Voters over age 50 reliably show up to the polls in large numbers but sometimes candidates overlook them.

In 2020, 138,000 South Dakotans ages 45-64 voted, according to data from the research organization KFF, which is 66% of the age group, compared to only 45% of voters in their mid-20s to mid-30s.

Erik Gaikowksi, state director for AARP South Dakota, said because older voters are reliable, candidates do not always address issues they care about. Topics important this year include financial security, Social Security, Medicare and caregiving. Gaikowski noted about 80,000 South Dakotans are caregivers for family members.

"They're providing care and support for those loved ones," Gaikowksi pointed out. "Which also entails financial costs, stress, balancing their own job and families' needs between loved ones that they're caring for, but then also for themselves."

According to an AARP poll, 87% of women across the U.S. support paid family leave benefits for caregivers. Gaikowski noted support is especially important for caregivers in rural places, who often take on even more responsibilities.

Another big concern for older voters is whether they have enough money for retirement. A set of policy priorities released Monday by Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign said she would strengthen Social Security and Medicare by, as the campaign put it, "making millionaires and billionaires pay their fair share in taxes." Former President Donald Trump has promised to protect both but has not presented a detailed plan.

Gaikowski emphasized it is important for older voters to be heard by candidates on the issues.

"Making them understand how their day-to-day lives are impacted by the decisions that are happening, whether that's in Pierre or in D.C.," Gaikowski urged.

He added information on South Dakota polling locations, deadlines and absentee ballots is available online from AARP South Dakota.

As Hurricane Milton makes landfall and Florida recovers from Hurricane Helene's devastation, voting rights groups have filed a legal challenge to reopen the state's registration period, which ended on Monday.

Larry Hannan, communications director with State Voices Florida, expressed his support for the efforts to give Floridians more time to register amid the chaos caused by back-to-back natural disasters.

"Technically, the deadline was Monday, but I would be surprised if anyone or very many people thought 'oh I need to go out and register to vote' when they were trying to pack up their car and trying to get to somewhere else, not knowing if when they came back their house would be livable," he said.

Voting rights groups, including the Southern Poverty Law Center, League of Women Voters of Florida, and the NAACP Florida State Conference, filed suit claiming the state's refusal to extend the voter registration deadline disenfranchised many Floridians. Before Hurricane Milton, Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order allowing election changes in 10 counties impacted by Hurricane Helene, permitting adjustments to early voting sites and creating consolidated voting centers.

Hannan said that while it may take some effort on the state's part, Florida officials should follow South Carolina's example and extend the voter registration deadline as people recover.

"This is an issue of fairness, and I think it impacts all voters of Florida. This is not a liberal or conservative issue," he continued. "You know, people coming into Florida or people turning 18 can be liberal or conservative."

Florida is no stranger to adjusting election procedures after major storms. The state granted flexibility to election officials, allowing the consolidation of polling places following Hurricane Ian in Southwest Florida in 2022 and Hurricane Michael in Northwest Florida in 2018.


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Now that the deadline to register to vote in Arizona has passed, voting-rights advocates are switching their focus to voter education.

Today, the League of Women Voters of Arizona holds a voter empowerment event at Mesa Community College's Kirk Student Center in honor of National Voter Education Week. The group will distribute voting materials, details on this year's ballot initiatives and information on the "One Person, One Vote" campaign, which aims to abolish the Electoral College.

Pinny Sheoran, president of the League of Women Voters of Arizona, said voters, especially younger voters, are not only energized, but what she calls "absolutely alert" to what is at stake in this election.

"They have courage, they know it is their future, and we are here to make sure we give them the wind beneath their sails to help them move this forward," she said.

Sheoran encourages all Arizona voters to do their homework and research not only candidates but the ballot propositions, too. And while Election Day isn't until November 5, early voting has already begun in the Grand Canyon State.

While Arizonans will weigh in and determine who will be the next president of the United States, Sheoran said it is crucial they also educate themselves on the down-ballot races for county and city positions that'll have a direct impact on their day-to-day lives.

Sheoran contends everything is at stake in this election, and wants younger voters to know they have the power to determine the future of the country. Despite a certain level of disillusionment among voters, more than 50% of registered voters between ages 18 and 29 voted in the 2020 race between Donald Trump and Joe Biden.

Sheoran is counting on that number to go up.

"If democracy dies in this election, then the work we do not only becomes harder, it may not become even possible, and that is a reality everybody needs to wake up to," she continued.

Sheoran added she doesn't want any voters, especially first-time voters, to experience unnecessary barriers in making their voices heard. A survey from Arizona State University finds two out of three Gen Z registered voters in Arizona say they plan to vote in this year's election.

It is the first day of early voting in Arizona and both presidential hopefuls will be making their cases to voters.

Gov. Tim Walz, DFL-Minn., the Democratic candidate for vice president, will attend events in the Phoenix area today, including a meeting with tribal leaders of the Gila River Indian Community before making his way to Tucson. Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, DFL-Minn., the country's highest-ranking Native woman in executive office, said the Harris-Walz campaign knows the importance of Arizona's 11 electoral votes but also how decisive the Native vote can be.

"In 2020, we watched it come down to Arizona," Flanagan recounted. "I know how powerful the Native vote was in that election and I anticipate that the Native vote will turn up and turn out yet again."

Indigenous people account for about 6% of Arizona's population While Native voters have typically leaned Democratic, Republicans are also aiming to engage them.

Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, the GOP's vice presidential nominee, will hold a rally in Tucson today and early voters will begin casting their ballots in what's sizing up to be an extremely tight race.

Voters in precincts on the Navajo and Hopi reservations in northeastern Arizona cast about 60,000 ballots in 2020, compared to about 45,000 in 2016, according to The Associated Press. Flanagan called it "significant" and said she is encouraging all Arizonans to vote early.

"It's really powerful," Flanagan emphasized. "Turn up, you vote early and then, you can spend the rest of your time knocking on doors, calling people and having conversations with your friends and relatives about the power of their vote, especially in Arizona."

Vice President Kamala Harris is set to return to Arizona for the second time in two weeks, to speak at a campaign rally in Phoenix Thursday evening. Former President Donald Trump will also make his way back to the Grand Canyon State on Sunday for a rally in Prescott.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.


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