Describe a Goldwater '64/Obama '12 Voter

[H. Ross Peron]

This is bit of a toughie.

[Sumner 1868]

This is bit of a toughie.

Ex-Republican or Arizona Democrat.

[Prince of Salem]

Hillary Clinton

[Prince of Salem]

A Goldwater fanboy who, just as Goldwater, was mad at the Religious Right, but was so mad he became a Democrat.

OK, I tried

[Blair]

Young hot headed anti-communist who first voted in 1964, then mellowed down a bit

[Del Tachi]

Hillary Clinton

[solarstorm]

This is bit of a toughie.

Ex-Republican or Arizona Democrat.

Why would an Arizona Democrat not have voted for Johnson?

[Sumner 1868]

This is bit of a toughie.

Ex-Republican or Arizona Democrat.

Why would an Arizona Democrat not have voted for Johnson?

"Hes from x/y like me so I'll vote for him." Though it's clear most Democrats in Arizona were more loyal to their party than that, given how Goldwater practically lost  to LBJ even there. A southern Dixiecrat wouldn't vote for Obama, so there wasn't much left.

[Vosem]

Hillary Clinton

And others from the suburbs of Chicago, which actually stayed loyally GOP in '64, but shifted Democratic in the 1990s and voted strongly for the Illinoisan Obama in 2008 and 2012. Clinton, originally from there, is an example of such a voter.

[ElectionsGuy]

https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?action=gallery;sa=view&id=12383

There's a county map for Goldwater/Obama voters. Suburban Chicago, SoCali, and Arizona seem to be the most affected (besides the deep south). Pretty much a voter that has gotten more liberal over time, likely middle class suburban.

[Thunderbird is the word]

Someone in Goldwater's family or a Goldwater loyalist with an axe to grind against the Romney family for George Romney's refusal to endorse Goldwater.

[SWE]

These threads need to stop

[SingingAnalyst]

I suspect former MI Gov. William Milliken is in this category. A Republican, he endorsed Kerry in '04 and Obama in '08.

[All Along The Watchtower]

Hillary Clinton

And others from the suburbs of Chicago, which actually stayed loyally GOP in '64, but shifted Democratic in the 1990s and voted strongly for the Illinoisan Obama in 2008 and 2012. Clinton, originally from there, is an example of such a voter.

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1964-1947=17

Hmmm.....

[Thunderbird is the word]

Maybe a libertarian leaning Republican who grew disgusted with the religious right influence over the party to the point where they began to see Democrats as the lesser of two evils.

[Hydera]

Opposite of the Young Democrat turned Republican in later life over taxes.

Young Republican who liked Goldwater's ideas but slowly turned to the other side.

[RFayette]

Opposite of the Young Democrat turned Republican in later life over taxes.

Young Republican who liked Goldwater's ideas but slowly turned to the other side.

This.

Also, one group that comes to my mind right way is atheists/agnostics - back in the day when neither party was definitively socially on the 'left' or 'right,' many of these folks would have voted more based on their pocketbook; given the higher personal income on average of those with no religious persuasion, I could see a sizable faction of them voting for Goldwater, but subsequently backing Obama as religious issues became more polarizing.

[Fuzzy Bear]

Former Sen. Marlow Cook (R-KY)

Former Rep. John Buchanan (R-AL)

Former Sen. Lowell Weicker (R-CT)

Former Gov. Linwood Holton (R-VA)

Susan Eisenhower

There are any number of older Northeastern Republicans who voted Republican in 1964 out of sheer party loyalty, but who, over time, were put out by the religious conservatives of the GOP.  It's easy to be a party regular if you are certain you're party is going to win or lose in a landslide.  It's different today, when you're vote really matters, and your party's nominee is taking your party in a direction you'd rather not go.