On This Page: Youth Voting Trends: Presidential Elections | 2008 Presidential Primaries and Caucuses | Youth Voting Trends: Midterm Elections | Voting Laws & Youth Turnout | Getting Out the Youth Vote: What Works | Local Political Parties & Youth | Other Resources

Overview

Our fact sheet on youth voter turnout and trends in 2008 and a 50-state breakdown can be downloaded here (PDF). Our interactive map presents basic data on all 50 states through 2004. Our Quick Facts Sheet provides basic information on youth voting in the 2000 and 2004 general elections and the 2008 primaries and caucuses, along with demographic data on young citizens in the states.

Youth Voting Trends: Presidential Elections (Tabulations for 18-24 and 18-29 year olds available upon request)

CIRCLE’s preliminary estimate, based on the National Exit Polls, suggest that youth turnout rose in 2008 for the third consecutive presidential election. An estimated 23 million young Americans under the age of 30 voted, an increase of 3.4 million compared with 2004. CIRCLE estimates that youth voter turnout rose to between 52 percent and 53 percent, an increase of 4 to 5 percentage points over CIRCLE’s estimate based on the 2004 exit polls. As this graph shows, CIRCLE’s estimates of youth turnout based on the National Exit Polls have closely tracked estimates based on the Census Current Population Supplement. The latter will be available in 2009. Click for more details on the 2008 youth vote.

Source: Young Voters in the 2008 Presidential Election

presidential trendYouth voting surged by 11 percentage points in 2004. In presidential election years between 1972 and 2000, the turnout rate had declined by 16 percentage points among young citizens before rebounding by 11 percentage points in the 2004 election. It remains to be seen if the increase in youth turnout in 2004 is part of a new trend or is instead a spike in youth electoral participation like the 1992 election.

In 2004, 47% of 18-24 year old citizens voted, 66% of citizens 25 and older voted.

Single young people, particularly women, are more likely to vote than married young people. The turnout among single women age 18-24 led the way and increased by 12 percentage points, or about one third, since 2000.

Source: “The Youth Vote 2004″

In 2004 youth voter turnout was highest in Minnesota (69 percent), Wisconsin (63 percent), Iowa (62 percent), Maine (59 percent), and New Hampshire (58 percent).

Source: “Youth Voter Turnout in the States”

Young women voted at higher rates than young men in the 2004 election. 50 percent of 18-24 year old women and 44 percent of young men voted in 2004.

Source: “Voter Turnout Among Women and Men”

In 2004, much of the surge in youth voting was driven by an increase in voting among African-American youth. African-American turnout fell off in the 1988 election and remained relatively stable until the 2004 election, in which African-Americans experienced a jump in turnout of more than 11 percentage points over 2000—the greatest increase in turnout of any racial or ethnic minority group during the recent election cycle.

Source: “Electoral Engagement Among Minority Youth”

2008 Presidential Primaries and Caucuses

Youth turnout rose sharply in the 2008 primary campaign. More details about state and national youth turnout in the 2008 primaries and caucuses can be found here. More than 6.5 million young people under the age of 30 participated in the 2008 primaries and caucuses. In states where data is available for both the 2008 and 2000 primaries, the national youth turnout rate rose from nine percent in the 2000 primaries to 17 percent in the 2008 primaries. (2000 is the most recent comparable election cycle)

Source: “The Youth Vote in the 2008 Primaries and Caucuses”

Youth Voting Trends: Midterm Elections (Age 18-29)

midterm trendTurnout among 18-29 year-olds increased for the second major election in a row–up 3 percentage points in 2006 (25 percent) from 2002 (22 percent).

Young adults voted for the Democratic candidate over the Republican candidate in races for the House of Representatives (58 percent vs. 38 percent ), the Senate (60 percent vs. 33 percent ) and governor (55 percent vs. 34 percent ).

In 2006, young people were more likely than adults 30 and older to identify as strictly independents (26 percent vs. 18 percent) and less likely to identify as Republicans (28 percent vs. 35 percent). Compared to 2002, somewhat more young adults are identifying as independents (up 2 points) though slightly fewer identify as Democrats (down 1 point).

The youth voter turnout rate was highest in Minnesota (43 percent), Wisconsin (40 percent), and Montana (49 percent). The states with the lowest turnout were West Virginia (16 percent), Texas and Utah (tied at 17 percent).

The metropolitan areas with the highest turnout in 2006 were the Twin Cities (Minneapolis-St.Paul, 47 percent), Milwaukee (39 percent), and Detroit (38 percent).

Sources: “Young Voters in the 2006 Elections” and “Youth Voter Turnout Increases in 2006“; Quick Facts About Young Voters by State: The Midterm Election Year 2006, ” “Quick Facts About Young Voters by Metropolitan Area: The Midterm Election Year 2006,” and “Young Urban Voters in the Midterm Election Year 2006.”

Voting Laws & Youth Turnout

States that allow Election Day registration, on average, have youth voter turnout rates that are 14 percentage points higher, and they are more likely to be contacted by a political candidate.

Three of the top five states for youth voting in 2000 allowed Election Day registration (MN, WI, ME).

Other state laws that seem to increase youth voting are: early voting at convenient locations and voter registration at state motor vehicle agencies.

In states that mailed sample ballots & information about polling places and extended polling place hours, youth turnout increased by about 10 percentage points.

Our fact sheet on State Voting Laws shows which provisions (such as early voting or same-day registration) are in effect in each state and which of these rules is most likely to raise youth turnout.

Sources: “Easier Voting Methods Boost Youth Turnout“; How Postregistration Laws Affect the Turnout of Registrants; and State Voting Laws .

Getting Out the Youth Vote: What Works

  • Personalized and interactive contact counts. The most effective way of getting a new voter is the in-person door knock by a peer; the least effective is an automated phone call. Canvassing costs $11 to $14 per new vote, followed closely by phone banks at $10 to $25 per new vote. Robocalls mobilize so few voters that they cost $275 per new vote. (These costs are figured per vote that would not be cast without the mobilizing effort.)
  • Begin with the basics. Telling a new voter where to vote, when to vote and how to use the voting machines increases turnout.
  • The medium is more important than the message. Partisan and nonpartisan, negative and positive messages seem to work about the same. The important factor is the degree to which the contact is personalized.
  • In ethnic and immigrant communities, start young. Young voters in these communities are easier to reach, are more likely to speak English (cutting down translation costs), and are the most effective messengers within their communities.
  • Initial mobilization produces repeat voters. If an individual has been motivated to get to the polls once, they are more likely to return. So, getting young people to vote early could be key to raising a new generation of voters.
  • Leaving young voters off contact lists is a costly mistake. Some campaigns still bypass young voters, but research shows they respond cost-effectively when contacted.

Source: Young Voter Mobilization Tactics

Personally contacting young people on Election Day can significantly increase youth voter turnout, but only if they’ve already expressed interest in voting.

Sources: The Effects of an Election Day Voter Mobilization Campaign Targeting Young Voters by Donald P. Green

Local Political Parties and Youth

About nine-in-ten local party leaders say youth political engagement is a serious problem.

93% of local party leaders feel local parties can make a big difference in getting young people involved in politics.

Only 8% of the party chairs identified young people as the most important demographic for the “long-term success of their party,” compared to 21% who named senior citizens.

Source: Throwing a Better Party: Local Mobilizing Institutions and the Youth Vote

Resources

For more information on youth voting:

Fact sheets:

Research Report:

Working Papers: