Youth Voting and Civic Engagement in America

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Youth Voting and Civic Engagement (select up to 3)
Conditions that Shape Youth Engagement (select up to 3)
Youth & Elections
Data related to young people's (ages 18-29) participation and impact on the selected year's federal elections.
Youth Civic Engagement
Data about various forms of youth (ages 16-29) non-electoral civic engagement calculated by CIRCLE from the Census Current Population Survey 2017 Civic Supplement. For a handful of states data by race & ethnicity is available on the About page ?
Why these data points?
Population
Data about the number of young people and the share of youth among all community members above age 18.
Education
Data on young people's educational attainment, which often correlates with opportunities to learn about voting and other forms of civic engagement.
Quality of Life
Data on current economic and systemic realities facing a community that may influence whether young people have access to engage in civic life.
Civic Culture
Data on civic organizations and other factors that shape the "ecosystem" that may provide youth opportunities for civic engagement.
Political Landscape
Data on a region's partisan tendencies, recent elections, and other structural factors that may influence young people's approach or exposure to political participation.
Youth Voting and Civic Engagement (select up to 3)
Data related to young people's (ages 18-29) participation and impact on the selected year's federal elections.
The estimated percentage of young citizens, ages 18-29, who cast a ballot in the election.
The estimated number of votes in the election cast by young people, ages 18-29.
The percentage point margin by which young people, ages 18-29, voted for a party's candidate for Senator. (e.g., R+4)
The percentage point margin by which young people, ages 18-29, voted for a party's candidate for Governor. (e.g., D+4)
The pre-election ranking of that year's U.S. Senate race in CIRCLE's Youth Electoral Significance Index (YESI), which rates elections by the likely influence of young voters on the contest.
The pre-election ranking of that year's Governor's race in CIRCLE's Youth Electoral Significance Index (YESI) which rates elections by the likely influence of young voters on the contest.
The pre-election ranking of that year's U.S. House race in CIRCLE's Youth Electoral Significance Index (YESI) which rates elections by the likely influence of young voters on the contest.
Data about various forms of youth (ages 16-29) non-electoral civic engagement calculated by CIRCLE from the Census Current Population Survey 2017 Civic Supplement. For a handful of states data by race & ethnicity is available on the About page ?
The percentage of young people, ages 16-29, who answered yes to: "In the past 12 months, have you belonged to any groups, organizations, or associations?"
The percentage of young people, ages 16-29, who answered yes to: "In the past 12 months, have you volunteered?" (On their own, at school, with an organization, etc.)
The percentage of young people, ages 16-29, who answered yes to: "In the past 12 months did you buy or boycott products or services based on the political values or business practices of that company?"
The percentage of young people, ages 16-29, who answered yes to: "In the past 12 months did you get together with other people from your neighborhood to do something positive for your neighborhood or the community?"
The percentage of young people, ages 16-29, who answered yes to: "In the past 12 months did you and your neighbors do favors for each other such as house sitting, watching each other’s children, lending tools, and other things to help each other?"
The percentage of young people, ages 16-29, who answered yes to: "In the past 12 months did you discuss political, societal, or local issues with your neighbors?"
The percentage of young people, ages 16-29, who answered yes to: "In the past 12 months did you discuss political, societal, or local issues with friends or family?"
The percentage of young people, ages 16-29, who answered yes to: "In the past 12 months did you talk to (in person, on the phone, online) or spend time with people from a racial, ethnic or cultural background that is different than yours?"
The percentage of young people, ages 16-29, who answered yes to: "In the past 12 months did you post your views about political, societal, or local issues on the internet or social media?"
The percentage of young people, ages 16-29, who answered yes to: "In the past 12 months did you contact or visit a public official – at any level of government – to express your opinion?"
Why these data points?
Conditions that Shape Youth Engagement (select up to 3)
Data about the number of young people and the share of youth among all community members above age 18.
The number of United States citizens between the ages of 18-24.
The percentage of young people, ages 18-24, in the overall adult (ages 18+) population.
Data on young people's educational attainment, which often correlates with opportunities to learn about voting and other forms of civic engagement.
The percentage of young people, ages 18-24, who are enrolled in college.
The percentage of young people, ages 18-24, who have at least some college experience.
The percentage of young people, ages 18-24, who have not finished high school.
Data on current economic and systemic realities facing a community that may influence whether young people have access to engage in civic life.
Half of households have an annual income above this number and half of households have an annual income below this number.
A standardized score (z-score) for how wide-ranging incomes are in this location (GINI Index) in relation to the overall distribution across the country – above/positive or below/negative.
The percentage of children (ages 0-17) in households with an equivalized (adjusted for household size and composition) disposable income below the poverty threshold.
The number of violent crimes reported for every 100,000 residents.
The percentage of the population with fixed and mobile high-speed internet.
Data on civic organizations and other factors that shape the "ecosystem" that may provide youth opportunities for civic engagement.
The number of nonprofits for every 10,000 residents.
The percentage of nonprofits that provide services to youth.
The number of social associations for every 10,000 residents.
A standardized score (z-score) for this location in relation to the overall rates across the country of young people, ages 18-29, who have lived at the same address for the past 12 months. If positive, then above average, and if negative, then below average.
For areas where communities of color make up more than 5% of the population, the Residential Racial Segregation Index from Robert Wood Johnson Foundation goes from 1 to 100. The higher the number, the more segregated a community.
Data on a region's partisan tendencies, recent elections, and other structural factors that may influence young people's approach or exposure to political participation.
The partisan lean of the electorate in the past two presidential elections. For the district level, as reported by the Cook Political Report, and for the state level as calculated by CIRCLE based on the formula used by Cook Partisan Voting Index
The party of the candidate who won the largest share of the vote (among all ages) in the state.
Was the vote difference between the winner and runner-up of the previous presidential election within 3 percentage points?
A score, from 1 to 10 that measures how strongly a state has implemented laws that facilitate registration and voting, such as pre-registration and automatic registration. Learn more about Facilitative Election Laws
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Explore youth voting and civic engagement where you live
Learn about the conditions that shape youth engagement
Alabama
Youth Voting and Civic Engagement
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Conditions that Shape Youth Engagement
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“Deep-red” Alabama rarely sees competitive statewide races, a likely factor in persistently low youth electoral engagement. Alabama’s high child poverty rate and relatively low rate of access to broadband (83% of homes) may further dampen participation. Bright spots: 67% of youth report talking to people of different backgrounds at least a few times a week, and there appears to be a solid infrastructure of support to build on—over 1/3 of the state’s nonprofits serve youth.

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“Deep-red” Alabama rarely sees competitive statewide races, a likely factor in persistently low youth electoral engagement. Alabama’s high child poverty rate and relatively low rate of access to broadband (83% of homes) may further dampen participation. Bright spots: 67% of youth report talking to people of different backgrounds at least a few times a week, and there appears to be a solid infrastructure of support to build on—over 1/3 of the state’s nonprofits serve youth.

Take Action