Young people vote in lower numbers because they don’t think they know enough about the process, says pollster

Pollster Dan Cox said in an interview that aired Tuesday on “What America’s Thinking” that young people vote in lower numbers in part because they do not think they know enough about the process. 

“There’s always this push to get young people involved in politics, and they chronically underperform,” Cox, research director at the Public Religion Research Institute, told Hill.TV’s Joe Concha. 

“One of the reasons is that a lot of them don’t feel like they have the knowledge to participate,” he continued. 

“There’s been some really good ads that are saying ‘well if you don’t vote, look at the people who will vote. They don’t know much more than you,'” he said. 

Turnout by young voters in midterm elections has historically been very low, though a new poll shows that the trend might change this year. 

A recent Harvard Institute of Politics survey found that forty percent of 18-29 year-olds said they are likely to vote in next week’s midterm elections. Turnout by this category of voters has only exceeded 20 percent twice in recent midterms, in 1986 and 1994. 

Various campaigns, such as March for Our Lives, have played a role in galvanizing young people to come out in vote in the midterms. 

— Julia Manchester