Why Is Poverty And Poor People Ignored During Elections?

You notice both presidential campaigns are quick to talk about middle-income
working people and the middle class families but neither will discuss the
concerns of low-incoming working people and neither will dare utter the
word "Poverty".

The U.S. Department of Labor Statistic reports that one in eight Americans
lives in poverty, which is defined as an income less than $20,000 for a
family of four. Nearly 30 percent of households are low-income, which means
an income below $40,000 for a family of four. If you do the math, 90 million
Americans are considered low income or "lower-class" and 39 million of those
are living in poverty.

90 million people are a huge voting block, you would think candidates from
both party would be jumping through hoops to cater to that large number of
potential voters but they don't.

So why do politicians often mention the "middle class" rather than "the
middle and lower class." Would not they want to be more inclusive?

Once upon a time, Democrats presented themselves as champions of the poor,
but they continued to get trounced in presidential elections. Candidates
such as Walter Mondale and Michael Dukakis during the 1980s were depicted as
"liberal" and "out of touch." Many members of the middle class, especially
the upper-middle class, displayed a backlash against the lower class. Thus
came the emergence of the more conservative New Democrats, led by Bill
Clinton, who won in 1992 with his "forgotten middle class" theme.

Since then, the issues of poor people are pretty much left off the table.
Think about it. When was the last time we saw a candidate campaigning in a
ghetto?

Harvard University's Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public
Policy conducted the "Vanishing Voter Project." Among the findings: "The
decline in (voter) participation has been concentrated among Americans of
low income. Although a class bias in turnout has been a persistent feature
of U.S. elections, the gap has widened to a chasm. The voting rate among
those at the bottom of the income ladder is only half that of those at the
top."

In this 2 party political system we have in America, there are two ways to
get your issues into the national political dialog. 1) Contribute large
amounts of money - The Business Community, AIPAC, NRA, Upper Class Voters,
etc. 2) Be a large dedicated voting block - White Evangelicals, gun owners,
white middle class voters, etc.

Now lower class voters may not be able to donate too much money, but they
should at least be voting. If 50, 60, or 70 percent of lower class people
voted, and voted on economic issues rather than divisive social issues, they
may be able to get people in power that care about their issues. But if they
give up then you get people like Reagan, the Bushes, McCain who only care about
the rich and you get Democratic candidates who refuse to discuss your issues
for fear of scaring off a more dedicated group of voters.

Source