Young voters could be decisive in the election

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — Young voters could be crucial in the upcoming election, and both presidential candidates are looking to shore up their youth support.

Elaine Kamarck is a senior fellow at Brookings and researches American politics. She says young people could be a crucial group of voters in the upcoming elections.

“Younger voters could almost certainly tip the election in the Democratic direction,” Kamarck said.

Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump each appeal to young people trying to make progress with important groups.

“Both campaigns are really trying to appeal to younger voters right now and give them an edge,” Kamarck said.

Republican spokeswoman Elizabeth Pipko says the Trump campaign is using social media to reach youth.

“Make sure the content is distributed where the young people actually are, and that happens to be social media. TikTok is obviously a big thing,” Pipko said.

Kevin Munoz of the Harris campaign says they are also investing in online strategies and trying to be innovative with their outreach.

“It’s on Snapchat. We’re the first campaign to ever advertise on DraftKings, we’re advertising on podcasts and making sure we have a presence on college campuses,” Munoz said.

He says they're focused on telling young people how Vice President Harris plans for their future.

“It will protect their reproductive rights, it will protect our communities from gun violence. And it will reduce costs and create opportunities for the future,” Munoz said.

While the Trump campaign emphasizes an economic challenge and argues that the current administration has failed in this area.

“Buying a house is more difficult, renting an apartment is more difficult. “Obviously young people are focused on paying for college, paying for food, paying rent and a lot of different things,” Pipko said.

Young voters tend to lean heavily Democratic, and Kamarck says that trend is likely to continue.

“A lot of young women are signing up for obvious reasons: I mean, a candidate, the abortion issue,” Kamarck said.

Munoz says Team Harris doesn't take youth support for granted.

“We invest wherever we can win voters,” Munoz said.

The Trump camp is undeterred by the Democrats' lead among young voters.

It's about changing the dynamic because Democrats know they need a large percentage of those voters to win and it seems like that's slipping away from them right now,” Pipko said.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports and streaming videos, visit DC News Now | Washington, D.C