If Trump were to win the purple and blue states of the Rust Belt in the general election, all his claims about “winning” might not just be talk, but a path to the presidency. He won those states in the primary, and he believes he can do so in November.
Trump’s arguments on trade and industrialization have been strong in the region. “That’s his whole card. If he could win those Rust Belt states that are traditionally Democratic, he could win the election,” liberal columnist E.J. Dionne suggested during ABC’s This Week panel on Sunday.
Trump’s path may be “very difficult, but if there is a path for him it’s in the Rust Belt and it’s with young voters not voting in the same numbers, in the numbers Hillary needs,” Dionne also noted.
Bernie Sanders has had strong leads with young voters throughout the primary season, enjoying 80 percent of their support, and even winning them in states where he’s lost. But, Sanders is losing the nomination because young people don’t vote.
Millennials make up the largest voting bloc, but have had the lowest turnouts, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. If his supporters and their votes were to have an impact, Sanders isn’t convinced Hillary can earn them.
Hillary may be particularly vulnerable in swing states if young voters don’t vote, as Professor Carlos L. Yordan of Drew University has previously noted.
