Enthusiasm among young voters has spiked in North Carolina and other battleground states since Vice President Kamala Harris has emerged as the likely Democratic nominee for president, according to a group dedicated to mobilizing voters 18 to 35.
NextGen America has ground operations in eight states, including Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania and North Carolina. The nonprofit organization issued a statement this week saying in the past two weeks — since Harris’s ascendance as the likely replacement for President Joe Biden atop the Democratic Party ticket — there has been a 200% increase in volunteer sign-ups.
“We have seen more students come up to our field teams asking about how they can register, excited about how they can get involved and participate in getting their classmates out to vote,” said Antonio Arrellano, Vice President of Communications with NextGen. Arrellano is based in North Carolina, where NextGen has registration drives and voter outreach operations on 20 college and university campuses.
Arrellano said the very issues Harris is emphasizing in her campaign — such as reproductive rights, gun safety, and commitment to combating climate change — are the ones that resonate most with that cohort of young voters, 18- to 35-years-old.
“Make no mistake,” Arrellano said, “it’s young people that are progressive, that are enthusiastic about turning out this election cycle.”
But North Carolina Republicans say they’ve seen young voter enthusiasm for their cause, too.
According to Emily Stack, who chairs the North Carolina Federation of Young Republicans, there was a boost in interest among young voters in getting involved in this year’s election following the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump at his campaign rally in Pennsylvania on July 13.
“We had a huge spike of individuals reach out across the state and, apparently, across the country, according to our national federation, of younger individuals looking to get involved with young Republicans,” Stack said.
As for the issues driving these voters, Stack said it’s concern about the economy that is foremost in their minds.
“No one can buy houses right now,” Stack argued. “Especially people coming out of college, they can’t find jobs.”
Stack implied a worrisome economy is something young voters blame on Biden and, by extension, Harris.
“That’s where our younger voters are having concerns and why we’re not seeing actually a connection for some of them for Harris,” Stack said. “They’re seeing a continuation of this bad economy that they’re currently suffering under.”
The Spring 2024 Harvard Youth Poll showed a flagging economy was the top concern for young voters, according to David McLennan, who teaches political science and directs the Meredith College Poll.
“They do care about abortion, they do care about health care, they do care about things like climate change a little bit more so than some older generations do,” McLennan said. “But, again, the kind of top issue for young people is not all that much different than it is for older voters.”
Issues and candidates notwithstanding, McLennan said he doesn’t expect a drastic change to young voter turnout this year.
“History would tell us that the youngest generation of voters always lags behind the older generations of voters,” McLennan said. “Even, you know, with a candidate that they seem to be more enthusiastic about.”
McLennan said that come September, after the Democratic Party holds its convention later this month and officially nominates a replacement for Biden, the level of enthusiasm and likely participation level of young voters this fall will become clearer.
