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Harvard poll: Young people oppose more troops in Afghanistan

E-mail|Link|Comments () December 3, 2009 10:14 AM

By Globe Staff

A national poll by the Harvard Institute of Politics found that two-thirds of young adults oppose President Obama's plan to send more troops to Afghanistan.

President Obama

The online survey also found that although 58 percent of young adults approve of Obama's job performance in general, a majority disapprove of his handling of the economy and health care. The poll of 2,087 people aged 18 to 29 shows fissures in a key demographic that helped Obama capture the White House.

"We've been tracking this generation since they came of age nearly ten years ago and have seen young people become a political force," said John Della Volpe, director of polling for the institute. "Our government and our political parties need to continually challenge and inspire young adults, whose support should not and cannot be taken for granted."

The poll, which has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.2 percentage points, was conducted from Nov. 4 to Nov. 16. It found that the economy is unquestionably young people's leading concern, with 48 percent of respondents saying it was their top national priority. That was more than twice the second rated issue of health care, which garnered 21 percent. Only 10 percent identified the war as their top national priority.

The survey found that 52 percent of young people disapprove of the president's handling of both the economy and health care, while 55 percent disapprove of how he has handled the war in Afghanistan.

When Obama was elected in Nov. 2008, he won two-thirds of young people's vote, beating Republican Senator John McCain by 34 percentage points in that age group. That margin was five times greater than Obama's next best age group, which was a 6-point victory among 30 to 44 year olds.

The survey released today by the Institute of Politics found that young people are now in line with what polls have found in the general population, that people approve of Obama in general but disapprove of his handling of some major issues.