Younger Americans identify as Independent more than Republicans, Democrats combined
Younger Americans are still less willing to commit to one political party, newly released polling data shows. Gallup released survey data Thursday showing that Millennials and Gen Z Americans are sticking with the “Independent” label. In fact, more of the surveyed Millennial and Gen Z Americans identify as Independent than as Republican and Democrat combined. The poll found that 52% of both Gen Z and Millennials identify as Independent. For comparison, 21% of Millennials identify as Republican and 27% as Democrat. Only 17% of Gen Z identifies as Republican and 31% as Democrat. “Historically, Americans have had weak attachments to the two major U.S. political parties in young adulthood, but as they get older, they usually became more likely to identify as a Republican or a Democrat,” Gallup said. “That historical pattern, evident in the Silent and baby boom generations, appears to be changing. Generation X and millennials, who are now middle-aged or approaching it, have maintained or even expanded their identification as political independents in recent decades.” Older Americans lean less Independent and more Republican. “Currently, 44% of Generation X identifies as political independents, which is unchanged from three decades ago, when the first part of the generation was entering adulthood,” Gallup said. “The majority of millennials, 52%, are independent, and that percentage has increased by five percentage points in each of the past two decades. Meanwhile, Gallup data show far lower, and declining, proportions of independents among the Silent Generation (now 26%) and baby boomers (now 33%), consistent with the historical pattern.” Trends show that Independent identification has grown in the last three decades. “Members of Generation Z who have reached adulthood match millennials in the percentage of political independents, at 52%,” Gallup said. “The data also reveal that each younger generation has had a greater proportion of independents throughout their lives than the prior generation did, even at similar stages in their life. For example, the 44% of Generation X (now aged 42 to 57) that currently identifies as independent is 10 points higher than the 34% of baby boomers who said they were independents in 2002 (when they were aged 38 to 56).” Republished with the permission of The Center Square.
Post-Roe differences surface in GOP over new abortion rules
When the U.S. Supreme Court repealed in June a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion, Wisconsin’s 1849 law that bans the procedure except when a mother’s life is at risk became newly relevant. Republicans in the Legislature blocked an attempt by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers to overturn the law. Yet there’s disagreement inside the GOP over how to move forward when they return to the state Capitol in January. The state’s powerful Republican Assembly speaker, Robin Vos, supports reinforcing the exception for a mother’s life and adding protections for instances involving rape and incest. Others, including GOP state Rep. Barbara Dittrich, say the law should stay as it is, without exceptions for rape and incest. For decades, Republicans like Vos and Dittrich appealed to conservative voters — and donors — with broad condemnation of abortion. But the Supreme Court’s decision is forcing Republicans from state legislatures to Congress to the campaign trail to articulate more specifically what that opposition means, sometimes creating division over where the party should stand. Dittrich says consensus among her Republican colleagues on an alternative to the 1849 law would be a “tremendous challenge.” “We once heard that the Democrats were the big-tent party,” she said in an interview. “Now I would say the Republican Party is more the big-tent party on some of these issues.” Of course, supporters of abortion rights are now a distinct minority in Republican politics. Just two GOP members of Congress — Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine — publicly support passing legislation to reinstate the protections of a woman’s right to choose that the Supreme Court struck down in overruling Roe v. Wade. In Colorado, U.S. Senate candidate Joe O’Dea is the rare Republican running this year who backs codifying Roe. But the debate over even a limited set of circumstances in which abortion could be legal spurred some division within the GOP in Wisconsin and elsewhere. In Indiana, after a decade of stalled legislation on abortion, empowered Republicans passed the first near-total abortion ban since the Supreme Court ruling. But even that measure drew dissent within the GOP. Exemptions for rape and incest up to 10 weeks prevailed after 50 Republicans joined with all Democrats to include them. Still, 18 Republicans voted against final passage of the bill, with roughly half saying the bill went too far and the rest saying it was too weak. In South Carolina, meanwhile, Republicans have spent decades curtailing abortion access, and there is an ongoing discussion about a near-total ban. But some in the legislature voiced concern about pushing the current six-week ban further and urged deceleration, particularly after seeing voters in Kansas spike a ballot measure that would have allowed the legislature there to ban abortion. “It’s like you are playing with live ammunition right now,” Republican Rep. Tom Davis told The Associated Press. The Supreme Court ruling paved the way for severe abortion restrictions or bans in nearly half the states. Nine states currently have laws banning abortion from conception, with three more — Tennessee, Idaho, and Texas — set to take effect on August 25. Three states — Georgia, South Carolina, and Ohio — have laws banning abortion when fetal cardiac activity is detected, at about six weeks. Florida’s law bans abortion at 15 weeks, and Arizona’s will as of September 24. Some experts say the inconsistency among Republicans about how to move forward underscores how new the debate is — and how unprepared the party was for it. “Historically, GOP candidates and policymakers were in a politically convenient spot when it came to being ‘pro-life,’” University of Denver political science professor Joshua Wilson told the AP in an email. Until Roe was overturned, Republican-controlled states could introduce legislation to dismantle abortion access, knowing that federal courts bound by the law at the time would block the most aggressive regulations. That and the issue’s lower salience among Democratic and moderate voters, Wilson noted, “were linked guardrails against political backlash.” The rejected ballot measure in Kansas surprised advocates on both sides, not only because it was defeated by a 20-percentage-point margin but also because turnout surged, driven by voters who weren’t participating in the Republican primary. Prioritization of abortion and women’s rights is growing among abortion rights supporters, and Democrats are seeking to capitalize on the shift by campaigning on the issue and pushing for ballot measures in other states. Polling shows the most extreme anti-abortion laws are at odds with the American public and even most Republicans. The July AP-NORC poll showed Republicans are largely opposed to abortion “for any reason” and at 15 weeks into a pregnancy. But only 16% of Republicans say abortion generally should be “illegal in all cases.” Most Republicans said their state should generally allow a pregnant person to obtain a legal abortion if the child would be born with a life-threatening illness (61%), the person became pregnant as the result of rape or incest (77%), or if the person’s health is seriously endangered (85%). A majority of Republicans, 56%, also said their state should generally allow abortion at six weeks into a pregnancy. GOP politicians may begin to face pressure to satisfy their base’s most conservative anti-abortion opponents — they want total abortion bans — and the moderate or independent voter, who is more accepting of abortion at early points in the pregnancy and in extenuating circumstances. That’s led some candidates to pivot from hard-line positions in their primaries to more diffuse rhetoric ahead of their general election in purple states. In Arizona, the Republican candidate for governor, Kari Lake, who said during the primary that “abortion is the ultimate sin” and abortion pills should be outlawed, punted to the Legislature when asked about the specifics of abortion policy after she won. When he was running to be Georgia Republicans’ nominee for the U.S. Senate, Herschel Walker was unequivocal in his support for an outright abortion ban with no exceptions. Now that he is the nominee running in a tight general election contest, he’s more circumspect. When asked plainly whether he’d vote for an absolute prohibition in a Republican-controlled Senate, Walker demurred. “That’s an ‘if,’”
Ron DeSantis: New legislation coming next year to grow Florida’s teaching workforce
New legislation is being proposed for the 2023 legislative session to expand Florida’s teaching workforce, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday. Three new legislative proposals the legislature will consider next year, he said, include a recruitment initiative to hire retired military veterans and first responders as teachers, the creation of an apprenticeship program for existing teachers who mentor aspiring teachers, and a new scholarship program for K-12 teachers interested in teaching dual enrollment high school courses. “These three initiatives will build on our efforts to increase recruitment and retention of high-quality teachers. Great teachers don’t become great teachers because they are sitting in a university lecture hall. What makes a teacher great is being in the classroom, watching other teachers, and seeing what works,” DeSantis said. “With today’s announcement, we will be helping more teachers gain that critical firsthand experience, and we will be recruiting first responders and veterans to continue their service in the classroom. Our students will greatly benefit from these programs.” “Our number one educational priority is ensuring there is a high-quality teacher in every single Florida classroom,” Florida Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz, Jr., said. “I have been holding roundtable meetings with teachers from across the state to learn more about steps we can take to improve our recruitment and retention efforts. Under Governor DeSantis’ leadership, I look forward to implementing these new initiatives and more to further increase Florida’s reputation as the education state.” The proposal to hire retired military veterans and first responders includes offering a one-time bonus to those who commit to teach for two years as a full-time classroom teacher. Eligible applicants could also receive an additional bonus on top of the initial signing bonus if they teach in a Florida Department of Education identified critical teacher shortage school. The initiative also includes waiving certification exam fees for all retired first responders. A second legislative proposal would create a Teacher Apprenticeship Temporary Certification to enable teacher apprentices to be hired to teach in Florida public school classrooms. Eligible applicants would have an associate degree from an accredited postsecondary institution, a 3.0 cumulative grade point average, and successfully pass a background check. After applicants receive a temporary certificate, they’d spend two years in the classroom working with a mentor teacher to fulfill an on-the-job training component of the apprenticeship program. It also would allow them to earn a paycheck while working toward their bachelor’s degree. Mentor teachers must have at least seven years of teaching experience and effective ratings on their VAM scores or district performance reviews to qualify for the program. They would also be eligible to receive two bonuses for participating in the two-year apprenticeship program. The third proposal would create a dual enrollment Educator Scholarship Program. The new program would allow K-12 teachers to receive scholarships toward their master’s degree that cover the full cost of tuition and fees and a book stipend every semester. Once educators earn their master’s degree, they’d be able to provide dual enrollment coursework to high school students, particularly in low to moderate income and rural schools. Eligible applicants to the program must already be accepted or currently enrolled in an approved graduate program in a subject in their area of certification and complete their graduate degree within three years of receiving the award. DeSantis made the announcement after he’s been encouraging military veterans to consider teaching in Florida public schools. “For too long, the requirements to be a teacher have been too rigid with union bosses insisting that educators get certain credentials that often have little impact on teaching performance,” DeSantis said. “Every morning, our students recite the Pledge of Allegiance while looking at the Star-Spangled Banner. It’s fitting that the teacher in the classroom is somebody who took an oath and put his or her life on the line to preserve, protect and defend our flag and the freedom it represents.” Last week, the state launched a new website for military veterans to apply to its Military Veterans Certification Pathway program, which became effective July 1. Republished with the permission of The Center Square.
State approves alcohol sales at Bryant-Denny stadium
Beer and wine sales are coming to Bryant-Denny Stadium at the University of Alabama. Dean Argo, a spokesman for the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, said Wednesday that the agency gave approval to an alcohol license for the vendor at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The state approval was the final regulatory step in authorizing sales. A spokeswoman for the university’s athletic department did not immediately return an email seeking comment about when sales might begin. The Tuscaloosa City Council on Tuesday approved the alcohol sales license for Levy Premium Foodservice, the university’s concession vendor at the stadium, news outlets reported. Levy representative Herbert Tesh told councilmembers that beer and wine would be sold to fans on the concourse but not in the stands, news outlets reported. The university is seeking to join a growing number of universities selling alcohol in their stadiums on game days. Previously, alcohol was only allowed in skyboxes at the Tuscaloosa stadium. The 100,077-capacity stadium is one of the largest football stadiums in the United States. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
