Gen Z's Shifting Vote

Young Americans traditionally start adulthood by casting their ballot for the left, but Republicans are capitalizing on their loss of trust in institutions

- by ALEX ROUHANDEH

HIS PATH TO BECOMING CHAIR OF THE Republican National Committee's Youth Advisory Council started in a Tuscaloosa, Alabama, living room at age 10. The year was 2016 and Brilyn Hollyhand's parents were watching the presidential debate. "It's just awfully good that someone with the temperament of Donald Trump is not in charge of the law in our country," Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton said. To which Trump responded, "because you'd be in jail." Hollyhand said his household wasn't all that political before. Trump's comment changed everything. "I stood there, and I was like, 'Wow, where'd this come from?'" he told Newsweek.

Trump's comment drew negative headlines, but Hollyhand found it positively gripping. Not long after that, he created a political newsletter that went to seven family members; he now places its audience at over 400,000. Hollyhand's activity caught the attention of former RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel, who appointed him, age 16, as chair of the newly created youth council. The next election, 47 percent of voters aged 18 to 29 backed Trump's third presidential bid—an 11-point swing from 2020, per the Associated Press.

Political orthodoxy has long deemed Americans start by voting for the left before moving to the right with age. Yet in 2024 Trump came within four points of winning the youth vote and Democrat Kamala Harris within four points of winning the over-65s'. Newsweek spoke to young people at Georgia Institute of Technology, The Ohio State University and Tuscaloosa and found distrust in institutions shaping Gen Z's opinions, with Republicans seizing on the moment.

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Reflecting on the effect of Trump's quip on him, Hollyhand noted his plainspoken tone and willingness to fight. "It was time for this populist revival," he said. "I think we were past due for someone like him."