Gallup Poll Assesses Views of Young Americans

Young Americans more likely to support homosexual marriages, Social Security privatization

Wednesday, November 5, 2003

By Joseph Carroll

Gallup News Service

PRINCETON, NJ. -- GNS
Just how different are today's young voters from older voters? A recent CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll examined the attitudes of the youngest voters in the country and finds a mixed picture; 18- to 29-year-olds' attitudes significantly differ from the attitudes of those aged 30 and older in many ways, but also are quite similar in others. Young Americans are more likely than older Americans to describe their views on economic issues as liberal, to identify themselves as independents rather than Republicans or Democrats, and to the rate government and the president positively. They also follow news about politics less closely than older people do and are much less enthusiastic about voting. On specific issues facing the country, they are more supportive of homosexual marriages, Social Security privatization, and the maintenance of different cultures in the country. Despite more liberal views on some moral issues, younger Americans and older Americans have similar views on abortion.

Ideology on Social and Economic Issues

The poll, conducted Oct. 24-27, finds few differences between younger and older Americans' self-defined ideological stances on social issues, but some interesting differences on economic issues.

Young Americans are slightly less likely than older Americans to say their views on social issues are conservative, with 32% of 18- to 29-year-olds saying they are conservative on these issues, and 39% of those 30 and older saying so. And while scenes of campus activism lead one to believe that young Americans are decidedly liberal in their views on social issues, that is not the case. Just 27% of those 18 to 29 say they are liberal, quite similar to the 23% of those aged 30 and older who self-define themselves as socially liberal.

However, young Americans are considerably more likely to say they are economically liberal than Americans aged 30 and older are, with 24% of young Americans saying so and only 12% of older Americans saying the same. Older respondents are more conservative on their views about economic issues than are younger respondents (45% to 32%, respectively).

(More: Gallup.com)

2003 © The Gallup Organization, Princeton, NJ.

Dan