Geneva, Switzerland: The U.S. presidential election is likely to be decided by the young, in particular people between the ages of 18 and 30, reported the Altruist League, a Geneva-based consultancy.
The League’s survey, done in early October and encompassing 2,504 respondents in all 50 states, reveals that one month before the election the self-reported likelihood of voting sits nearly 20 percentage points above where it did before the 2016 election.
The results are attributed to three key reasons:
1. The rise of activist grassroots movements, such as Sunrise and Black Lives Matter, which actively and strategically encourage the young to vote
2. The increased political engagement of celebrities and other influencers this age group follows and respects
3. The polarizing persona of Donald Trump and the overall belief among the demographic that the country is not going in the right direction. This belief is held by close to 90 percent of respondents
Ekaterina Chernova, the Altruist League’s Head of Research said, “That young people for the most part don’t like Trump is no surprise. The surprise is that, for the first time, they seem poised to do something about it, by actually turning out to vote in big numbers. This is unprecedented. ”
Milos Maricic, President of the Altruist League said, “Activist movements are becoming more focused, more professional and more capable of driving the young towards political engagement. There seems to be a paradox here - young people have less hope in the future or in changing the system but are more likely to act to change things. Being political, long perceived as boring and uncool, is not anymore - for many young people, it has become part of their identity.”
About the Altruist League: The Altruist League helps philanthropists and corporations build state of the art philanthropic portfolios and sustainable strategies for leading real, systemic change and managing ESG risk. Its grassroots movement dataset is the biggest and most authoritative of its kind globally, and its use of AI is leading the industry.