It’s clear that the youngest generation of voters isn’t the same as the ones that came before. So, what’s up with the kids?
Gen Z researcher Rachel Janfaza joins Vox’s Astead Herndon to discuss how young voters are prioritizing economic survival, confronting their anxieties related to AI-job displacement, and searching for pragmatic, transparent leaders who address their everyday challenges.
00:00 Astead’s love-hate relationship with Gen Z
05:04 The theory of two Gen Z’s
06:19 How the pandemic broke Gen Z
09:48 Growing up with a phone in one hand
16:15 Rejection of the algorithm
17:56 The drivers of economic anxiety
22:08 AI and the future of work
25:25 The gender divide, explained
31:43 Hope for a post-Trump politics
32:51 Takeaways
Sources and further reading:
The Up and Up: www.theupandup.us/
We could shape one party to who we vote for, but bullshit both-sides-ism isn’t going to remove the cancerous fascism and the pedophiles in the white house
I’m so proud of this gen🥲
Yeah, then they either don’t vote or vote for jill stein
me when I make shit up to cyclically hate the new generation
Americans under the age of 30 voted for Harris by 4 points (50 percent Harris – 46 percent Trump), though young men and women diverged dramatically, with men under 30 voting for Trump by 16 points (41 percent Harris – 57 percent Trump), and women under 30 voting for Harris by 24 points (59 percent Harris – 35 percent Trump).
The youth turnout rate of 47% in 2024 was slightly lower than the historic 50% in 2020, but it remains a marked improvement from the 39% rate in 2016. To put it in historical context: young voter turnout in the United States had hovered between 35–40% for most elections since the 1970s. The 2020 and 2024 cycles represent a genuine structural shift.
