Why We Could See Record Youth Turnout This Year

Why don’t young people vote? Apathy and disillusionment about politics often get the blame. But according to our recent survey with Ipsos, low turnout among young adults may have more to do with the fact that our electoral system makes it genuinely difficult for them to vote. That could make the high turnout we’re seeing from young voters so far this year even more noteworthy — because in many parts of the country, barriers to voting are even higher because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In general, young adults (ages 18-34) were much likelier than older adults (particularly those ages 65 and older) to say that they or someone in their household couldn’t get off work to vote in a previous election, didn’t receive their ballot in time, missed the registration deadline or had trouble finding or accessing their polling place.

This year, though, young people seem highly motivated to vote — just like Americans as a whole. According to our survey, they’re slightly less likely than older voters to say the outcome of the 2020 election really matters (75 percent compared with 91 percent of people 65 or over). But a high share (78 percent) of young people told us they’re planning to vote this year (although, of course, the number who actually cast a ballot will almost certainly be lower).