Why young men turned out in droves for Donald Trump

Author: AFP

Putting abortion rights front and center in her campaign, Kamala Harris thought she found a winning formula in courting women voters.

But it was Donald Trump who found victory, running up the margins on American men — particularly young men. That young people as a whole tend to be more liberal was no deterrent to a US presidential campaign that capitalized on youth masculinity — tapping into interests such as fighting sports and cryptocurrency, as well as making appearances on male-dominated podcasts.

“If you are a man in this country and you don’t vote for Donald Trump, you’re not a man,” said Charlie Kirk, a conservative activist long focused on the youth vote. Donald Trump won the presidency with 54 percent of men voting for the Republican, up slightly from the 51 percent that supported him in 2020, according to exit polling by NBC. But what raised eyebrows was among younger voters aged 18-29, where 49 percent of men voted Trump — shattering previous images of young people generally leaning left. As Elon Musk — tech bro, wealthy businessman and major Trump backer — put it on Election Day: “the cavalry has arrived.” Trump’s gains come as a gender divide makes itself felt among young people at-large: women under 29 had a massive 61-37 Harris-Trump split. “There is a lot of latent sexism in the US electorate, male and female members alike,” Tammy Vigil, an associate professor of media science at the University of Boston, told AFP. “Trump’s campaign gave people permission to indulge their worst impulses and embrace divisiveness of many sorts.”

Share
Leave a Comment

Recent Posts

  • Pakistan

Top Chinese military official lauds Pakistan’s counter-terror efforts

General Zhang Youxia, Vice Chairman of China's Central Military Commission (CMC), has commended the Pakistan…

5 hours ago
  • Pakistan

Punjab CM thanks people for rejecting ‘disruptors’

Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Maryam Nawaz Sharif has expressed her gratitude to the people of…

5 hours ago
  • Pakistan

Belarus president winds up 3-day Pakistan visit

President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko on Wednesday departed after completing a three-day official visit to…

5 hours ago
  • Pakistan

Kurram tribal clashes rage as death toll surges past 100

The recent clashes between the two warring sides in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Kurram district continued…

5 hours ago
  • Pakistan

US lawmakers, Amnesty decry ‘crackdown’ on PTI protesters

A number of United States' lawmakers along with Amnesty International have voiced support for demonstrators…

5 hours ago
  • World

Hamas signals willingness for ceasefire in Gaza after Lebanon

Hamas is ready to reach a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, a senior official in…

5 hours ago