Is there an ideal age for presidential candidates?

YouGov’s latest polling finds that, when asked directly, the vast majority of Americans would set the “ideal” age range for a new president much lower than Clinton’s or Sanders’s age. In fact, less than 1% of Americans say the “ideal” is 70 years old or higher, and 92% put the ideal range below 60. A candidate can also be too young – only 9% want a president under 40 – and most want him or her to be 40-49 (38%) or 50-59 (44%).

There is relatively little difference between Democratic and Republican identifiers on this issue: both are most likely to pick the 50-59 range. Democrats are more likely to pick 60-69 – possiby an acknowledgement of Clinton – but 87% nevertheless say the ideal age is under 60. There is a much more dramatic difference between the views of younger and older Americans, who each prefer a candidate closer to their own age.

However, asked another way, Americans seem less interested in choosing a fresh, young face over an old hand. 47% say “strength and experience” is more important for a presidential candidate than “new direction and new ideas”, which is preferred by 39%. And while in 2007 a poll found Democrats craving a “new direction”, today they say experience is more important.