Health, Wealth, and Voting Trajectories in Later Life

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Political Science
• Sociology

Background:

• Traditional voting behavior studies rely on cross-sectional data.
• Understanding long-term voting patterns in later life requires longitudinal analysis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize voting trajectories in later life using a unique dataset.
• To explore the determinants of voting behavior among older adults, focusing on health and wealth.

Main Methods:

• Utilized sequence analysis to identify voting typologies over eight biennial elections.
• Employed multinomial logistic and Poisson regressions to analyze health and wealth impacts on civic participation.

Main Results:

• Health and wealth positively correlate with voter turnout; wealth can mitigate the negative effects of poor health on voting.
• Voting methods vary by socioeconomic status and health: in-person voting is more common among healthier individuals, while absentee voting is more prevalent among affluent or less healthy older adults.
• Physical, cognitive, and mental health issues, especially depression, reduce turnout, particularly for less wealthy individuals.

Conclusions:

• Older adult civic participation is influenced by life-course experiences with health and wealth.
• Political structures play a role in enabling or hindering consistent electoral participation among older citizens.