We estimate that 20% of youth voted in New Jersey and 27% in Virginia, in both cases comparable to participation in previous gubernatorial elections.
Both states had above average youth turnout in 2018 and 2020, but outreach to young people—especially youth of color—remains key for November.
New Jersey led the region and the nation in youth voter turnout in 2020; six states in the Northeast had turnout rates above 50%.
According to our estimates, close to 300,000 young people cast ballots in the 2013 Virginia gubernatorial race.
Our estimates suggest that more than a third of young people in Virginia voted in the recent gubernatorial election.