A POLL from Harvard’s Institute of Politics (IOP) surveyed millennials 18-29 years old found that nearly half are not confident in the fairness of the American justice system, but despite stereotypes, more young people are involved in politics than people think.
Though 79 percent of young Americans admit to not being as politically “engaged or active,” nearly 70 percent of respondents said they are registered to vote. In the 2012 election, 60 percent said they voted—although the actual count is around 50 percent, according to exit polls.
Still, the turnout is higher than voters from Generation X, whose overall turnout was around 40 percent.
The poll also found no front-runner among the prospective Republican candidates in the 2016 presidential primary race, though Democratic contender Hillary Clinton is in command of her party with 47 percent (followed by Elizabeth Warren, at 11 percent). Ben Carson topped the list in favored GOP ticket candidates, with 10 percent.
Overall, the majority of 18- to 29-year-olds said they would prefer a Democrat (55 percent) to win the 2016 campaign for president over a Republican (40 percent).
The IOP’s findings show that the millennials are split (49 percent-49 percent) over confidence in the US judicial system’s ability to “fairly judge people without bias for race and ethnicity.” They were also split on their support of protests following the police killings of black men in Ferguson, Mo., and in New York. 80 percent support requiring police to wear body cameras. 37 percent of young white Americans showed support for the #BlackLivesMatter campaign, and the majority (59 percent) said the protests will either be “not very” or “not at all” effective in making meaningful change to improve the criminal justice system.
Other major issues were also polled, including global warming (55 percent surveyed blamed gas emissions, 20 percent on “natural changes” in the environment), the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, sexual assault, and general trust in government leaders (which, at 37 percent confidence in the President and 53 percent in the US military, is beginning to slightly improve).
“The Institute of Politics has been polling America’s Millenials, the largest generation in our nation’s history, for fifteen years,” said the Harvard IOP Director Maggie Williams. “Our spring poll shows there are millions of 18- to 29-year-olds who remain hopeful about our nation’s future. They are ready to engage in the 2016 election—from voting to volunteering—if political leaders build trust not only as candidates but also in the political process itself.”
A detailed report on the IOP study is available on the homepage www.iop.harvard.edu.
(With reports from NPR)
(www.asianjournal.com)
(LA Weekend May 2-5, 2015 Sec. A pg.5)
