BusinessWeek Goes Inside the Youth Vote

By Jennifer Hopfinger
January 14, 2008 05:13 PM

Whatever you call today's twentysomethings--Generation Y, Millennials, the Echo Boom--the demographic group appears to be wielding more political influence than young adults have in decades. In BusinessWeek's January 21st cover story, "The Economics Driving the Youth Vote," reporter Michelle Conlin explores the reasons behind the trend, what young people are demanding of presidential candidates and how those candidates are reaching out to them.

Like their baby-boomer parents, Gen Y has the sheer numbers to get the attention of politicians. According to article sources, there are nearly 43 million people aged 18 to 29, or 20% of registered voters. After Obama's unexpected victory in the Iowa caucuses and a close second place in the New Hampshire primary--which have been largely attributed to strong young voter turnout--"the candidates seem to understand that the Millennials could have a disproportionately loud voice in November and are starting to target them more assiduously," Conlin writes. "Note the near-comic zigzagging of campaigns after Iowa, when politicians refined their talking points to appeal to Gen Y."

So what is it that's driving all these young people to the polls? Concerns about affordable health insurance and education, Social Security, and good jobs--things their parents took for granted, Conlin writes. "Given all the pressures and economic gloom, you might wonder why today's twentysomethings don't despair and disengage. There's a simple answer: They weren't raised that way. Growing up in the era of cater-to-kids politics, the V-Chip, and helicopter parenting, they were the most coddled generation ever, infused with their elders' belief that they possessed unique abilities. They also have been the most marketed-to generation, giving rise to their BS-despising, post-ironic disdain for any political solution-or candidate-that doesn't seem straight up."

Conlin predicts that after Iowa and New Hampshire, candidates will be working even harder to appeal to Gen Y voters, putting their concerns front and center.

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Copyright © 2008 Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism