Young Voters Preferred Biden — With 1 Exception

Inside Higher Ed

Elizabeth Redden

November 5, 2020

Voters under age 30 leaned heavily Democratic, favoring Joe Biden over President Donald Trump by a wide margin (61 versus 36 percent) in the still-to-be-decided presidential election, but there were key differences among young voters across gender, racial and state lines, according to an analysis of exit polling data from the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) at Tufts University in Massachusetts.

In estimates that were revised Wednesday, CIRCLE’s analysis found that young white men supported Trump by a six-point margin (51 versus 45 percent), while young white women favored former vice president Biden by 13 percentage points (55 to 42 percent).

Young voters of color favored Biden by larger margins than did young white voters. Young Black, Asian and Latino voters supported Biden by margins of 76, 69 and 51 points, respectively.

In Georgia and North Carolina, 90 percent or more of young Black voters chose Biden, while more than half of young white voters (54 percent in North Carolina and 63 percent in Georgia) favored Trump.

In Texas, Latinx voters supported Biden over Trump by a nearly 50-percentage-point margin (73 versus 25 percent), while a majority of young white voters preferred Trump (51 versus 45 percent for Biden).

CIRCLE does not have data on the estimated percentage of 18- to 29-year-old voters who are enrolled in college or have college degrees. In 2016, education levels were decisive in predicting who would vote for Trump, with the president racking up strong support among Americans without college degrees.

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