Gen Z, once presumed to follow the liberal path of millennials, is instead emerging as potentially the most conservative generation in decades, leaving Democratic pollsters shocked and Republicans taking notice.
Quick Takes
- Trump’s approval among 18-29 year-olds rose to 52.7% in early 2024, with his support from this demographic jumping from 36% in 2020 to 47% in 2024
- A significant 23-point gender gap exists among young voters, with Gen Z men much more likely to support conservative positions than women
- Gen Z’s conservative shift appears linked to their experiences with progressive policies during formative years under Obama and Biden administrations
- Young men report feeling alienated by modern feminism and perceive that their concerns are dismissed by the Democratic Party
- Only 26% of 18-29 year-olds trust mass media, indicating widespread skepticism of mainstream narratives
The Unexpected Conservative Shift
Democratic pollster David Shor recently expressed astonishment at what many on the left believed impossible: “This is the thing I am the most shocked by in the last four years—that young people have gone from being the most progressive generation since the Baby Boomers… to becoming potentially the most conservative generation that we’ve experienced maybe in 50 to 60 years.” The data backs up this observation. According to AP VoteCast analysis, Trump won 47% of voters aged 18-29 in 2024, a substantial increase from 36% in 2020. AtlasIntel polling showed Trump’s approval rating among this demographic reached 52.7% in February, numbers that would have seemed unthinkable just a few years ago.
This shift appears most pronounced among young men. Polling reveals a 23-percentage-point gender gap among voters under 30, with males significantly more likely to support conservative candidates and positions. What explains this dramatic transformation in a generation that many political strategists assumed would continue the liberal trend of millennials? The reasons appear multifaceted, involving both cultural and economic factors that have created fertile ground for conservative ideas among America’s youth.
Democrats staked their entire future on the assumption that young people would be far left no matter what. Instead, Vox founder Ezra Klein admits that Gen Z is the most conservative generation in decades. Among 18-year-olds, Trump won both white women and non-white men.…
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) March 23, 2025
Why Young Men Are Moving Right
Gen Z women observe this rightward shift among their male peers with varying explanations. “My boyfriend’s very right-leaning; however, a lot of his friends feel that the current way political and social discourse is going, there’s a lot of focus on uplifting marginalized voices, and at times, this can make them feel like their perspectives are being overlooked or dismissed,” one woman reported. Many young men express that straight white males are unfairly labeled as toxic, and that Democratic policies don’t address issues they consider important.
Conservative media and social platforms have also effectively reached young men, often through content creators who speak directly to their concerns about changing gender roles, economic opportunities, and perceptions of unfair treatment. These factors combine to create receptivity to conservative messaging that promises stability and recognition of their concerns.
Victims of Progressive Policies
Many analysts attribute Gen Z’s conservative leanings to their firsthand experience with the consequences of progressive policies. Born between 1997 and 2012, this generation’s formative years occurred during the Obama and Biden administrations, marked by increasingly leftist approaches to education, culture, and governance. The COVID-19 pandemic had particularly severe effects on this cohort, resulting in school closures, social isolation, significant learning losses, and declining confidence in public education systems.
Additionally, Gen Z has witnessed global instability, border issues, rising crime, and homelessness during their young lives. Their education has been saturated with progressive narratives around climate change, social justice, and critical race theory. Yet, rather than embracing these ideologies, many in Gen Z have developed skepticism toward institutional messaging. This skepticism is reflected in polling that shows only 26% of 18-29-year-olds trust mass media – a striking indication of how this generation processes information differently than their predecessors.
Political Implications for the Future
The conservative trend among Gen Z contradicts longstanding assumptions about youth voting patterns and has profound implications for American politics. As New York Times columnist Ezra Klein noted, “Democrats are getting destroyed now among young voters… They thought that this was a last gasp of something and that if Donald Trump couldn’t run up his numbers among seniors and you had Millennials and Gen Z really coming into voting power, that would be the end of this Republican Party. That is just completely false.”
The Democratic Party, which has long counted on capturing young voters as they enter the electorate, now faces a critical challenge. If current trends continue, Republicans may secure a generational advantage that could reshape American politics for decades. This unexpected realignment suggests that political identification is not simply a function of age but is deeply influenced by lived experiences, economic realities, and cultural context. Far from being a passing phase, Gen Z’s conservative leanings appear to be a calculated response to the perceived failures of progressive governance they’ve witnessed throughout their formative years.
