Young Americans Are Frustrated With Politics but Less Eager to Vote, Harvard Poll Finds

The midterm elections arrive at a pivotal moment for the country, with Americans contending with rising living costs and a war with Iran nearing its eighth month, two issues President Donald Trump pledged to address on his first day back in office. A recent Reuters poll put Trump's approval rating at 31%, the lowest point of his presidency.

Many voters appear to be channeling that discontent at the ballot box. The Onondaga County Board of Elections reported a record 8,761 residents cast ballots on the first day of early voting. But one group may be sitting out the surge: young people.

Only one in three Americans ages 18 to 29 say they will definitely vote in November, according to a new report from Harvard's Institute of Politics. That is down from 40% who said the same ahead of both the 2018 and 2022 midterms. The Harvard Youth Poll, conducted since 2000, tracks the political opinions, policy perspectives and top concerns of young Americans.

The latest findings paint a picture of deep pessimism. Just 9% of young people believe the country is headed in the right direction, while 69% say they feel more fearful than hopeful about the nation's future.

William Ryan, a 22-year-old Syracuse University student, said he cast his ballot in downtown Syracuse out of sheer frustration. "People are just pissed off," he said. "It's hard to kind of figure out which direction to move in."

By the poll's measures, Ryan is an outlier. "If you don't believe that the fundamental system of elections is working, or even trustable, you're very unlikely to be willing to come out and politically engage," said Sophia Robertson, chair of the Harvard Public Opinion Project.

Spencer Vono, 26, a lifelong Democrat with a professional career in Upstate New York, is another exception. She wasted no time voting on the first day of early voting. "I think it's important [to vote] just because no action happens unless you vote," she said.

Ryan and Vono share the same top concern: the economy. Nearly 70% of the 1,296 young Americans surveyed named the cost of living as a leading grievance, and more respondents expect to be worse off financially than their parents (27%) than better off (25%). Ryan, who said he is trying to stay optimistic, pointed to gasoline at $4.21 a gallon and median rents that have climbed an average of 13% over the past two years, according to Zillow tracking. "No one can afford anything," he said.

Trust is another hurdle. Only one in three young adults believe this year's election will run fairly and accurately. Ryan said he cannot fault the two in three young voters who may stay home, whatever their party registration. "Republicans are having to deal right now with the idiocy from the Trump administration," he said. "Democrats are having to deal with feckless, poorly managed politics from the left."

Robertson said the survey marks "the first time we're really seeing young people connect corruption to the affordability crisis." Whether the stakes, including $11.6 trillion in national debt accrued during Trump's time in office, just under six years across both terms, according to the U.S. Treasury, will push more young voters to turn out remains unclear. Ryan and Vono are hopeful their peers rally before polls close at 9 p.m. Tuesday. "I think it's definitely doable," Vono said. "I think we can advocate for a better future."