, 49 percent backed Clinton, with 33 percent for Trump, 13 percent for Johnson, and 4 percent for Stein.
Clearly, there are ample numbers of millennials for Gore to try to edge away from third parties, and climate change has been a priority issue among millennials for some time. But it’s hard to know until he actually begins campaigning whether yet another elder from the Democratic establishment, even an icon among climate hawks, will click with them.