Is Voting for Young People?

This book explores the reasons why young people are less likely to follow politics and vote in the United States, no matter who the candidates are, or what the issues may be. For the first time since its original publication in 2006, each chapter has been thoroughly updated to reflect the most recent available data.

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In 2016, Hillary Clinton managed to win the Democratic nomination despite losing young voters to Bernie Sanders by a margin of 73 to 26 percent. The fact that senior citizens were four times more likely to vote in the primaries than young people enabled her to survive her lack of youth appeal. But in the general election, Clinton’s problems with young people turned into her Achilles heel. Young people failed to come out to vote as much as she needed, or to support her in sufficient numbers when they did vote. What will happen in 2020, another history-making election? Already in late 2019, journalists were referring to the generation gap as "the most important divide among Democratic voters."

Is Voting for Young People? explores the reasons why young people are less likely to follow politics and vote in the United States (as well as in many other established democracies), no matter who the candidates are, or what the issues may be. This brief, accessible, and provocative book suggests ways of changing that.

New to the Fifth Edition






For the first time since its original 2006 publication, the entire text has been updated with the most recent available data and analysis.



A new chapter has been added—Young People and Politics in the Trump Era.



New chapter-opening vignettes illustrate one of the key points in each chapter.