White Democrats were found to be more bothered than Black and Hispanic Democrats by the prospect of the Democratic presidential nominee being a white man in his 70s, according to a Pew survey.
Despite a primary campaign that included the most diverse group of candidates in Democratic Party history — which included women, Black, Hispanic, Asian, and gay candidates — 41% of registered Democratic voters say they’re bothered that the likely nominee for the 2020 election is a white man in his 70s, according to Pew. (RELATED: ‘In A Heartbeat’: Biden Says He Would Pick Michelle Obama To Be Vice President)
While men and women were equally bothered by the prospect (41%), White Democrats were significantly more bothered than Black and Hispanic Democrats — 49% of White Democrats were bothered, while 28% of Black Democrats and 30% of Hispanic Democrats were bothered.
Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) , Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA), Andrew Yang, and Tom Steyer participate in the fifth Democratic Presidential Debate. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
The voters who were most bothered were more liberal, more educated, younger, and more likely to be white than those not bothered, the survey found. In contrast, 76% of Democrats with no college experience and 59% of those with some college experience were not bothered by the Democratic nominee being a white man in his 70s.
Nearly eight-in-ten of those surveyed by Pew in January who said that Former Democratic Vice President Joe Biden was their first choice for the Democratic presidential nomination now report that the nominee being a white man in his 70s does not bother them.
The survey was conducted just after Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders suspended his presidential campaign and Joe Biden became the presumptive Democratic nominee.