Silicon Valley braces for Super Tuesday

Young and idealistic voters in Silicon Valley are largely united against Trump but split over Democratic hopefuls

San Francisco, March 1: The young and idealistic voters in Silicon Valley are largely united against US President Donald Trump, but split over the rival Democratic hopefuls as the crucial Super Tuesday primaries loom.

Frontrunner Bernie Sanders has gotten the most donations from the “internet industry,” according to tracking by the Center for Responsive Politics with rivals Pete Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren not far behind in the tallies.

“Silicon Valley is many shades of blue,” said Vivek Wadhwa, an entrepreneur and author who is a professor at Carnegie Mellon University's Silicon Valley branch.

“It is polarized, and it is polarized on the extreme left. There is a consensus here that Donald Trump is the enemy.”Sanders, who at 78 is from a different generation than the typical tech worker, connects with the younger crowd by promoting himself as a “disruptor,” like many emerging tech firms, said San Jose State University political science professor Melinda Jackson.

“Focus on big ideas, political revolution, generous universal benefits -these ideas really appeal to a lot of folks,” Jackson said.

With Californians set to vote on this week's Super Tuesday, when 14 states go to the polls, support for Sanders and Warren comes even with the two progressive candidates pledging to sharply raise taxes on high earners and break up the largest tech companies which dominate key economic sectors.

“Sanders does appeal to many of the workers who feel the downsides of income inequality,” said Jackson.

Some analysts see support for 38-year-old Buttigieg, with a more moderate platform. Reports said a Buttigieg gathering was hosted by

DEBATING INCOME INEQUALITY

Netflix chief Reed Hastings and attended by people linked to Google, Facebook and other large tech firms, an event denounced by rivals as the “wine cave” fundraiser.

“Pete Buttigieg is the favored candidate of Silicon Valley as he has a tech-friendly agenda and a moderate stance in regulation,” said Brookings Institution governance studies director Darrell