Sexist voters hurt Harris' chances

+ mandatory retirement for pols US Edition - Today's top story: US voters say they're ready for a woman president − but sexist attitudes still go along with opposition to Harris [View in browser]( US Edition | 19 August 2024 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( Top headlines - [The government just negotiated steep price cuts for 10 drugs]( - [The fungus that’s fueling the banana apocalypse]( - [Cities can look to the ancients for tips to deal with summer heat]( Lead story Democrats are gathering in Chicago for what will surely be a high-spirited national convention now that Joe Biden is out of the presidential race and his replacement, Kamala Harris, is rising in the polls. In three short weeks, she has changed the trajectory of what looked to be the Democrats' losing bid to retain the White House. But amid all the reports of better polls and bigger rallies, UMass Amherst political scientists Adam Eichen, Jesse Rhodes and Tatishe Nteta have a warning: The very sexism that helped doom the presidential campaign of Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016 [will also play a part in the 2024 presidential election](. “The scars of the 2016 campaign,” the three write, “are still fresh for Democrats. But many hope that America has changed and has become more accepting of women in leadership roles.” Eichen, Rhodes and Nteta provide a dose of reality with the results of their recent poll, in which they measured respondents’ level of agreement with a series of sexist statements. From that, they determined who was more and who was less sexist. “The least sexist respondents have a 92% chance of saying they will vote for Harris. But the most sexist respondents have only a 4% chance of supporting her,” they write. “People with negative attitudes toward women are much less likely to support Harris for president.” “Hostile sexism,” they conclude, “is helping to make the election closer than it would otherwise be.” [ [The Conversation has no ads or paywalls, thanks to support from our readers](. ] Naomi Schalit Senior Editor, Politics + Democracy Could Americans’ sexism tank yet another woman’s quest for the U.S. presidency? AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast [US voters say they’re ready for a woman president − but sexist attitudes still go along with opposition to Harris]( Adam Eichen, UMass Amherst; Jesse Rhodes, UMass Amherst; Tatishe Nteta, UMass Amherst Sexism played a key role in Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s defeat − and Donald Trump’s victory − in 2016. Has America become more accepting of a woman leader? Not exactly. Health + Medicine - [Why don’t more politicians retire? A medical anthropologist explains how the US could benefit from a mandatory retirement age]( Matthew J. Wolf-Meyer, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Many Americans seem to prefer to keep working well past retirement age, but it’s not clear whether the choice is motivated by the need to keep earning money or the desire to continue being productive. - [Biden administration’s negotiated price cuts for 10 common prescription drugs likely to save Medicare billions, beginning in 2026]( Simon F. Haeder, Texas A&M University People ages 65 and up will likely reap significant out-of-pocket savings on prescription drugs when the negotiated prices take effect. But other benefits could pay bigger dividends in the long run. Science + Technology - [Banana apocalypse, part 2 – a genomicist explains the tricky genetics of the fungus devastating bananas worldwide]( Li-Jun Ma, UMass Amherst Fusarium oxysporum can infect over 120 plant species. Whether it destroys Cavendish bananas as it did their predecessor depends on the agricultural industry and consumers. - [Astronomers have warned against colonial practices in the space industry − a philosopher of science explains how the industry could explore other planets without exploiting them]( Mary-Jane Rubenstein, Wesleyan University Space may be considered the final frontier, but the US was once a frontier, too. How can space industry leaders avoid repeating practices that led to colonialism in the 18th century and beyond? Environment + Energy - [Ancient Rome had ways to counter the urban heat island effect – how history’s lessons apply to cities today]( Brian Stone Jr., Georgia Institute of Technology As summer temperatures rise, finding ways to build cities that don’t hold in the heat and can provide some cooling is increasingly important. - [Could we use volcanoes to make electricity?]( David Kitchen, University of Richmond We don’t generate power directly from volcanoes, but the presence of volcanoes is a sign that there are good geothermal resources underground that can be tapped. Ethics + Religion - [Who is the ‘Laughing Buddha’? A scholar of East Asian Buddhism explains]( Megan Bryson, University of Tennessee The ‘Laughing Buddha’ shows how people have adapted Buddhism to different cultural and historical contexts. Education - [Anthropology students present their research in poetry, plays and op-eds in this course]( Roxanne Varzi, University of California, Irvine Students can play to their strengths in this anthropology course designed to teach them how to present research findings in ways other than a peer-reviewed paper. International - [Thailand’s democracy has taken another hit, but the country’s progressive forces won’t be stopped]( Adam Simpson, University of South Australia The new People’s Party is offering a much more democratic vision for Thailand – and it should fare very well at the next elections. Trending on site - [Could dinosaurs still exist somewhere in the world? A paleontologist explains]( - [3 of Jane Austen’s 6 brothers engaged in antislavery activism − new research offers more clues about her own views]( - [Most young voters support Kamala Harris − but that doesn’t guarantee they will show up at the polls]( Reader Comments 💬 "Fascinating to hear that things like colonialism and slavery were amongst “her day’s big issues” - if you listen to so many of the contemporary talk about these areas, you’d think nobody in the 18th and 19th century paid any attention to anything bar the profits from such activities." – Reader Megan Robertson on the story [3 of Jane Austen’s 6 brothers engaged in antislavery activism − new research offers more clues about her own views]( - - More of The Conversation Like this newsletter? You might be interested in our weekly and biweekly emails: • [Weekly Highlights]( • [Science Editors' Picks]( • [Giving Today]( [New!] • [This Week in Religion]( • [Politics Weekly]( • [Global Perspectives]( • [Global Economy & Business]( Follow us on social media: • [Bluesky]( • [Mastodon]( • [Threads]( • [Nostr]( • [LinkedIn]( • [Instagram]( • [Facebook]( • Or [get a daily text from us]( - - About The Conversation We're a nonprofit news organization dedicated to bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to [help you make sense of our complex world](. We can give away our articles thanks to the help of foundations, universities and readers like you. [Donate now to support research-based journalism]( [The Conversation]( You’re receiving this newsletter from [The Conversation]( 303 Wyman Street, Suite 300 Waltham, MA 02451 [Forward to a friend]( • [Unsubscribe](