WASHINGTON – Republicans entered Tuesday’s midterm elections hoping to preserve the coalition President Donald Trump built during the 2024 presidential race. But the AP Voter Poll indicates the GOP may have lost support among at least one important demographic: voters under 30.
The wide-ranging survey of roughly 80,000 voters across all 50 states found that young voters were less likely to support Republican House candidates this year than they were to back Trump in 2024. Voters under 30 were also more likely than older Americans to say their House vote was intended to oppose Trump.
The economy and the state of democracy emerged as the country’s leading concerns. As voters cast ballots in Tuesday’s midterm elections, many cited the rising cost of living and government corruption as critical issues. The poll also showed broad support for Congress taking a more assertive role in checking presidential power.
At the same time, Democrats held only modest advantages over Republicans on several major issues, including the economy and government corruption. That edge has not translated into a significant overall popularity advantage for the Democratic Party.
Young voters move away from Republicans
After shifting toward Trump in the 2024 election, voters under 30 appear to have moved back toward Democrats in this year’s midterms.
According to the AP Voter Poll, about 7 in 10 voters under 30 nationwide said they supported the Democratic candidate in their local U.S. House race, compared with roughly 3 in 10 who backed the Republican. That marks a change from 2024, when the youngest voters were approximately split between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Young voters represent a relatively small portion of the electorate. Only about 1 in 10 voters in the 2026 midterms are under 30, limiting the overall effect of the shift.
Still, their frustration with the country and its leadership is pronounced. About half of young voters said they were “angry” about the direction of the country, compared with roughly one-third of voters ages 65 and older.
Trump remained a factor for many voters
Although Trump was not on the ballot, many voters said he influenced their decision.
The AP Voter Poll found that about 4 in 10 voters wanted their congressional vote to “express opposition” to Trump. Just under 2 in 10 wanted to “express support” for the president, while roughly 4 in 10 said Trump played no role in their choice.
A majority of voters under 30 said they voted to oppose Trump. Older voters, who are generally more conservative, were less likely to describe their vote as a message of dissatisfaction with the president.
The results underscored widespread discontent with Trump’s leadership. About 6 in 10 voters disapprove of the way he is handling the presidency. His priorities also drew largely negative assessments, with about 6 in 10 voters saying he places his personal interests ahead of the country’s interests.
Voters say Congress is not doing enough to check the president
Most voters nationwide want Congress to provide stronger checks and balances on the presidency, while an overwhelming majority disapprove of the way lawmakers are performing their jobs.
The survey indicates that voters want Congress to act more forcefully as a co-equal branch of government. Roughly 7 in 10 said Congress is doing “not enough” to check the presidency. Only about 2 in 10 said lawmakers are doing “about the right amount,” and approximately 1 in 10 said Congress is doing “too much.”
The concern extended beyond Democrats. The vast majority of independents and about 4 in 10 Republicans also said Congress is not doing enough.
Overall, the survey reflected deep dissatisfaction with both the president and Congress. About 6 in 10 voters disapprove of Trump’s handling of the presidency, while roughly three-quarters disapprove of Congress’ performance.
Democracy and corruption concerns rival the economy
The economy remained a central concern, particularly as voters faced high prices for gasoline and food.
Yet the poll also showed that many Americans are deeply troubled by the condition of democracy and the level of government corruption.
About 4 in 10 voters identified the economy as the country’s top issue, while roughly 3 in 10 chose the state of democracy. Only about 1 in 10 selected immigration or healthcare, and few named foreign policy or crime.
Roughly half of voters said government corruption and the cost of living were “crucial” to their congressional vote. Those shares exceeded the percentages who said the same about immigration enforcement policies, the war in Iran or AI data centers.
Among voters who considered government corruption “crucial,” most supported the Democratic House candidate, while about 4 in 10 backed the Republican. About 8 in 10 voters who identified the state of democracy as the country’s top issue supported the Democrat, compared with roughly 2 in 10 who supported the Republican.
Democrats hold an edge on handling key issues
Democrats held at least a narrow advantage in voters’ assessments of their ability to handle several major issues, though many voters said they trusted neither party.
Voters were slightly more likely to say Democrats would handle the economy and government corruption better than Republicans, two issues that ranked among the most important in this election. Democrats also held a small advantage on foreign policy and a larger one on transgender issues and healthcare. Voters were evenly divided over which party would better handle artificial intelligence and taxes, while Republicans held a slight advantage on immigration.
Despite those issue advantages, Democrats were only marginally more popular overall than Republicans. Just under half of voters held a “somewhat” or “strongly” favorable view of the Democratic Party, while about 4 in 10 viewed the GOP favorably.
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METHODOLOGY
The AP Voter Poll is a survey of the American electorate conducted by SSRS for The Associated Press, ABC News, CBS News, CNN, FOX News Media, NBC News and Versant. The survey combines probability-based and nonprobability-based interviews with registered voters in all 50 states. Interviews were conducted from Oct. 19 to Nov. 3 in Alaska and from Oct. 22 to Nov. 3 in all other states. A detailed methodology statement is available here. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 0.6 percentage points for the full sample.
