HELENA — Organizations serving older Montanans and those with disabilities say the groups they work with are important demographics in the state — and they’re hopeful that those groups’ voices will be heard during this year’s elections.
AARP Montana and Disability Rights Montana have both released recent surveys, outlining some of the issues important to the voters they serve.
“These candidates are recognizing these issues as big issues, and they understand that the disability community is large and has a huge impact on shaping policies,” said Disability Rights Montana’s Director of Public Policy Christa Gabriel.
“Candidates would be very, very wise to listen to the issues and concerns of the 50-plus if they want to win in November,” said AARP Montana state director Tim Summers.
AARP Montana released its poll last week. It was conducted by a bipartisan team of pollsters and garnered attention because of its snapshot of state elections — showing a lead for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Tim Sheehy over Democratic Sen. Jon Tester, as well as for other GOP candidates.
However, much of the survey focused on federal and state issues of importance to voters aged 50 and older. Summers says this group made up 56% of Montana voters in the 2020 election and 65% in the 2022 election.
“The 50-plus voter consistently shows up at the polls; they are one of the largest voting blocs in Montana – and, indeed, across the nation,” he said.
Voters taking the poll identified the two top issues determining their vote this year. The biggest issue for those 50 and older was immigration, followed by inflation and the economy.
Most of those voters also said issues like Social Security, Medicare and the cost of housing, utilities and prescription drugs were “very important” or “extremely important” to them.
Summers said most of the voters they heard from were supportive of allowing Medicare to continue negotiating drug prices, providing property tax relief for older Montanans, renewing the state’s Medicaid expansion and providing additional supports for family caregivers.
AARP has polled seven battleground states so far this year, and Summers said Social Security has been even more top-of-mind in Montana compared with other states.
“I think the current problems with inflation definitely add to those concerns,” he said “Look, we're a rural state, and so many Montanans 65 and older do rely on their Social Security, and that is a big factor in their monthly considerations for prices, etc., and the amount they spend.”
Disability Rights Montana released a candidate survey on Monday. They asked those running for federal and state offices to answer ten questions, on subjects ranging from services for people with disabilities to accessible housing to health care disparities for Native Americans.
Gabriel says they asked the people they work with for ideas about what questions to ask, then narrowed them down to some of the top issues.
“This is a community who feels that politicians don't typically hear what their concerns are,” she said. “And I think that's why there was so much participation from the community, because they do want to be heard. They want the politicians to understand the issues that they're facing on a day-to-day basis and understand where the future leaders stand on these issues.”
Gabriel says 29% of Montanans report having some type of disability; as defined by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that can include mobility challenges, hearing and vision difficulties, and challenges with cognition or living independently. In addition, she says 21% of Montanans identify as having a mental illness.
“Those are large numbers,” she said. “Those are numbers that can create big impact in changing policies.”
