When Donald J. Trump held a rally in Rome, Georgia, back in March, one of the attendees was Luke Harris, a second-generation Trump supporter and a first-time rallygoer. Harris, now 19 and a student at Kennesaw State University, grew up in Cartersville, Georgia, watching and listening to Trump, especially since his parents were strong supporters of the former president, even back in 2016 when Trump defeated Hillary Clinton.
Harris said he kind of grew into the Trump fandom. To him, and others like him, Trump’s 2016 victory was a major shift in American politics. While some saw this as a disruption of the norm, others hoped he would bring a different approach to the presidency. But for Harris and other young Trump supporters, Trump has been a constant presence throughout their formative years.
Charlie Meyer, a 17-year-old high school student from Green Bay, Wisconsin, got involved with the Trump campaign at 13 because he aligned with Trump’s views on abortion. Meyer said he doesn’t remember much about politics before Trump. Despite President Biden’s overall lead among young voters, recent polls suggest Trump is gaining traction in this demographic compared to earlier years.
Polls like the one conducted by The New York Times and Siena College indicate that Trump and Biden are virtually tied among voters aged 18 to 29. The Harvard Youth Poll, carried out by the Harvard Institute of Politics, shows Trump trailing by eight points, a much smaller gap than what we saw in 2020 when Biden outperformed Trump by 24 points among young voters. John Della Volpe, who directs the Harvard poll, points out that Trump’s current standings with young voters are noteworthy despite their generally liberal tendencies.
These poll results do come with some caveats, though. Younger voters tend to be less engaged in political races, especially when the candidates are older and have run before. Daniel A. Cox from the American Enterprise Institute noted that many young voters aren’t paying as much attention to the 2024 race as they did in 2020.
Despite these uncertainties, the Trump campaign sees opportunities among younger voters, particularly young men, who appear more inclined toward Republican views. In a February poll by The New York Times and Siena College, many young voters reported being positively impacted by Trump’s policies, while a significant number felt hurt by Biden’s. John Brabender, a media consultant for the Trump campaign, believes that the pandemic’s disruptions have fueled this shift toward Republican politics, suggesting that young people blame Biden more for the prolonged disruptions in their lives.
Biden’s campaign strategy in 2020 relied heavily on returning to pre-Trump stability, but these appeals might not resonate as much with voters who have only known a political landscape influenced by Trump. As one young voter, Makai Henry from Florida International University, put it, “For better or worse, I think this is the Trump era.” The idea of returning to a pre-Trump world doesn’t carry the same weight for these younger voters.
For some, like Allyson Langston, their support for Trump has less to do with him personally and more about aligning with Republican values in general. Although she initially leaned toward Democratic ideals, she gradually found herself drawn to conservative stances, especially after she had to support her family during the pandemic when both her mother and sister lost their jobs. Issues like abortion and student loan forgiveness also influenced her political trajectory.
But not everyone who grew up during the Trump era has leaned into conservative politics. Some, like Makai Henry, started as young conservatives but eventually shifted away from Trump. Henry, who has immigrant parents from Dominica, had early exposure to center-left politics through his mother, who campaigned for Mrs. Clinton. Although he found Trump’s style entertaining, his engagement with broader media sources and his appreciation for the federal stimulus during the pandemic led him to question conservative claims about deficit spending and government programs.
