Why Americans really hate Washington's elderly politicians

When American voters complain about the gerontocracy that runs this country, they are not upset specifically about advanced age, but what that advanced age represents — at least, according to one conservative polling expert.

“Partly this is because voters tend to view older politicians as part of the same sclerotic, desiccated establishment that partisans of the left and right have both turned against,” wrote The Bulwark’s Sarah Longwell on Tuesday. “The thinking goes that if you've been around Washington for decades, you're probably more responsive to donor demands, and not looking out for your constituents.”

Longwell proceeded to quote various voters whose comments reinforced her observation. One voter, Carlos, told her that "I don't know how many 80-year-olds have very fresh, new, innovative, we're-gonna-make-the-world-a-better-place ideas.” Similarly Cyndi, a Floridian who voted for Trump in 2024, said that "I am so tired of having people to pick from that are my parents' age. I have this theory that when you can draw Social Security, you shouldn't be able to run for office anymore.”

Likewise Sherrecia, a Georgian who switched from supporting Joe Biden in 2020 to Trump in 2024, told Longwell that "I think when you tell people that they can run unlimited amounts of time, you give them permission to stop focusing on you and start focusing on themselves.” Another Trump 2024 voter, Jacine, told Longwell that “I think all of them are out of whack because they're too old, and greed has taken over, and they have piled up a lot of money within themselves, and they're really out of touch with the American people.”

Michelle, a 2024 Trump voter, told Longwell that "I feel like so much of politics is people that are 70-plus years old and are kind of out of touch maybe with what young families are going through.”

Longwell pointed out that “a recent NPR/Marist poll back in May found that 80 percent of voters support upper age limits to run for office. Nearly 90 percent want term limits.”

Further reinforcing her insight about why voters are rebelling against the gerontocracy, Longwell pointed out that elderly politicians who are perceived as anti-establishment — regardless of whether they are on the left or the right — tend to be more popular. This includes a pair of octogenarians, Trump and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT).

“The obvious counter-examples to this anti-gerontocracy phenomenon are Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump, both men in their 80s who are extremely popular with big chunks of their respective parties,” Longwell wrote. “However, both men built their political brands by running against the establishments of their own parties and introducing new political paradigms that can scramble traditional party alignment. And while both show visible signs of their age, they still manage to be omnipresent in the discourse.”

This is not to say that Trump’s age isn’t also a factor in terms of his health and overall fitness for office. When Trump turned 80 in June, Rahm Emanuel, President Barack Obama’s chief of staff and a top aide to President Bill Clinton, told The New York Times that “somebody at 80 years old just doesn’t have the physical stamina, the mental stamina for that office. It ages you in a way that no other stress in your life does.” Also in June independent reporter Rhian Lubin wrote that Trump is "exhibiting visible symptoms typical for an octogenarian, including bruising on his hands, swollen ankles and legs and appearing to nod off during meetings and high-profile events."

Lubin added, "Medical experts warn, though, that it's not so much these obvious symptoms and his age that Americans should be most concerned about, but the conduct and behavior on display during his second presidency.”