Temperatures will continue to fall over the next few days

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Turn Up Your Support

Fewer than 25 percent of young Americans currently plan to vote in the midterm election, according to the results of a youth poll conducted by the Harvard Institute on Politics. 

The poll, released last week, is one of the longest-running surveys of 18- to 29-year-olds' attitudes on politics and civic engagement.  

Among the findings: Conservatives are more likely to turn out this fall, and President Obama's approval rating has improved. Young voters are mixed on the questions of whether to legalize marijuana and who is responsible for growing income disparities. 

On The Daily Circuit, we digest the poll results. What must the parties do to engage young voters?

If you're a young voter, do you think politicians are looking out for you? What's your view of the income gap? Leave your comments below.


According to the poll, 57 percent of millennials disapprove of Obamacare, with 40 percent saying it will worsen their quality of care and a majority believing it will drive up costs. Only 18 percent say Obamacare will improve their care. Among 18-to-29-year-olds currently without health insurance, less than one-third say they're likely to enroll in the Obamacare exchanges. (National Journal)

Poll: Young Voters Uninterested In November 2014 Elections


In a recent New Republic piece, Issenberg, a fellow at UCLA's Luskin School of Public Affairs, writes that Democrats may be able to drive up turnout numbers if they use proven methods that motivate a portion of "unreliable" voters -- like young people -- to go to the polls.
The challenge is that those methods, like sending canvassers out to targeted voters or dropping direct mail in the right mailboxes, can be costly. It requires donors and activists to stay engaged -- which is easier said than done, Issenberg says. (NPR)

The right's cynical millennial advantage: Why young liberals stay home


If our political parties want to better engage millennials, party leadership on both the left and the right need to support candidates who are willing to earn their enthusiasm; we need candidates willing to acknowledge the enormity of the challenges that young Americans face. Unsurprisingly, when politicians opt to go this route, they attract huge support among millennials, often able to leverage this support into surprising, landslide victories. Regardless of what you think of their politics or respective records, Elizabeth Warren, and, to a lesser degree, Bill de Blasio provide a clear template for politicians who hope to engage America's most apolitical generation. (Salon)

Politics and Government News

We digest the latest poll results and discuss what the parties have to do to engage young voters.

Can the parties motivate young voters to turn out for midterm elections?

Go Deeper.

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