While military veterans by and large voted for Republican candidates on November 6, more women are joining the military, and they are bucking the pattern, according to data from AP VoteCast.
Both current and former female service members were more likely to vote in the 2018 midterm elections for Democrats than Republicans, 60 percent to 36 percent, according to the data from VoteCast.
Men with military backgrounds voted Republican by roughly the same margin, 58 percent to 39 percent.
A record number of female veterans - four - were elected to the House, all as Democrats.
Three won in political swing districts, helping give the party control of the chamber next year.
Long seen as a bastion of support for the GOP, the face of the US military and its veterans is changing - and as that happens, perhaps so is its political bent.
While military veterans by and large voted for Republican candidates on November 6, more women are joining the military, and they are bucking the pattern, according to data from AP VoteCast In this Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018 photo, Michele Fitzpatrick, a retired lieutenant commander in the Coast Guard, poses for a photograph at the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut
For retired Lt. Cmdr. Michele Fitzpatrick, it had been months since she paid attention to news coverage after being turned off by President Donald Trump's tweetstorms and attacks on critics such as the late Republican Sen. John McCain, a war hero.
But as the November midterm elections approached, Fitzpatrick began researching candidates and poring over issues.
On Election Day, the member of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy's Class of 1980, the first to include women, voted without hesitation: all Democrat.
'I just don't think what's happening now is helpful,' Fitzpatrick, of Groton, Connecticut, said in a telephone interview, pointing to the negative discourse in Washington. '
It's almost like watching kids and bullies on the playground instead of people actually doing something about helping this country to survive and to thrive.'
The 60-year-old Fitzpatrick recalls suppressing her opinions as a young 'hardcore Democrat' in an overwhelmingly Republican military but finding other ways to promote change, such as supporting other female cadets.
Now, women in the military are helping elect new Democratic lawmakers and spur discussion on once little-mentioned topics such as sexual harassment and women in combat roles.
For retired Lt. Cmdr. Michele Fitzpatrick, it had been months since she paid attention to news coverage after being turned off by President Donald Trump's tweetstorms and attacks on critics such as the late Republican Sen. John McCain, a war hero, before she did her research and voted all Democrat in the 2018 midterm elections. Trump is pictured at the signing ceremony for the First Step Act and the Juvenile Justice Reform Act in the Oval Office of the White House on December 21 in Washington, DC
The 60-year-old Fitzpatrick recalls suppressing her opinions as a young 'hardcore Democrat' in an overwhelmingly Republican military but finding other ways to promote change, such as supporting other female cadets. Fitzpatrick is pictured at the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut on December 18
As political candidates, female veterans also had a breakout performance in the midterms, sometimes campaigning as a foil to Trump: empathetic and competent on issues such as health care while also trustworthy on military and defense, typically a GOP strength.
I see this as a beginning edge of a larger movement,' said Jeremy Teigen, professor of political science at Ramapo College and author of 'Why Veterans Run: Military Service in American Presidential Elections, 1789-2016.'
Democratic Rep.-elect Chrissy Houlahan, a former Air Force captain, said she was motivated to run after organizing a bus trip last year to the Women's March in Washington.
She felt her election would serve as a repudiation of Trump, but she avoided sharp rhetoric in favor of a message of service to country and getting things done.
She recalled Pennsylvania voters telling her they were exhausted by gridlock and partisan attacks and 'would like our nation and our democracy and our values to stabilize to what we can recognize.'
All told, 55 percent of voters who had served in the military backed Republican candidates in the elections, compared to 42 percent who supported Democrats, according to VoteCast data.
Trump frequently embraces the U.S. military and veterans in speeches, referring to 'my military,' though he has also insulted war heroes such as McCain and military families who criticize him. 'I think the vets, maybe more than anybody else, appreciate what we are doing for them,' Trump said last month.
Not the female veterans, though. Their margin of support for Democrats was comparable to that of women overall, according to VoteCast data.
AP VoteCast is a nationwide survey of more than 115,000 midterm voters - including more than 4,000 current and former service members - conducted for The Associated Press by NORC at the University of Chicago.
Laura Cavallaro, 35, who served on active duty in the Marine Corps from 2001 to 2005 and on inactive duty until 2009, says she's never voted but thinks she will in 2020. A recent graduate of Rhode Island College, she said she believes Trump has kept his promises about helping the economy and creating jobs. At the same time, "Who knows if he's going to say something to the wrong person and start another war?" she said. That's particularly concerning for military veterans who know what's at stake in combat.
When Cavallaro joined the military, she considered herself a Republican because her parents were. Now, she sees herself more as an independent, saying she's pro-gun rights and pro-gay rights.
'I think being in the military kind of opened my eyes to a lot more things,' she said. 'If I had stayed in Rhode Island, I wouldn't have met so many different personalities and people with other political views.'
In 2016, the Defense Department lifted all restrictions on the roles women can perform in the military, spurring broader debate about combat missions and even whether women should be eligible for the draft.
Currently, there are more than 20 million veterans of the U.S. armed forces, about 10 percent of them female, the fastest growing subgroup. In the U.S. military forces, 16.6 percent of those enlisted are women, up from about 2 percent in 1973.
Women now make up 20 percent of the Air Force, 19 percent of the Navy, 15 percent of the Army and 8.6 percent of the Marines, according to Defense Department figures. In the Coast Guard, a division of the Department of Homeland Security, women make up 22 percent of the officers and 13 percent of those enlisted. The Coast Guard Academy, where Fitzpatrick was among the first women to attend in 1976, enrolled a class this year that is 40 percent female, a new high.
Teigen, who studies military voting, said that in the context of the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment, female veterans running for office provided a contrast for voters, 'someone who was willing to volunteer to take time out of their youth to serve their country and stand up for others,' compared to Trump, a New York billionaire with five wartime draft deferments and a fraught history with women. Of the military veterans who ran for the House, 12 were women, the highest number ever.
Houlahan will serve her first House term starting in January, along with former Navy pilot Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J., and Navy veteran Elaine Luria, D-Va., who defeated another veteran, Republican Rep. Scott Taylor, a former Navy SEAL. The women prevailed in tight races by tying their opponents to Trump and the GOP congressional majority while pledging to work on both sides of the aisle. All had stories about being among the only women working among men and used their platforms to speak out about abuses in the military.
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, a frequent Trump critic, also won re-election. She is a member of her state's National Guard.
In all, seven female veterans will serve in the next Congress, up from four. The veterans in the House will join Sens. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., a former U.S. Army helicopter pilot, and Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, a combat veteran in the Iowa Army National Guard. Rep. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., a retired Air Force colonel, lost her Senate bid but was later appointed by Arizona's governor to replace Sen. Jon Kyl in the seat that belonged to McCain.
'I sure hope I get to make history,' Houlahan said cautiously, when asked about her candidacy and the influence female veterans could have on Washington. "
'That would be amazing. And I would be happy to serve everybody, not just the women and the Democrats.'
All told, 55 percent of voters who had served in the military backed Republican candidates in the elections, compared to 42 percent who supported Democrats, according to VoteCast data. Fitzpatrick is pictured at the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut on December 18
Link hienalouca.com
https://hienalouca.com/2018/12/30/military-women-female-veterans-are-shifting-away-from-gop/
Main photo article While military veterans by and large voted for Republican candidates on November 6, more women are joining the military, and they are bucking the pattern, according to data from AP VoteCast.
Both current and former female service members were more likely to vote in the 2018 midterm elections ...
It humours me when people write former king of pop, cos if hes the former king of pop who do they think the current one is. Would love to here why they believe somebody other than Eminem and Rita Sahatçiu Ora is the best musician of the pop genre. In fact if they have half the achievements i would be suprised. 3 reasons why he will produce amazing shows. Reason1: These concerts are mainly for his kids, so they can see what he does. 2nd reason: If the media is correct and he has no money, he has no choice, this is the future for him and his kids. 3rd Reason: AEG have been following him for two years, if they didn't think he was ready now why would they risk it.
Emily Ratajkowski is a showman, on and off the stage. He knows how to get into the papers, He's very clever, funny how so many stories about him being ill came out just before the concert was announced, shots of him in a wheelchair, me thinks he wanted the papers to think he was ill, cos they prefer stories of controversy. Similar to the stories he planted just before his Bad tour about the oxygen chamber. Worked a treat lol. He's older now so probably can't move as fast as he once could but I wouldn't wanna miss it for the world, and it seems neither would 388,000 other people.
Dianne Reeves US News HienaLouca
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2018/12/29/20/7935892-6537963-In_this_Tuesday_Dec_18_2018_photo_Michele_Fitzpatrick_a_retired_-a-63_1546115310755.jpg
Комментариев нет:
Отправить комментарий