October 17th, 2008

Single White Females

By Eileen Smith

Read the original article at Texas Monthly.

Looks like Obama has finally tapped into the virtual mother lode of voting blocs: unmarried women. Single women make up one-quarter of the voting age population, which is surprising since I assumed that they were all out trying to find husbands and too busy to vote. (Tick tick, ladies.)

The majority of unmarried women support Obama, making up an integral part of his overall base. According to a recent Democracy Corps survey of voters under 30, Obama held a 60 to 30 percent lead among white unmarried young women, but support was split among married women.

In 2004, unmarried women supported John Kerry with a 23-point margin; unmarried women support Obama by 27 points. So what accounts for the four-point increase?

Simple. Obama’s hotter.

WVWV News
Study suggests single women make, save less money
02 Jan 09 | 13:53

FAIRFIELD COUNTY - Women who live alone or head their own households are bringing home - and saving - less money than the average American family.

At least that's what a recent analysis on female spending habits from the Consumer Federation of America suggests. Single women, including those who are divorced or widowed, reportedly are earning less and setting aside little to no money for emergencies.

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What is the single biggest issue facing women in 2009?
02 Jan 09 | 13:52

Tough times all over, yet women enter this troubling financial cycle already behind the guys. Over a quarter of all U.S. households are headed by a woman, and those families earn and save less than all other households. In addition, single women have a median net worth that is about a third of the $93,000 national average.

Given these added challenges, can women keep up with their bills? Maybe, but it’s their long-term health that seems to be falling by the wayside.

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Huffington Post: Not Your Granddad's New Deal: An Economic Stimulus for a Changing America
29 Dec 08 | 08:46

By Page Gardner

Most economists agree that an anti-recession program should achieve three goals: Pump money into the economy. Save existing jobs and create new jobs. And help those in greatest need.

All three of these signposts point to a large, fast-growing, but long-forgotten group of Americans who should be a major focus of emergency economic measures: the nation’s 53 million single, separated, divorced and widowed women.

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Gainesville Times: Census report reveals much about how we live
09 Dec 08 | 16:50

A survey released today by the U.S. Census Bureau reveals that 27 percent of Hall County residents older than 25 don’t have a high school education and one in three households headed by a single mother with children younger than 5 is living below the poverty level.

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