Last updated on September 25th, 2023 at 02:16 pm
Young voters say that Donald Trump has made their lives worse, and they are supporting Joe Biden in numbers comparable to Bernie Sanders.
The Spring 2020 Harvard Youth Poll found Biden leading Trump 51%-28% with voters age 18-29, and 60%-30% among young voters who are likely to vote.
According to the Harvard Youth Poll:
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The Democratic advantage with Biden leading the ticket (+30) is similar to the advantage Democrats would enjoy if Senator Bernie Sanders had been the party nominee. In a hypothetical matchup between Sanders and Trump, 62% of likely voters reported that they would support the Vermont Senator, 31% President Trump (+31). Among likely voters, Biden captures 88% of young Democrats, Trump 90% of young Republicans; among Independents, 56% prefer Biden, and 25% prefer Trump.
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President Trump’s job performance rating of 32% approval stands at the same level it was during the initial months of his administration (Spring 2017), and seven points better than it was at its lowest point measured in our poll, in the weeks following the Parkland shootings.
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Overall, 15% of young Americans indicate that as a result of President Trump, their lives are better, 29% believe they are worse, 39% responded no different, 16% were unsure. Across most demographic subgroups such as gender, race/ethnicity, education, and community type, more said their lives were worse than better under President Trump’s leadership. Nearly half of Republicans (46%) say their lives are better, 7% worse, 39% no different. For Democrats: 4% better, 46% worse; Independents: 9% better, 23% worse.
Younger voters are much more pragmatic than the pundit class and conventional wisdom gives them credit for being. The poll shatters the idea that voters age 18-29 are supporters only of Sen. Bernie Sanders.
The Harvard Youth Poll is also an indicator that the unity efforts of Sanders and Biden are paying dividends. Former Vice President Biden has adopted some of the key Sanders and Warren proposals into his platform and younger voters are noticing.
Trump has been losing Independents to Biden and this trend is continuing with voters age 18-29.
Young voters share the same priority as voters in other demographics. A majority want Trump out of the White House.
There is a movement growing behind Joe Biden, as a majority of Americans are uniting behind the common goal of making Trump a one-term president.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
