Monday, October 29, 2018

Young people say they plan to vote at near-historic highs

A high number of young voters could turn out in the 2018 midterms, according to a new poll from the Harvard University Institute of Politics.

The biannual poll released Monday showed that 40 percent of 18- to 29-year olds said they will "definitely vote" in the 2018 midterm elections, a substantial increase from the 2014 and 2010 midterms.

"We believe there is a marked increase in youth turnout, unlike anything we've seen in 32 years," said John Della Volpe, director of polling for the Institute of Politics.

Young people who identify as Democrats are more likely to say they will definitely vote; 54 percent of Democrats, 43 percent of Republicans, and 24 percent of independents told Harvard researchers they would vote. That's good for Democrats, but there's also evidence that young Republican voters are becoming more enthusiastic as the election nears.

With an eye ahead to 2020, the majority of the nearly 2,000 young people Harvard polled also seem to have an intense dislike of President Donald Trump — just 11 percent of young Americans said they are "sure to" vote for Trump, eclipsed by the 59 percent said they will "never vote for him."

The big question is whether that anger against Trump will trickle down to the 2018 midterms.


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