Do political stereotypes exist among America’s youth?

Are all young voters Democrats?  Do all women have to vote for Hillary Clinton?  Must all wealthy whites root for the Republican Party?  

These are examples of political stereotypes. Stereotyping occurs when a group of people are assigned the same characteristics, even though these traits may not apply to all or any members of the group. Politically, members of the same demographic groups are believed to show support for the same parties.  

For some reason, it is believed by many that teens and young adults support more Democratic and liberal candidates than they do other parties’ members.  Reasonings behind this claim may include that teens do not know as much about politics as older voters.  

In studies administered by the Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) it is shown that 45% of eligible citizens between the ages of 18 and 29 participated in the election of 2012, while 66.3% of citizens 30 years and older voted that same year.  This means that just 21.3% more elders participated in the election, an amount far from great.  With this information,  it is clear that young voters are actively involved in and interested in politics.  It is also stated that in the 2012 election, 71% of young voters (ages 18-29) had attended college , thus proving that they are educated.

However, sometimes stereotypes are valid in terms of political identity. Demographics play a major role in the political views of people between the ages of 18 and 29 within the United States. Surveys administered by Harvard University’s Institute of Politics, enforce the idea that minorities support the views of Democrats, more specifically, those of President Barack Obama.  About 78% of those who admitted to approving of our president were black while another 31% were white. Hispanics, on the other hand, approved of Obama less and less over the years, starting with an 81% approval rate in November of 2009 and finishing off with a mere 49% approval rate in October of 2014, an all time low in the study.

Another segment in the study done by Harvard students mentions young adults that are likely to vote and their change in political stance regarding the views of Congress.  In 2010, 55% of those surveyed stated they wanted more Democrats in Congress, while another 43% wanted a Republican Congress.  When the same poll was taken in 2014, 47% desired a Congress controlled by Democrats while 51% wanted one run by Republicans, thus causing marking a shift in the majority political stance of young adults.

To further prove that having Democratic views is not a default for young adults, a survey conducted by The Chief on eighty three seniors revealed that students are mostly split politically.  Although only a third identified as Democratic, most stated that they would vote for Bernie Sanders over any other candidate.   

Ultimately, although stereotyping is sometimes valid in terms of forming a broad political analysis of a population, some claims adopted from stereotyping are not always representational of the individual.

0.00 avg. rating (0% score) - 0 votes