Why Young Voters Shifted Towards Trump

[Vambram]

Why Young Voters Shifted Towards Trump

President-elect Donald Trump made huge inroads with young voters this past election cycle. Fifty-six percent of young men aged 18-29 voted for Trump this year,

washingtonstand.com

President-elect Donald Trump made huge inroads with young voters this past election cycle. Fifty-six percent of young men aged 18-29 voted for Trump this year, a major flip from 2020 when 56% of them voted for Joe Biden. Trump also made inroads with young women, who shifted 11 points toward him compared to four years ago.

While Vice President Kamala Harris ultimately won the majority of voters under 30, she won them by just six points, a quarter of the 24 percentage points Biden had from them four years prior. What can explain this massive shift in support among the youth vote from Democrats to Republicans?

Prices are 20% higher now than when Joe Biden first took office and young people are struggling to build wealth due to the burden of everyday expenses. As inflation continues to outpace wage growth and housing costs skyrocket, it’s no surprise that the economy was the number one issue for young voters this election cycle. Forty percent of voters under 30 polled by the Associated Press chose the economy as their reason for voting. And they weren’t convinced Harris — or the Democrats — could fix it.

“The affordability crisis is particularly biting to younger Americans trying to get their foothold in the economy,” Matt Carpenter, director of FRC Action told The Washington Stand. “As they entered the work force, they were met with rising home and grocery prices. This certainly paid a huge factor in their rightward shift.”

Besides the economy, younger voters also saw the Republican ticket as the authentic ticket. This perception is in large part due to the Trump campaign’s strategy to reach younger voters online. Whether it was Trump creating a TikTok account or appearing on some of the top podcasts in the country like Joe Rogan or Theo Von, the campaign effectively won over low propensity, young male voters by talking to them at their level.

In a recent interview with The New York Times, several young people talked about why they opted for Trump over Harris.

“Trump enthusiastically said yes to a three-hour, open, honest conversation with Joe Rogan, who was a former Bernie bro,” a 22-year-old voter named Jack told the paper. “I think it’s very telling about which candidate is authentic and which candidate is not.”

Young voters could see through Harris’s contrived media appearances and rehearsed stump speeches. Even when she tried to mirror Trump by appearing on the left-leaning, “Call Her Daddy” podcast, she appeared fake and out-of-touch with the issues voters cared about, whereas Trump increased his likeability by having genuine conversations with middle-of-the-road podcasters and influencers.

 

[friend of]

“Trump enthusiastically said yes to a three-hour, open, honest conversation with Joe Rogan, who was a former Bernie bro,” a 22-year-old voter named Jack told the paper. “I think it’s very telling about which candidate is authentic and which candidate is not.”

This

 

[Fantine]

All over the world, the global inflation punished incumbents of every persuasion.
So my answer is:
Bad luck.
Worse judgment.

 

[Vambram]

All over the world, the global inflation punished incumbents of every persuasion.
So my answer is:
Bad luck.
Worse judgment.

Even though the young people polled are saying differently?

 

[Fantine]

The poll said they felt Trump could get the economy moving faster.
So style over substance? It was truly difficult for me to find one sentence of substance within all that boldness, but maybe projecting massive confidence while having nothing more than "a concept of a plan" impressed them.
I hope they bring a wiser adult with them when they buy their first used cars.

 

[BCP1928]

Why Young Voters Shifted Towards Trump

President-elect Donald Trump made huge inroads with young voters this past election cycle. Fifty-six percent of young men aged 18-29 voted for Trump this year,

washingtonstand.com

President-elect Donald Trump made huge inroads with young voters this past election cycle. Fifty-six percent of young men aged 18-29 voted for Trump this year, a major flip from 2020 when 56% of them voted for Joe Biden. Trump also made inroads with young women, who shifted 11 points toward him compared to four years ago.

While Vice President Kamala Harris ultimately won the majority of voters under 30, she won them by just six points, a quarter of the 24 percentage points Biden had from them four years prior. What can explain this massive shift in support among the youth vote from Democrats to Republicans?

Prices are 20% higher now than when Joe Biden first took office and young people are struggling to build wealth due to the burden of everyday expenses. As inflation continues to outpace wage growth and housing costs skyrocket, it’s no surprise that the economy was the number one issue for young voters this election cycle. Forty percent of voters under 30 polled by the Associated Press chose the economy as their reason for voting. And they weren’t convinced Harris — or the Democrats — could fix it.

“The affordability crisis is particularly biting to younger Americans trying to get their foothold in the economy,” Matt Carpenter, director of FRC Action told The Washington Stand. “As they entered the work force, they were met with rising home and grocery prices. This certainly paid a huge factor in their rightward shift.”

Besides the economy, younger voters also saw the Republican ticket as the authentic ticket. This perception is in large part due to the Trump campaign’s strategy to reach younger voters online. Whether it was Trump creating a TikTok account or appearing on some of the top podcasts in the country like Joe Rogan or Theo Von, the campaign effectively won over low propensity, young male voters by talking to them at their level.

In a recent interview with The New York Times, several young people talked about why they opted for Trump over Harris.

“Trump enthusiastically said yes to a three-hour, open, honest conversation with Joe Rogan, who was a former Bernie bro,” a 22-year-old voter named Jack told the paper. “I think it’s very telling about which candidate is authentic and which candidate is not.”

Young voters could see through Harris’s contrived media appearances and rehearsed stump speeches. Even when she tried to mirror Trump by appearing on the left-leaning, “Call Her Daddy” podcast, she appeared fake and out-of-touch with the issues voters cared about, whereas Trump increased his likeability by having genuine conversations with middle-of-the-road podcasters and influencers.

Pretty much spot on, I think. But now the Republicans are facing a challenge. They like to regard the election as a victory in the culture war and expect Trump to go out and slay the Woke Monster for them. OK, perhaps he will. But these young people didn't vote for Trump for that, as you point out, and slaying the Woke Monster won't be enough for them. Republicans are going to have to give them something real, something like better pay and working conditions, tangible stuff. Can they do it?

 

[Fantine]

Pretty much spot on, I think. But now the Republicans are facing a challenge. They like to regard the election as a victory in the culture war and expect Trump to go out and slay the Woke Monster for them. OK, perhaps he will. But these young people didn't vote for Trump for that, as you point out, and slaying the Woke Monster won't be enough for them. Republicans are going to have to give them something real, something like better pay and working conditions, tangible stuff. Can they do it?

My guess is no.

 

[Vambram]

The poll said they felt Trump could get the economy moving faster.
So style over substance? It was truly difficult for me to find one sentence of substance within all that boldness, but maybe projecting massive confidence while having nothing more than "a concept of a plan" impressed them.
I hope they bring a wiser adult with them when they buy their first used cars.

Besides the economy, younger voters also saw the Republican ticket as the authentic ticket. This perception is in large part due to the Trump campaign’s strategy to reach younger voters online. Whether it was Trump creating a TikTok account or appearing on some of the top podcasts in the country like Joe Rogan or Theo Von, the campaign effectively won over low propensity, young male voters by talking to them at their level.

In a recent interview with The New York Times, several young people talked about why they opted for Trump over Harris.

“Trump enthusiastically said yes to a three-hour, open, honest conversation with Joe Rogan, who was a former Bernie bro,” a 22-year-old voter named Jack told the paper. “I think it’s very telling about which candidate is authentic and which candidate is not.”