Young Republicans feel marginalized and ignored by party leadership, and they're concerned that the current generation of Republican Party standard-bearers have yet to properly balance a conservative ideology with the reality of existence in the 21st century.
A survey conducted for the Young Republican National Federation, which claims more than 10,000 members, finds that the RNC chairman candidates' views on social issues are important to only 6% of the 1,249-person sample. The candidates' positions on the economy and job creation were most in demand, followed by their views on taxes, energy independence and national security. Illegal immigration, a subject of outsize importance to the vocal wing of the party, ranked 8th out of 10; only five percent of the members said that they were curious about how candidates would talk about the subject.
In terms of priorities for next RNC head, exploiting advances in social media and technology were high on list, but even more simply, survey participants said they were ignored by the party leadership and hoped that the new RNC chair would integrate young voters into the overall political strategy.
Finally, "not supporting a candidate" outranked any particular candidate, though MD Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, garnered the support of 35% of the sample, followed by Ohio's Ken Blackwell, Current RNC chairman Mike Duncan won 3% of the vote.
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