http://www.washingtonpost.com/local...e812b3fdd2_story.html?tid=HP_more?tid=HP_more
A surge of young, mainly white voters living in newly affluent neighborhoods emerged as a powerful force in last November’s elections in the District, a seismic shift that mirrors the evolution of the city’s population and could reshape its politics in years to come.
For the first time in 40 years, voters between the ages of 25 and 34 outnumbered senior citizens, an analysis of election data shows. Also for the first time, African Americans, who historically have exerted the greatest influence over District politics, lost their majority among voters.
The young voters cast ballots in gentrifying neighborhoods such as NoMa (short for North of Massachusetts Avenue), the H Street corridor and Shaw, while turnout declined in working- and middle-class African American precincts east of the Anacostia River. The shift appears to have been a key to the overwhelming passage of a ballot initiative to legalize marijuana that took effect last month.
For decades, African Americans defined the nation’s capital, their majority population infusing the city’s neighborhoods, culture and politics. In local elections, black voters powered the victories of mayors such as Marion Barry and Vincent C. Gray.
But in recent years, the city’s population exploded — and blacks lost their majority status. Younger, more affluent residents moved into neighborhoods at the city’s core and became involved in politics and local issues.
A surge of young, mainly white voters living in newly affluent neighborhoods emerged as a powerful force in last November’s elections in the District, a seismic shift that mirrors the evolution of the city’s population and could reshape its politics in years to come.
For the first time in 40 years, voters between the ages of 25 and 34 outnumbered senior citizens, an analysis of election data shows. Also for the first time, African Americans, who historically have exerted the greatest influence over District politics, lost their majority among voters.
The young voters cast ballots in gentrifying neighborhoods such as NoMa (short for North of Massachusetts Avenue), the H Street corridor and Shaw, while turnout declined in working- and middle-class African American precincts east of the Anacostia River. The shift appears to have been a key to the overwhelming passage of a ballot initiative to legalize marijuana that took effect last month.
For decades, African Americans defined the nation’s capital, their majority population infusing the city’s neighborhoods, culture and politics. In local elections, black voters powered the victories of mayors such as Marion Barry and Vincent C. Gray.
But in recent years, the city’s population exploded — and blacks lost their majority status. Younger, more affluent residents moved into neighborhoods at the city’s core and became involved in politics and local issues.
