Teenagers are meant to be rebellious. It’s a trait perennially assigned to them. Kids pushing towards independence, yearning to strip themselves from the shadow of their parents. They don’t want to look or act like them. They certainly don’t want to think like them.
It’s why liberalism is often tied to youth, and conservatism to adulthood. Traditionally, older people want less change, while younger people want to break through the status quo — changing the world for the better.
In this 2024 presidential election, it doesn’t seem like Generation Z is too set on following that precedent.
When Trump won the presidential election in 2016, there was a shock factor. Both the people and the polls didn’t seem to believe he really had a shot. But this election felt different. The polls were close, and if anything, leaned red.
After the votes were counted, one demographic stood out: 56% of young men aged 18-29 voted for Trump.
Entering this election, some believed a Trump loss would force the Republican Party to go through a massive culture change. That conservatism would have to take a more subdued approach than that of Trump’s MAGA movement.
“If Trump leaves that party, it’s going to be a disaster.” LPC history and media literacy professor Nolan Higdon said. “The Republican Party is the Trump party.”
Now a Republican sweep proves that conservatism is not barely surviving, but thriving. Despite being the newest generation of supposed champions of liberal views and minority rights, conservatism still manages to take the spotlight.
“Maybe that’s our true self,” sociology professor Akihiko Hirose, said. “Maybe we are always conservative, maybe we are always racist, maybe we are always sexist. That’s one way of looking at it in that it’s kind of ridiculous, but it could be easy to understand.”
Hirose said that young men could potentially feel threatened by a female president. They voted Trump not only because they might agree with his stances or policies, but also to protect American masculinity.
On the policy front, the top issue for young voters was the economy. According to AP News, 4 in 10 young voters under 45 agreed the economy was the most important issue of the election. Faced with economic concerns, many are inclined to vote out the incumbent. That’s the norm, at least.
Harris and Democrats have argued that the economy isn’t doing bad under Biden. His administration has seen overall employment up 12%, average pay up 19% and unemployment down from 6.7% to 4.1%, according to Derek Saul with Forbes.com. Inflation went up by 20.1% over Biden’s first 45 months, but has fallen since then. Some still can’t feel confident, no matter what the numbers show.
“The fact that Democrats are out here saying ‘the economy is better than people think,’ that’s a horrible argument to have,” Higdon said. “How people feel is all that matters. You can tell them until you’re blue in the face the economy is great, but if 60% of the country disagrees, you’re screwed.”
Many financial experts believe Trump’s economic agenda, especially his planned tariffs, would cause a rise in prices, specifically in low-income communities. The average household would pay several thousand more dollars on basic necessities like clothing and appliances. Instead of helping the economy, Trump could potentially make it even worse.
Another issue on the minds of young voters were the wars in Gaza and Ukraine. Some believed that Harris’s stance on the issue wasn’t strong enough to garner a vote.
“I voted for Jill Stein,” LPC student Noor Khansa said, “because I’ve heard that she’s not complicit in the genocide of Palestinians.”
In Dearborn, Michigan, where 55% of the population is of Middle Eastern descent, this trend can be seen clearly. Biden won the county with 69% of the vote in 2020. Harris only managed 36%.
But when looking at Trump’s first term, it’s hard to imagine him fulfilling a ceasefire. While he was president, Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, moving the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
In Jan. 2020, he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a plan to end the conflict, but it was said to have been developed without Palestinian input. The plan favored Israel, giving them large portions of the West Bank and weakened support for an autonomous Palestinian state. Moreover, Trump just made former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee Ambassador to Israel.
“There’s really no such thing as Palestine,” Huckabee said in 2015.
Choosing to not vote for Harris in an attempt to pressure Democrats to end military aid to Israel seemingly gave Trump an edge.
The largest impact Generations Z and Alpha will see is Trump’s plan for education. He, along with the Heritage Foundation-created Project 2025, to abolish the Department of Education. Along with this, he plans on paying white students, who he believes are “victims” of DEI, restitution for any damage done to their education.
“We are going to get this anti-American insanity out of our institutions once and for all,” Trump said in a social media video posted last July. “We are going to have real education in America.”
Trump, with his anti-LGBTQ+, anti-women and anti-immigrant agenda also puts stress not just on young voters, but all affected demographics. Even if he isn’t able to pass some of his more extreme policies, having a president with such heavy rhetoric will take a toll.
“It doesn’t affect me directly,” Fiona Hua, a student at LPC who majors in social work, said, “but this is affecting my close ones, especially with my sibling. (Trump) was planning on getting rid of gender affirming healthcare, which is a red flag because my sibling is transgender.”
Despite Trump’s extremist views, young voters found reasons to vote for him or refrain from voting against him. Whether it was because of the economy, the conflict in Gaza or an unconscious desire to defend American masculinity, young people turned to traditional conservatism.
“People (will) choose conservatism over pretty much anything,” Hua said. “I think it’s because they would rather stick to traditional values and lifestyles.”
Top Illustration: Young voters, especially men, leaned away from the Democratic Party and sided more with Donald Trump. (Art by Mel Llamas/ The Express)
Jakob Arnarsson is the Editor-in-Chief of The Express. Follow him on X, formally Twitter, @JakobA2004
