Gen Zers who follow politics and media trend toward Kamala Harris, study finds

Young voters cite Harris’ tone and substance more than race, ethnicity or gender

Reports and Proceedings

University of California - Los Angeles

Key takeaways

• Harris motivates non-voters. Almost half of Gen Z respondents in a UCLA study said they were not motivated to vote at all in the 2024 presidential election prior to Kamala Harris’ nomination. A third of that group now says they are motivated to vote for Harris.

• Tuned-in voters favor Harris. Over half of Gen Z respondents who stay informed about the news indicate they will vote for Harris, while almost three-quarters of those who don’t follow the news say they will not vote for Harris or are unsure of who they will vote for.

• Shift from identity politics? 82.7% of Gen Z respondents cited reasons other than Harris’ racial or gender identity to explain their motivation to vote for her; 77.7% of Black Gen Z respondents expressed confidence in the political system to serve their interests. 

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Today’s young people are chronically online, and it appears that their media consumption is having an impact on their political views and likelihood to vote, according to a new study released by the UCLA Center for Scholars & Storytellers.

Gen Z (ages 16-27) and millennial (ages 28-40) participants who frequently consume media – defined in the survey as social media, television, streaming services and video games – report motivation to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris for president at higher rates (18% more) than those who report not using media at all. In addition, 29.3% of Gen Z respondents who said they were not motivated to vote in the upcoming election before the change in the Democratic nominee say they are now motivated to vote for Harris, who has a notable social media presence.

More than half (56.4%) of Gen Z respondents reported staying very informed on all news or news related to their communities, while only 16% of Gen Z respondents said they don’t follow the news. And more than half (57%) of those Gen Zers informed about the news expressed interest in voting for Harris, while 70% of those who don’t follow the news said they will not vote for Harris or are unsure of who they will vote for.

“Young adults are increasingly getting news from TikTok, reporting social media as the most authentic form of media,” said Yalda Uhls, the center’s founder and CEO, co-author of the study and adjunct professor in UCLA’s Department of Psychology. “Our data shows that young people are very engaged with what’s happening in the political sphere around them, and keeping up with the news seems to be influencing their desire to vote for Kamala Harris.”

The report, a part of a regular “Teen Snapshot” series by the center which aims to gather quick pulses on how young people are responding to current events, surveyed 1,653 participants ages 16-40 in August 2024. Respondents closely reflected the U.S. Census in terms of race and gender. The survey was supported by the Funders for Adolescent Science Translation consortium.

For young people interested in voting for Harris, her identity as a woman of color didn’t seem to be a huge motivating factor. In fact, 82.7% of Gen Z respondents cited reasons other than Harris’ racial or gender identity to explain their support for her, including “I agree with her stance on most issues,” “She’s an exciting candidate that gives me hope” and “I like what I’ve seen about her on social media.” 

“Contrary to Republican messaging about Kamala Harris being a DEI hire, young people seem more excited about her candidacy because of the tone and substance of her campaign rather than because of her race, ethnicity or gender,” said Alisha Hines, the center’s director of research and lead author of the study. “This finding makes sense in light of previous research from our 2023 Teens and Screens Report, which showed that young people are overwhelmingly interested in stories of hope — a defining mood of the Harris campaign.”

Results from the study also showed more diversity across party lines, with 15.5% of Black Gen Zers and 16.5% of Black millennials identifying as Republican (a far larger portion than Black adults, who have only made up 1-2% of the Republican party since 2016). Young Black Gen Zers overwhelmingly expressed confidence in the political system; when asked how confident they are in the political system to take care of them and their family’s interests, 77.7% of African American Gen Z respondents indicated they were either “somewhat confident” or “very confident.” This finding was a stark contrast to another recent poll featuring older generations which found two-thirds of Black Americans believe the U.S. political system was designed to hold them back.

“For young people today who grew up seeing Barack Obama in the White House, diversity is the norm, not the exception,” Uhls said. “These findings indicate a shift in how the next generation is moving away from identity politics and polarization, possibly towards an exciting new era of collaboration and consensus across party lines.”