Constance Lancelle, 22, of Milwaukee, “wasn’t really interested in voting for Biden,” she said. But when Vice President Kamala Harris was the Democratic presidential nominee, she said, “I feel like politics has been a dream.”
Sierra Sanson, 23, of Medford, New Jersey, planned to vote for Jill Stein of the Green Party or not at all. Now she’s excited to support Harris: “She’s a badass woman that I want to succeed.”
Emily Baumel, 27, of Madison, Wisconsin, had not planned to vote for president, but now plans to vote for Harris: “I have a lot less fear; I love how much hope he gives people.”
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Harris’ candidacy has been revived by many Democrats and independents — and especially young women. Their renewed enthusiasm is evident in interviews and early signals in swing states and national polls.
According to national New York Times/Siena College polls, young women never intended to support Donald Trump in the election as a group. But that didn’t always mean supporting President Joe Biden. His support among both women and youth (18-29), crucial to his 2020 victory, had slipped before his exit from the race.
It’s still early days for Harris’ candidacy, and the number of these voters in the polls is too small to draw any definitive conclusions, but so far he appears to be winning many of them back.
In a Times/Siena poll of voters this month in six swing states, young women were on average 10 percentage points more likely to support Harris than they had been for Biden in May.
In those states – Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin – 67 percent of young women now say they plan to vote for him, compared to 29 percent for Trump. More of them support Harris in the Times/Siena poll than in any other age or gender group.
Young men were 5 points more likely to support Harris than Biden. But 53% planned to vote for Trump and 40% for Harris.
Recent national polling by Ipsos and Marquette Law School found a similar shift among young women. “The historic summer we experienced pulled some young women off the sidelines and into the polls,” said Sarah Feldman, senior data editor at Ipsos. “Overall, these are more marginal changes, but in an incredibly close election, these small decisive swings can make all the difference.”
We called back the young women who told a Times/Siena poll this month that they supported Harris. Of the eight we reached for follow-up interviews, none said they planned to vote for Trump, but they all planned to either stay out of the election, vote for a third-party candidate, or begrudgingly vote for Biden.
“I would be proud to see him as president of this country, whereas with Biden I was confused by the idea,” Sanson said.
For many young women, Biden and Trump were the only presidential candidates they had been old enough to vote for, which they said left them disinvested and disheartened.
Eloisa Gloria, 22, who is studying illustration at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, said she was “disappointed” with the policy. Now he is excited.
“This is the first time I’ve voted and experienced a genuinely positive candidate,” he said. “I think Kamala is incredibly smart and that she cares a lot more about our well-being than just winning elections.”
He has been watching live broadcasts of Harris’ protests, he said. She likes his ideas to pay teachers more, prioritize abortion rights and tackle climate change.
“This was actually one of the first elections where I was like, honestly, I can’t shame people who don’t vote,” said Areli Herrera, 25, a nonprofit worker in Milwaukee. “I see.”
That changed with Harris’ nomination, he said: “I kind of felt a sense of relief.”
Herrera said Harris is more moderate than he is. He is wary of Harris’ background in law enforcement and did not like how he cut short pro-Palestinian protesters who had interrupted him at a rally. But he said he appreciates that center-left ideas can help Harris’ campaign win over moderate voters — and defeat Trump.
Harris’ choice of Tim Walz’s running mate solidified her support: “She’s done what I could never do in my dating life — she picked a real white man.”
None of the young women interviewed cited Harris being a woman or a person of color as a primary reason for their support, but some said it was a bonus.
Mina Kim, 27, of Duluth, Georgia, has never been interested in politics and had no intention of voting. But she has seen several things she liked about the Harris campaign, including efforts to cap the cost of insulin and her support for reproductive rights.
Kim, who is Asian American, did not realize that Harris has South Asian heritage. “It wouldn’t be a reason to vote for him, but it would be cool,” he said. “He would be the first of many things.”
Overall, Gen Z women are “fiercely feminist and progressive,” more so than any other American group, said Melissa Deckman, political scientist, CEO of research firm PRRI and author of the forthcoming book, “The Politics of Gen Z.” .”
Baumel, a Madison native, works in health care and is concerned that Harris is not progressive enough, especially on the issues most important to her: student loans, health care and the war between Israel and Hamas.
But Harris has two important things going for him, Baumel said: “One, he’s not 70 or older. Two, I really like his choice for vice president. I’m from the Midwest, and I love seeing Midwestern dads.”
“Will I still vote for him in four years?” he said. “I don’t know, but he’s worth a try.”
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