AARP To Track National Voting of the 45 and Over Population: Results Ready by Mid-Afternoon Today

11/5/2002

From: Steve Hahn, Barbara Foelber or Muriel Cooper, 202-434-2560, all of the AARP

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5 -- For the first time it its history, AARP is conducting national Election Day polling of voters 45 years of age and older to determine what issues impacted their voting decisions in this year's mid-term Congressional elections.

AARP will be closely monitoring election results from all 50 states, allowing up-to-the-minute commentary and analysis of today's results. AARP will be temporarily converted into "Election Central", putting to use its vast political intelligence and broadcast operations.

AARP also is tracking what domestic issues resonate the most with older voters in a dozen hotly contested races for Congress in Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, New Hampshire, Iowa, Maine, Missouri, South Carolina and South Dakota.

The non-partisan organization is tracking the balloting trends of the nation's most active voters and will make those results available to the news media as they become available, beginning at mid-afternoon. The exit polling, conducted by ICR Research of Media, Pennsylvania, in partnership with AARP's own research group, will gather data from all fifty states and identify possible links between the voting behavior of the target population and issues of key importance to this group.

Pre-election research indicates that prescription drug coverage in Medicare and Social Security are of critical importance to those 50 and older. The research is tracking the importance of these two key issues to the overall results in today's races.

"AARP is not conducting the research to determine the winning candidate but to ascertain the important link between the issues of the older voters and the candidates," said Bill Novelli, executive director and CEO.

"AARP conducted the most widespread voter education campaign in the country this year that included voter guides, a television campaign on issues critical to its members, mailings to nearly 9 million members, 750,000 calls to get-out-the vote, a comprehensive Election 2002 website, a candidate pledge on prescription drugs, and voter forums held around the country," Novelli said.

------ AARP is a non-profit, non-partisan membership organization for people 50 and over. We provide information and resources; advocate on legislative, consumer and legal issues; assist members to serve their communities; and offer a wide range of unique benefits, special products, and services for our members. These benefits include AARP Webplace at www.aarp.org, AARP Modern Maturity and My Generation magazines, the monthly AARP Bulletin and Segunda Juventud, a quarterly, bilingual newspaper. Active in every state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, AARP celebrates the attitude that age is just a number and life is what you make it.

Media interested in the national and state specific polling data, should call the contacts. In addition, satellite news interviews are available from 3:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. To schedule interview time, please contact AARP Media Relations at 202-434-2560.