The Age Factor in US Politics

The political system of the United States is representative of Western capitalist countries. Politicians in the United States obtain the opportunity to hold public office in government mainly through two ways, winning an election and getting an appointment. Overall, age is not an important factor affecting politicians in holding public office in the United States.

For those who serve in the government by appointment, the most important factor is their relationship with the head of the government. For example, for ministers and deputy ministers in the federal government as well as lower-level officials, appointment to public office by the president is out of personal trust or care for them. It is in return for their capability or political support. As long as their physical condition allows them to perform their duties, under normal circumstances the president would not consider the age of the appointee. Of course, those who are too young and who lack experience are clearly not very appropriate to serve in crucial government positions. Even if their individual ability is superior to others, the department managers, especially the Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of Defense, etc. carry important responsibilities to the nation. To participate in formulating major policy decisions, one needs to be able to hold the crowd and be persuasive in speaking to the outside world, which are qualities that young people usually lack. Therefore, generally, only those with more experience and a wider network of people can take up the position. The requirements for other departments may be lower, but to become a leader of a department, one has to have enough political experience no matter what and time is necessary for this kind of experience. Of course, under normal circumstances, the older politicians have less interest in positions that have little political influence and opportunity for promotion. Hence, less important departments in the government are usually headed by those in the heyday of youth. Except for the federal government, officials of the executive branch of the U.S. state governments are also mostly appointed by the state governor. In term of age, the situation is roughly consistent with the federal government.

Winning the election is the only way to get into the White House or Congress, or serve as governor, mayor and other important positions. To win the voters’ hearts and make them willingly vote for oneself, policy stance, personal image, political forces and election funds are essential requirements. The American political system has general provisions for age. For example, the Constitution requires congressmen to be above 25 years old and senators 30. The president cannot be less than 35 years old, with no upper limit. Generally, to take a heavy political position, there are certain physical requirements, including age. However, the more important requirement in the United States is the attitude of the voters. As long as the voters think that you are competent enough to serve, they will vote for you and you pass. Using state governors as an example, there are currently 50 state governors in the United States with an average age of 57, ranging from a minimum age of 41 to a maximum of 74. The age of Congressmen differs greatly as well; some can be elected at a very young age. Often, someone just over 30 joins Congress; others can serve until 80 or 90 years old, as long as their constituents support them. Some older members of Congress, because of their long serving term, wide network of contacts and long-term investment, are deeply rooted to the point of turning their own constituency into “ironclad votes,” where voters habitually check their name on the ballot and no one can shake their status.

The president is the most important political figure in the United States; in general they become the supreme leader of the country after they have reached the prime of life. Presidents are most commonly between 50 and 60. So far, John F. Kennedy was the youngest elected president; he was only 43 years old when he won the election in 1960. Both President Barack Obama and former president Bill Clinton were elected at the age of 46, and are also in the young-presidents group. The 2008 Republican presidential candidate, John McCain, was 72 years old at that time; Republican voters apparently believed it would not be difficult for him, already over 70 years old, to compete with the younger Barack Obama.

The oldest elected president was Reagan. In 1980, 69-year-old Reagan beat 56-year-old Carter and became the 40th president of the United States. Four years later, he once again beat Mondale and won re-election. He was already 78 years old when he left office in 1989. Although Reagan was relatively old, age was not his obstacle in winning the election. On the contrary, his healthy and positive image was generally loved by the American people.

The political party system in the United States is a loose organization with no one person or group responsible for training the successors. Success in politics is the result of decisions and hard work by the politicians. For elections, as long as the Constitution permits, anyone can participate regardless of age. What determines success or not is whether the electorate likes you or not. For this requirement, age is just a very small influencing factor.

The author is a research associate at China’s Institute of Contemporary International Relations.