It's Time for the Gerontocracy to Retire | Opinion

For more than a decade, the average member of Congress has had 20 years on the average voter. After the 2022 elections, there are signs that's beginning to change. The most powerful lawmakers in America are getting younger. Will this finally be the year that America will begin to transfer power to a new generation? For our country's sake, let's hope so.

The withdrawal of Nancy Pelosi, Jim Clyburn, and Steny Hoyer from their positions has brought down the average age of congressional leadership substantially. But American politics nonetheless remains dominated by septuagenarians and octogenarians. At 78 and 70, the last two presidents of the United States have been the oldest presidents on inauguration day. What's more, the last two presidential elections were dominated by septuagenarians, with younger candidates barely able to get a word in edgewise.

Had Hillary Clinton been elected in 2016, she would have been the second oldest president ever. Had Bernie Sanders won, he would have been the oldest American president ever. The last U.S. Senate was the oldest ever in American history, culminating with Dianne Feinstein at 89 years old. The list goes on.

This is unheard of in American history. The generation that founded America was largely in its 30s and 40s, with Thomas Jefferson a mere 33 when he took the quill in hand and wrote the Declaration of Independence. Also young were the leaders who won the Civil War: Abraham Lincoln took the oath of office at 52; William T. Sherman marched to the sea at 44; Ulysses S. Grant arrived just shy of 43 at Appomattox. In the entire 20th century, only five presidents were older than 60 years when inaugurated. In the 21st century, two of four so far have been older than 70.

Further, it seems this is a uniquely American issue. The New York Times found that most wealthy democracies have seen their average age of leadership drop since 1950. Countries like France, the U.K., Chile, New Zealand, and Finland are run by people in their 30s and 40s. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is barely 51. But in America, the average age of our political leadership is rising.

Should we be concerned that the leadership class in American politics is increasingly occupied by 70- and 80-year-olds? The question is freighted with concerns about ageism, discrimination, and veiled hints about mental capacity. Nonetheless, it's certainly fair to question whether your average septuagenarian has the stamina and mental sharpness of people decades younger. Some less so than others, but the years punish us all.

But more than just a question of capacity, the graying of American politics poses a challenge to representative democracy. It is fair to question whether a disproportionately older political leadership class truly reflects America's needs, interests, and perspectives. Can political leadership that came of age in a time of easy, broadly distributed prosperity understand the anxieties of Americans whose lives have been marked by frequent devastating recessions and growing economic inequality? Can they reflect and address the concerns of younger Americans, who feel squeezed by rising college debts, lack of gun control reform, and limited job prospects? Are they incentivized to address structural fiscal problems such as Social Security and Medicaid, where hard choices are likely to be made over the next several decades?

If the past two decades of American politics are any guide, it seems that the answer is a definitive "no." Our political class has consistently prioritized the needs of older adults over young adults and youth.

Our current leaders—almost exclusively Boomers—have overseen a remarkable decline in American prosperity from which they benefited so handsomely. More and more gains have accrued to their generation, from the young to the old, from labor to capital, all while the rich have become richer, the poor poorer, our nation's natural beauty and resources have been decimated, and we've even begun dying earlier. The Boomer generation has chosen to stubbornly cling to power and enrich themselves while mortgaging the future of their children and grandchildren. The numbers don't lie.

A friend once told us that every leader faces a point in their life as they age when they must choose to exercise wisdom instead of leadership. That time has long passed for the Boomer generation.

It's time for the gerontocracy to retire.

Michael Novogratz is the CEO of Galaxy Digital and invests in democracy reform through his family philanthropy Galaxy Gives.

William Watterson is the executive director of Galaxy Gives and leads their efforts to end mass incarceration and strengthen American democracy.

The views expressed in this article are the writers' own.