Younger voters shift as Democrats lose touch with working class

Following Donald Trump's decisive win in the U.S. presidential election, both traditional and social media have been inundated with analyses attempting to explain the outcome. Many voices are trying to pinpoint a single cause for the Democrats' loss or place the blame on a specific group of people. Thus, Trump's victory has been attributed to various factors, including misogynists, racists, the Latino minority, Black men, or voters supporting candidates other than Harris or Trump.

One of the groups suggested to be "responsible" for Trump's victory is young Americans, particularly young men. However, as with many oversimplified analyses of this kind, the facts tell a different story—among voters aged 18-29, most voted for Kamala Harris. Donald Trump managed to secure a win primarily in the 45-64 age group, the most represented demographic among voters.

That said, support for Trump among the 18-29 demographic has indeed increased significantly since the 2020 elections, mainly among young men. Young people increasingly source their understanding of the world, including political perspectives, from social media. Simultaneously, platforms like Elon Musk's X (formerly Twitter) and most YouTubers and streamers covering political topics tend to present a right-wing perspective. Nine of the top 10 most popular streams on election night had a right-wing slant. The only notable exception is Hasan Piker (HasanAbi), who has been providing commentary on the American political scene from a progressive standpoint for years.

The right-wing character of social media is not the sole reason for the Republicans’ success. Some voices within the Democratic Party argue that Trump's win should also be considered in the context of the Democrats’ shortcomings. Kamala Harris's campaign was directed at voters whom many analysts label as "imagined"—moderate Republicans who view Trump as a dangerous figure. The evidence suggesting this approach was flawed is that the same percentage of registered Republicans (94%) voted for Trump as in 2020. Meanwhile, the percentage of Republicans crossing party lines to vote Democratic slipped from 6% to 5%.

A campaign focused on "moderately conservative" voters resulted in overlooking the genuinely progressive wing of the Democrats. Well-known figures like Bernie Sanders and the highly media-savvy Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez were sidelined. As the campaign went on, vice-presidential candidate Tim Walz, who successfully implemented many popular progressive reforms in Minnesota, was also subdued. His partnership with Harris initially generated excitement, helping the vice president narrow the gap with Trump in the polls during a time when the situation was dire for Democrats under Joe Biden's leadership.

During a one-hour Instagram Live session on November 6, Ocasio-Cortez addressed the challenges facing the Democratic Party. She believes her party is out of touch with its natural constituency: the working class. The U.S. is characterized by vast social inequality, and inflation—exacerbated after the pandemic—has left many already struggling individuals in an even worse predicament. Despite efforts by Biden to reduce inflation to manageable levels, it did not decrease prices, rather just slowed their increase.

Ocasio-Cortez argues that the Democrats’ lack of proposed solutions for economically distressed citizens (e.g., raising the minimum wage) leaves them with no incentive to support the party. In contrast, Donald Trump capitalized on their discontent. Although he lacked constructive policy proposals, he provided a scapegoat in immigrants, who shouldered the blame for the challenges faced by American workers.

Before being elected to the House of Representatives, Ocasio-Cortez worked as a waitress, gaining firsthand insights into working-class struggles. She is not alone in attributing the Democrats’ electoral loss to their failure to address the needs of their core voters. Senator Bernie Sanders, echoing her sentiments on Instagram, stated: "It should come as no great surprise that a Democratic Party which has abandoned working class people would find that the working class has abandoned them. While the Democratic leadership defends the status quo, the American people are angry and want change. And they’re right."

Why don't Democrats have proposals for the working class? Ocasio-Cortez reminded that, in the U.S., elections are heavily influenced by financial contributions from big businesses. These entities are typically uninterested in improving the workers' economic situation. She emphasized that a different approach is possible, citing her career as an example. She argues that if the Democratic Party doesn't break free from corporate sponsorship, it will fail to regain the working class votes, which are crucial for winning U.S. elections.