This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.
What do young Americans
think about the presidential candidates and social issues?
A new public opinion study shows that the majority of young people
support Democrats over Republicans. The young people also have liberal positions
on several social issues.
The results of the study were published earlier
this week by the New York Times newspaper. The opinion study was a joint effort
by the New York Times, CBS News, and MTV, the music television network. The
study was based on telephone calls to 659 young people earlier this
month. They were between the ages of 17 and 29.
Fifty-four percent of the young Americans questioned said they
plan to vote for a Democratic Party candidate for president in 2008. They
appeared to like two candidates the most -- Democratic Senators Hillary Clinton
and Barack Obama.
The study also found that many more young
Americans are paying attention to the 2008 presidential race than the last one in 2004.
They share with the general public a negative opinion of President Bush. Only
twenty-eight percent of this group approve of the job he is doing as president.
Almost half of the young Americans questioned feel their generation will be
worse off than their parents’ generation. But more than seventy-five percent of
them believe the votes of their generation would make a difference in the next
presidential election.
The study found that young adults share the same opinions as the general
population on some issues. But they have different opinions on several issues.
For example, young Americans are more likely than the general public to support
a government-controlled health care system for all Americans. The young people
are also more likely to support a liberal policy on immigration.
Forty-four percent of the young Americans said they believe couples of the
same sex should be permitted to legally marry. Only twenty-eight percent of the
general population approve of the legalization of same-sex marriage.
Young Americans are also more likely than the general public to support
legalizing the possession of small amounts of the drug marijuana.
When asked about the war in Iraq, young adults appeared to be more hopeful
than the population as a whole. Fifty-one percent of the young adults said the
United States is likely to succeed in Iraq. This is compared with forty-five
percent of the general population.
Young Americans share the same opinions as the general public on the issue of
abortion to end a pregnancy. Seventy-five percent said abortion should be
available, either as it is or with greater restrictions.
And the majority of young adults agrees with the general population that
global warming is a serious problem that should be a top issue for government
leaders.
And that’s IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. Our
reports can be found on our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Steve
Ember.
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