President Donald Trump appears to be losing support among the young American men who helped return him to the White House in 2024, according to new polling.
Young men, particularly those frustrated with the economy and the general hostility toward their demographic during the Joe Biden administration, were a critical part of the coalition that returned Trump to power just two years ago.
President Donald Trump gives remarks after presenting the newly-created “Medal of Sacrifice” to three fallen officers’ families from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, Monday, May 19, 2025, in the Oval Office. (Official White House Photo by Joyce N. Boghosian)
President Donald Trump attends an event celebrating the 2025 NCAA Division 1 Men’s Basketball Champion Florida Gators, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in the East Room of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok)
But now, the data suggests, many of those voters are questioning whether the Trump administration has made their lives any better, with rising living costs, fears about artificial intelligence, and the war with Iran among the biggest drivers of their thinking.
On Friday, October 23, CNN published a report describing how former Trump supporters in Michigan are turning against the president, while others are simply disengaging from politics owing to their frustration.
The report came one day after Harvard University released polling data showing Democrats leading Republicans by 26 percentage points among likely male voters under 30.
The findings suggest that the Republicans are losing a demographic that President Trump spent years cultivating, and which has been considered one of his most loyal bases in recent elections.
What CNN Found
Speaking with about two dozen men in the Lansing, Michigan, area, CNN reporters sought to understand how the views of college students and young blue-collar workers have changed since the last presidential election.
Among them was Zach Larson, a 21-year-old student at Michigan State University who supported President Trump in the last election and previously considered himself a strong conservative.
Speaking to the outlet, Larson said that rising prices, including gasoline and everyday expenses, have changed his political views.
The student said he now views President Trump as a “tyrant” and is likely to vote for Democrat Abdul El-Sayed in the Michigan Senate race.
CNN reporters also spoke with Caleb Christie, a 19-year-old construction management student, who said younger Americans expected President Trump’s return to office to improve their chances of buying homes and building careers.
Christie said that perception has since changed, and that young people are not seeing those promises come to fruition.
Other young people who spoke to the outlet said they worry artificial intelligence is replacing entry-level jobs that would otherwise have been available to them after college.
Young Men Used to Back Trump
The findings trouble Republicans, who are counting on the support that returned the president to the White House to keep them from losing control of Congress.
Young men in particular have long been part of the Trump coalition, but young people more generally have gradually warmed to him over the last ten years.
Exit polling data shows Trump won 36% of all voters aged 18 to 29 in 2016, the same 36% in that age group in 2020, and then substantially more in 2024.
According to Tufts University’s Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, which analyzed data from AP VoteCast, President Trump won 56% of male voters under the age of 30 in 2024, compared to Kamala Harris’s 42%.
The results marked a dramatic reversal from 2020, when young men favored President Joe Biden.
That reversal was particularly notable among young white men, too, with 63% backing Trump in 2024. Even young Latino men supported the president by a narrow lead over Harris.
New Harvard Polling Shows A Reversal
A Harvard Youth Poll released on Thursday, October 22, shows that much of Trump’s support among young men has disappeared over the last two years.
The survey, conducted among 2,024 Americans aged 18 to 29, found that 58% of young men who say they definitely plan to vote in November will support Democratic candidates, not Republicans. Just 32% of that demographic supports Republicans.
The figures are based on voting intentions and not approval of the president’s performance — although Trump’s approval ratings are hardly any better.
The survey also found that just 31% of young American men say that they will definitely vote.
Young Americans Fear for the Future
The latest Harvard survey’s findings explain why young men are abandoning Trump, and they largely center on their fears about the future.
Only 9% of young Americans say that the country is heading in the right direction, and some 77% disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy over the last two years.
About half also said their financial circumstances have worsened since he returned to the White House.
For the first time in the survey’s history, more young Americans said they expect to be financially worse off than their parents. 27% said they expect to be worse off, while 25% said they expect to be better off.
About the Author: Jack Buckby
Jack Buckby is a British researcher and analyst specializing in defense and national security, based in New York. His work focuses on military capability, procurement, and strategic competition, and he produces and edits analysis for policy and defense audiences. He brings extensive editorial experience, with a career output spanning over 1,000 articles at National Security Journal, and has previously authored books and papers on extremism and deradicalization.
