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A6 U.S. NEWS
Thursday 31 May 2018

Young people feel more empowered, AP-NORC/MTV poll finds

By STEVE PEOPLES and EM- conducted just after Feb-
ILY SWANSON ruary's school shooting in
Associated Press Parkland, Florida.
NEW YORK (AP) — Don't tell Just 6 percent now list gun
20-year-old Nestor Aguilera laws as their single top con-
he can't effect change in cern facing the country,
politics. down from 21 percent in
The Indiana University March.
business major protested At least 4 in 10 young peo-
outside President Donald ple in the latest poll also
Trump's recent appear- give the government fail-
ance in Aguilera's home of ing grades on handling im-
Elkhart, Indiana. And while migration, environmental
he admits he didn't vote issues, racism and higher
in 2016, he's promising to education costs.
show up for this fall's mid- One poll respondent,
term elections. 21-year-old Samantha Bitz-
"If young people decide er, a political science major
to go out there and vote, at Michigan State Univer-
we have the power to af- sity, says she's determined
fect what the government to encourage her friends to
does," Aguilera said. "We engage more in politics.
could have a big impact." "I don't think that enough
Aguilera is among a small young people care at the
— but significant — surge moment," said Bitzer, who
of young people who say In this March 24, 2018 file photo, people take part in a "March For Our Lives" rally Saturday, calls herself a moderate
they feel politically em- March 24, 2018, in Parkland, Fla. Republican and voted for
powered in latest Youth Associated Press Trump. "People are super
Political Pulse survey from least a moderate effect, in interest among young think, while just 25 percent mad, but he's actually do-
The Associated Press-NORC a significant increase from people in politics. said so two months ago. ing everything he said he
Center for Public Affairs two months earlier, when The recent rise in political At the same time, two- would."
Research and MTV. It's a 37 percent said the same. engagement is particularly thirds say they think the Despite the rise in engage-
change from a past sur- In that time, a group of stu- apparent among Ameri- government is not func- ment, it's far from certain
vey that comes after a dents from Florida's Marjory cans ages 15 to 22, a group tioning well, and just over that young people will re-
school shooting in Florida Stoneman Douglas High that includes teenagers half — 52 percent — say shape the political land-
that elevated the voices School, where a February who will be eligible to vote they rarely or never read or scape this fall. Young vot-
of high school students in shooting killed 17, has suc- in a presidential election watch news about the mid- ers, with few exceptions,
American politics, and five ceeded in keeping the for the first time in 2020. The term elections. have struggled to maintain
months before Americans debate about gun safety poll found that 48 percent While many young people interest in politics over the
will decide whether Trump's in the news. They joined now think they can have continue to feel powerless last half century. Just 15
Republican Party will main- Tuesday with the New York- at least some effect on in the current political en- percent of eligible voters
tain control of Congress for based organization Head- the government, after just vironment, the modest in- ages 18 to 20 cast ballots in
another two years. Count in an effort to hold 33 percent felt that way in creases revealed in the poll the last midterm election,
A slim majority, 54 percent, voter registration drives at March. could be further evidence for example.
of people ages 15 to 34 90 percent of the nation's There's also an uptick in the of a Democratic wave "Do I feel like I could ac-
— a group that is typically high schools before this number of young people building against the GOP tually make a difference
the least likely to vote — year's senior class gradu- who say politicians care this fall. Young people are or influence things? Prob-
continue to believe they ates. It's one of the many what they think: 34 per- far more likely to side with ably not," said 23-year-old
have little or no effect on efforts by organizations cent of 15-to-34-year-olds Democrats than Repub- Charly Hyden, who works
government. But 46 per- aligned with Democrats on report that elected officials licans. The new poll finds for a nonprofit in Lexington,
cent of young people now gun control that seeks to care at least a moderate that they are also especial- Kentucky. "I feel exhausted.
believe they can have at capitalize on the increase amount about what they ly likely to have concerns I go out on protests and try
about the Republican pres- to do things, but I feel like it
ident. doesn't matter."
Just 30 percent of people "Maybe I'd feel differently
ages 15 to 34 approve of if I were still in high school,"
Trump's job performance, she said.
the poll found. In April's AP- ___
NORC survey of all Ameri- The Youth Political Pulse poll
can adults, 40 percent said of 939 young Americans
they approved of the presi- ages 15 to 34 was conduct-
dent's work at the White ed April 23 to May 9 by the
House. AP-NORC Center and MTV.
On gun control, 4 in 10 The poll was conducted
teens and young adults using NORC's probability-
give the government an F based AmeriSpeak panel,
grade on addressing the is- which is designed to be
sue. Still, gun-related issues representative of the U.S.
have fallen on the list of population. The margin of
concerns for young adults sampling error for all young
since the first Youth Politi- people is plus or minus 4.3
cal Pulse survey, which was percentage points.q