Dear John,
With just days to go in the midterm elections, voter turnout is projected to be high — possibly exceeding the record turnout in the last midterm election in 2018. According to the latest Harvard Youth Poll, turnout among young voters in particular is on track to match or even exceed the record previously set in 2018.
Why is this critical? In close contests like we are seeing in key Senate, House and gubernatorial races, the youth vote was the decisive margin of difference in both 2018 and 2020.
What’s more, abortion and women’s rights are actually the most important issues for young women as they head to the ballot box — despite constant reports in the media that inflation and rising prices are the top issues in this election.
In Ms.’s recent poll of likely voters in the nine battleground states that will determine the balance of power in both houses of Congress — Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — abortion and women’s rights registered as the top priority for young women voters. And among young women voters across the battleground states, in a generic congressional ballot 48 percent supported Democratic candidates compared to 29 percent supporting Republican candidates.
The overturning of Roe v. Wade has lit a fire under women voters. Abortion restrictions and outright bans have energized pro-abortion rights women to be motivated to turn out to vote in much larger numbers than their anti-abortion counterparts, refuting conventional wisdom that those opposed to abortion are more motivated by the issue.
By contrast, in both the Harvard and Ms. polls, inflation leads abortion as the top issue for young men, leading Ms. contributor Jackson Katz to note this week that men have a choice to make. “Which side of history do you want to be on?” Katz asks. “The one that seeks to advance gender justice and expand democracy, or the one that seeks to restore the oppressive, tired old order?”
We will soon find out.
Ms. will be reporting on the elections outcomes as the next days and weeks unfold. More than that, we’ll be reporting on what it all means for the course of the unfolding battles for women’s full equality and bringing you actionable information in print, online and through the acclaimed podcasts and programs of Ms. Studios and our online Women & Democracy series.
With you, we will meet whatever historic challenges lie ahead.
