The Generation Gap

The Baby Boomer and Silent Generations make up an overwhelming majority of voters in our town.

The Average Troy Resident

According to the United States Census Bureau, the average resident in Troy was born in 1986. But, if you take a look at voting characteristics, it’s a much different demographic story. In our recently conducted Primary Election, the average birthyear of the voter in that election was 1962; nearly an entire quarter century older. Granted, no one under age 18 can vote, so that will skew numbers in an older direction, but one can’t help but notice that while it may look like we live in a Millennial town, it’s the Baby Boomers that still call the shots.

Baby Boomers are those that were generally recognized to be born between in 1946 and 1964. They were born after the Second World War and in the economic boomtimes of the Eisenhower Administration. Their experience largely was one of endless opportunity as their parents were able to live a standard of living that was miles ahead of the Great Depression that was just a few decades before. They are great believers in the American Dream.

Not all was all rosy though, as children of the Cold War, they lived in a near existiential crisis knowing that nuclear war with the Soviet Union was a real possibility. The grew up in the time of the Vietnam War and Watergate; a time where an outlook being suspicious of authority was well warranted.

They also tend to have a high degree of civic participation and you can see that in the voting records here in Troy. In the Mayoral Primary last month, nearly 47% of all votes cast came from the Baby Boomer Generation. Here is the generational breakdown of votes in the last election:

• Generation Z (1997-2010): 2.45% of all voters

• Millennials (1981-1996): 14.19% of all voters

• Generation X (1965-1980): 24.02% of all voters

• Baby Boomers (1946-1964): 46.66% of all voters

• Silent Generation (1927-1945): 12.49% of all voters

• Greatest Generaton (1901-1927): 0.18% of all voters

Tracking the Generational Vote

In the Mayoral Primary, we had one candidate that was from the Baby Boomer Generation and one that was from Generation X. One of the questions of this past election was whether the age of the voter played a role in the final outcome. I am beginning to think it may have very well done so. (And yes, full disclosure, I was the Generation X candidate in the election)

The final margin of the May election was very, very tight. Perhaps, it was one of the tightest Mayoral elections we have had here in Troy. It was certainly the closest that most people can recall. The final margin of victory was 1.12%. When we look at the twenty-one precincts in Troy, it was even tighter. Each candidate won 10 precincts and there was one precinct that was tied.

While we can’t determine how certain individuals voted in the last election, we can look at certain precincts and how they voted and we can determine the average birth year of those precincts. In the city’s twenty-one precincts, 17 of those have an average voter birth year right in the Baby Boomer Generation. The oldest precinct is Precinct 5A, which is out in Westbrook; the average birth year for a voter in that precinct is 1958. The youngest precincts are Precincts 3C and 3D, both have an average birth year of 1966.

Looking at those 17 precincts where the average birth year is at or older than 1964 (the traditional cut off period for the Baby Boomer Generation), we can see that all ten precincts won by the Mayor were in this cohort. Of the four precincts where the average birth year is at 1965 or younger (broadly defined as Generation X), I was able to win three of the four precincts and the fourth precinct (Precinct 1B) was a tie.

Encouraging Younger Generations to Vote

A strong argument could be made that if younger people showed up to the polls, it could have made a different outcome in this race. And as we look to future elections in our community for other offices and issues, especially those that involve schools and education, strategies to get younger residents to vote is going to be key.

As the above data shows, just over 40% of all the votes cast in the last election were cast by people younger than 58. This means that the community’s electorate is older. Very older. And this is not a trend that is reversing. In the 2015 Mayoral Primary, the average age of the voter was 58 and in both the 2019 and 2023 Mayoral Primary, the average age of the voter was 61.

Younger residents need to not only be encouraged to register but also encouraged to actually vote. The message needs to be sent that the more younger generations vote, the more the final result will actually reflect the demographic makeup of the community. Otherwise, we have a community that, at least demographically, looks one way and votes another.

The Challenge Ahead of Us

One of the challenges that this newsletter is going to try to tackle is to get younger folks (broadly defined for our discussion as Generation X and younger) more engaged and more involved in local issues. The way we can measure the impact is seeing the percentage of younger voters increase, the average age of the voter decrease and see younger and more candidates run for local office.

This effort is committed to share the voices of Generation X, Millennials and Generation Z residents and citizens to create new and productive conversations that can help move our community foward.

If you are interested in learning more about our effort or have some ideas of your own to share, please feel free to drop me a line at william.lutz17@gmail.com. Better yet, share this newsletter with your friends and your neighbors.

Consider being a paid supporter of our efforts. Attend a City Council or School Board Meeting. Talk about the important issues facing our community with your friends and neighbors. Let’s work together to ensure the decisions made by our community reflect what our community looks like.