Ahead of Midterms, Women's Rights Are Among Issues Most Important to Young Voters

Ahead of Midterms, Women’s Rights Are Among Issues Most Important to Young Voters
7/8/2022 by Hannah Beck, Dominik Drabent and Christine Cabusay



(Photo by Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)

In 2020, the number of young people who cast a vote in the presidential election increased by 11 percent compared to 2016, marking one of the highest rates of youth voter turnout. Now, as the U.S. is reckoning with the overturn of Roe v. Wade, a series of recent polls show gender equality and women’s rights are among the most important issues capturing the interest of young people—and may serve as a catalyst for the anticipated record-breaking election coming November.
TOP TAKEAWAYS

Women’s rights are the second most important social issue to young people, according to a Cause and Social Influence study.
Seventy-five percent of young Americans ages 18 to 29 say all or nearly all abortions should be legal, according to a Pew Research Center report.
Young voters played a huge role in shifting swing states in the 2020 presidential election, helping to lead Biden to victory with a 25-point lead among young voters, according to the Circle Tufts study.
The Harvard Institute of Politics Youth Poll showed spikes in youth political participation in response to key events, indicating a higher turnout in 2022.
A YouGov poll taken in the week following the overturn of Roe shows that young adults under the age of 30 overwhelmingly disagree with the Court’s ruling, and see it as motivation to vote in this fall’s midterm elections.

WOMEN’S RIGHTS: A TOP ISSUE AMONG YOUNG PEOPLE

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Surpassed only by mental health, women’s rights are the second most important social issue to people between 18 and 30, according to a Cause and Social Influence study that surveyed 1,000 participants. The COVID-19 pandemic, environmental issues, better wages and animal rights are tied for third, each with 12 percent. Young people are also paying attention and taking action to address social issues they care about; 34 percent have taken the time to learn about a cause or social issue and 28 percent have signed a petition in the last 30 days. Such commitment and engagement was observed in the huge turnout for the March for Our Lives demonstrations calling for gun legislation reform in nationwide marches from coast to coast earlier this month.


REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS CAN NO LONGER BE IGNORED

A new report from the Pew Research Center shows that support for abortion rights is considerably higher among young Americans. Nearly 75 percent of the 18 to 29 year olds surveyed believe abortion should generally be legal. And per a YouGov poll taken in the wake of the Court’s ruling to overturn Roe, 61 percent of adults under 30 believed that the decision it will “make life worse.”

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LAWMAKERS AND CANDIDATES IGNORE YOUTH CONCERNS AT THEIR OWN PERIL

As past elections have demonstrated, the voices and opinions of young people are increasingly important in determining the outcome of an election. With the reversal of Roe v. Wade and access to abortion and reproductive health services cut off or at risk, young voters’ passion for women’s rights will be reflected at the midterm’s ballot boxes. As Harvard’s Institute of Politics polling director John Della Volpe put it: “While this is an off-year election; there’s no evidence in this survey that young Americans are off the grid.”

https://msmagazine.com/2022/07/08/midterms-womens-rights-young-voters-abortion-access/