Gen Z Stopped the Red Wave

Written by Hudson Crozier

What we now know: About 27 percent of voters aged 18-29 voted this November, marking the second-highest youth turnout of any midterm election in history. “Generation Z” favors the Democratic Party more than any other age group and was a key factor in many races Republicans lost.

What young voters care about: Exit polls show that youth voters were motivated by their support for progressive causes like abortion rights, climate policy, and gun control. Twenty-five-year-old candidate Maxwell Frost was elected in Florida as the first Gen-Z Congressmen in history after running on these issues.

A deep cultural shift: Polling data in recent years show that Gen-Z Americans are the most secular and openly LGBTQ of any living age group. They are also increasingly likely to have been raised by one parent and to believe that single-parent households are not “a bad thing for society.”

Big picture: The GOP has a massive political problem on its hands. While Republicans made gains among minority voters this year, they will have to address the rising threat of a politically active generation with little connection to traditional values.