On Election Day, America’s youth had the opportunity to make their voices heard once again. This time, less of them voted for Democrats.
Former President Donald Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 Presidential election on Tuesday after gaining control of key swing states Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Georgia, which had gone blue for President Joe Biden in 2020. (Nevada and Arizona have not been called as of this article’s publication.)
Young people, over 8 million of whom were expected to vote for the first time this year, might have played a role in Trump’s win. While Harris received a larger share of the young vote than Trump, the number was less than Biden’s share in 2020, according to exit polling from NBC News. Strikingly, only 54% of young voters ages 18 to 24 chose Harris, 11 percentage points lower than Biden, who received 65% of that age range, in 2020.
Meanwhile, Trump saw an 11 percentage point gain in that age range, jumping from 31% in 2020 to 42% in 2024.
Turnout for young voters, who the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at Tufts University consider to be young people ages 18 to 34, is always a big topic during election years
This is because young people are less likely to vote, according to Our World in Data, which found that among registered voters, only 51% of citizens ages 18 to 24 and 60% of those ages 25 to 34 turned out to the polls in 2020.
“I know a lot of us that aren’t into politics, we kind of just shy away from it,” said James Watson, a 33-year-old Manhattan resident. “But these last couple of elections, I’ve been very vocal about what needs to happen and what needs to change in order for society to make a move forward instead of steps backward.”
Many expected voters appeared reinvigorated when Harris became the Democratic nominee. At 60, Harris was the younger candidate in the race against the 78-year-old Trump. This starkly contrasted feelings of discouragement at the sight of another Biden campaign. At 81, many young voters believed it was time for a younger candidate to become the face of the Democratic Party.
The storefront of a small clothing business near New York University urges people to vote. Around 57% of young voters between 18 and 34 are “extremely likely” to vote in the 2024 Presidential election, according to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at Tufts University. Photo credit: Jiana Smith. 
Multiple NYC-based universities, such as the City University of New York, New York University and Columbia University, have online resources available to help young people register and find their local polling stations. Photo credit: Screenshots of CUNY, NYU and Columbia University webpages. 
Multiple NYC-based universities, such as the City University of New York, New York University and Columbia University, have online resources available to help young people register and find their local polling stations. Photo credit: Screenshots of CUNY, NYU and Columbia University webpages. 
Multiple NYC-based universities, such as the City University of New York, New York University and Columbia University, have online resources available to help young people register and find their local polling stations. Photo credit: Screenshots of CUNY, NYU and Columbia University webpages.
Before Election Day, AmNews spoke to young voters around New York City, including Watson, to ask how they felt about this year’s election.
Watson said he was worried when Biden was still in the race due to how demanding the position is.
“I know the type of stress that it can take on a person’s body, on a person’s mental health,” said Watson. “And he was visually declining. We all knew it.”
Manhattan resident Murlin St. Jean, 29, said he was also unenthused by the Biden campaign, but was happy about Harris.
“When [Biden] was in the race, I don’t think I was gonna vote at all,” said St. Jean, who recently moved from Florida. “As soon as Harris got in, that’s when I planned to register.”
The problem for Harris might have been the same as four years ago: only some are enthusiastic about her being the nominee. Three distinct things deterred voters from fully supporting the Vice President’s campaign. The first was her connection to President Biden. Many feel that she, being one half of the Biden-Harris ticket, would be no different as a president than Biden was. That had been one of the biggest attack points of the Trump campaign and it appears to have kept the two virtually even in the swing states.
The second was a result of the previous administration. Several voters were worried the new Harris-Walz administration may not live up to their campaign promises. Whether it was an issue of congressional approval or a lack of emphasis, some promises were only partially kept over the last four years.
The third was the war in Gaza. As the violence in the Gaza Strip ensued, many young voters had taken issue with the United States’ involvement in the war. Many hesitated to lend support to Harris given the public stance she initially made in support of Israel’s right to defend itself. Some felt the urge to vote for third-party candidates, who in total received 4% of the 18- to 24-year-old vote. Others felt the stakes in this election are too high to vote for a third party.
“I think it would be harder to beat Donald Trump if people vote third party because the Democrats need all the votes they can get — especially in swing states,” Sydney Cooper said.
However, the 22-year-old Howard University alumna said she does get why people might move away from the two predominant parties.
“I do understand why people are voting third party considering the genocide going on,” said Cooper. “But I also think in order to end that, we have to get the lesser of two evil candidates [referencing Harris] in office.”
Many followed the notion that they were voting for the “lesser of two evils” in this election. In 2016, 100 million eligible voters, or only 43% of those eligible, did not cast a vote. That led to Donald Trump defeating Hillary Clinton and changing politics forever. It appeared many were less than enthusiastic about the former secretary of state. Many young voters were hoping for Senator Bernie Sanders to be the nominee that year and were turned off when he didn’t win the Democratic nomination.
In 2024, people appeared more energetic about the Harris campaign and voters appeared more encouraged about the possibility of a Harris presidency. Harris had frequently called this election the “most consequential” election of our lifetime. That rallying cry sent voters to the polls in the hope of a historic victory.
Watson said while he felt anxious about the election, he was excited about the prospect of Harris winning.
“We’re in such a pivotal moment in history, simply because we have a female who is running for president —– and not only is she a female, she’s a Black female,” Watson said. “I’m ready, I’m very ready. Because I feel like our voices, especially at this time, need to be heard.”