Timber wood
Trump and Vance Are Newly Popular Among Younger Voters
The youth of America love a winner.
Donald Trump and JD Vance saw a surge in their favorability rating among voters aged 18 to 29 following their victory on Election Day, survey data from the Economist and YouGov show. Younger voters also became significantly more optimistic about their personal finances in the year ahead.
Vice President-elect Vance’s favorability rating among 18 to 29-year-olds jumped to 43 percent, with his disapproval rating slipping to 31 percent. In the final October poll from YouGov and the Economist, just 31 percent of younger voters said they had a favorable view of Vance, and 48 percent said they had an unfavorable view.
President-elect Trump’s popularity with younger voters has also surged. In the latest poll, taken between November 17 and 19, 57 percent of young voters say they have a favorable impression of Trump, with 38 percent having an unfavorable view. In the poll taken between October 26 and the 29, Just 38 percent rated Trump favorably, and 58 percent rated him unfavorably.
Lower-income Americans also now take a view more favorable view of Trump and Vance. Among voters with annual income below $50,000, Vance’s favorability rose to 40 percent from 33 percent, and his unfavorable rating fell to 38 percent from 46 percent. For Trump, favorability is up to 50 percent among this income group from just 33 percent in October. Trump’s unfavorability, however, remains unchanged at 46 percent. But that’s still enough to put him above water on favorability.
Interestingly, Trump’s favorability has improved even with Democrats. Prior to the election, only six percent of Democrats said they had a favorable view of Trump. Now 14 percent do. Vance’s popularity has taken his approval among Democrats from seven percent to 15 percent.
These shifts have been strong enough to move the needle on the overall favorability of Trump and, to a lesser extent, Vance. Trump’s overall favorability is now up to 51 percent from 41 percent, and his unfavorability is down to 46 percent from 54 percent. For Vance, overall favorability climbed to 43 percent from 41 percent. Vance saw a significant decline in favorability among voters aged 65 or older.
Economic Pessimism Is Fading Fast
There’s been a similar shift on the economy, with voters becoming much less pessimistic in the last few weeks. In the October poll, 48 percent said the economy was getting worse, with 25 percent saying it was staying the same, and 21 percent saying it is getting better. The latest poll shows that 34 percent say the economy is getting worse, a 12 point decline. The share who think the economy is staying the same rose to 33 percent, while the getting better share inched up to 23 percent.
Young people became considerably less pessimistic. In the 18 to 29-year-old category, the share who think the economy is getting worse fell to 24 percent from 39 percent. They’re now more likely to say that the economy is staying the same, at 41 percent compared to October’s 31 percent.
Every income bracket in the survey is considerably less pessimistic. Among those who earn $50,000 or less, the share saying the economy is worsening fell to 40 percent from 46 percent. Among those with incomes greater than $50,000 but less than $100,000, it fell to 36 percent from 56 percent. Among higher earnings, the pessimists declined from 39 percent to 24 percent.
President Donald Trump applauds the crowd as he is introduced at an event at the White House on December 19, 2019. (Official White House Photos by Tia Dufour)
Overall Americans are slightly more optimistic about the direction of their household finances, with 39 percent saying they expect to be better off a year from now in the latest poll. That’s up from 31 percent in October. Among younger voters, the share saying they expect to be better off a year from now has climbed to 49 percent, up from 38 percent in October.
These changes in attitudes about the economy are significant enough that they could shift the path of growth. Americans who expect to be better off spend and invest more—and that’s especially true for younger and lower income Americans. So, decline in pessimism will likely fuel an acceleration in the economy in the months ahead.
There’s still room for improvement. The share of Americans who say the economy is getting better is still quite low, at 23 percent compared with 21 percent in October. If Trump and Vance can persuade Americans that their policies are indeed fixing the economy, this is likely to rise.