The Views and Needs of College Students Ahead of the 2026 Election

Educational experience is one of the most significant factors of inequality in youth civic participation. According to Census data, in the 2024 election, there was a 31-point gap in voter turnout between youth (ages 18-29) with at least a Bachelor’s degree (68%) and those with only a high school diploma (37%). Educational attainment is often linked to socioeconomic status, which also shapes civic attitudes and participation. Colleges and universities can also serve as political homes where young people can learn, grow, and take action together.

While college students tend to be more engaged than their “non-enrolled” peers, there are still major efforts needed to engage youth in higher education institutions. Less than a third of college students voted in the 2022 midterm election, and there were major differences by factors like race/ethnicity. Understanding the political attitudes and potential barriers to voting for youth on college campuses is key to strengthening outreach for the 2026 election and beyond.

Based on data from our 2026 pre-election youth survey, conducted in partnership with When We All Vote, we share key insights about current college students who are enrolled in degree-granting institutions to inform youth engagement strategies.

About the Survey: When We All Vote and CIRCLE jointly developed a 30-question survey designed to capture key attitudes and aspects of Gen Z’s political engagement. Embold Research fielded the survey to a sample of 5,549 adults between the ages of 18-29 nationally in the U.S., and it was conducted between January 26 and February 12, 2026. The sample included oversamples of Gen Z adults identifying as Black or Latino, as well as oversamples of the same populations within specific states of interest. The modeled margin of error for this survey is +/- 2.5%. A detailed accounting of the methodology, including an important note about several questions in which respondents could choose multiple answers, is available in the full initial report.

College Students Say They Need More Information to Vote

In our survey, two-thirds of young college students (66%) said they are “extremely likely” to vote in the 2026 midterm elections, compared to 52% of young people who aren’t currently enrolled in a higher education institution. Notably, there isn’t a meaningful difference by gender: 66% of young female students and 65% of young male students say they’re extremely likely to vote. Among youth overall, young women are 5 points more likely to vote.

Across race/ethnicity, college students are much more likely to say they’ll vote than young people who aren’t enrolled in school. Some racial inequities persist among students, whose likelihood to vote ranges from 73% for Asian American or Pacific Islander (AAPI) youth to 64% for white youth. There are marked differences within racial groups by enrollment status: for example, young AAPI students are 26 percentage points more likely to vote than those who aren’t in school, and young Latino students are 17 points more likely.

Like their out-of-school peers, young college students are most likely to be motivated to vote by a sense of civic duty and by a desire to effect change on issues they care about. Approximately two-thirds of college students believe the country is going in the wrong direction. When asked about their political participation, their top reasons for engaging were to make a difference or because they dislike the way politics works and they want to change it.

Many of the political changes college students want to see are structural or tied to their ability to make different choices at the ballot box. When asked what would make them more likely to increase their political participation, students were most likely to say: less influence of corporations and money in politics, better candidates and parties, politicians who follow through on their promises, and systemic reforms like addressing gerrymandering or the Senate filibuster.

The concern over money in politics was the top answer for both young male and female students, as well as for every racial/ethnic group except Black college students, who are most concerned with structural reforms. That may reflect worries over redistricting efforts in many states ahead of the 2026 election, which have appeared to target Black communities.

College students also face similar barriers to electoral participation as their non-enrolled peers. While colleges and universities are excellent potential spaces for civic learning, many students still say that lack of information about the candidates (29%) or the issues on the ballot (21%) are barriers to their participation. This underscores that efforts are still needed to support nonpartisan civic education and engagement efforts on campuses across the country.

Students Are Becoming More Progressive and Have a Wide Range of Issue Priorities

As with all young people, the top concerns for current students heading into the 2026 midterms are economic issues—especially the cost of living, healthcare, and housing costs. But young college students have a wide range of issues that may influence their vote: close to a third say they care about abortion / reproductive rights, education, and jobs/unemployment.

There are some important differences in issue priorities among college students by race and gender. For young Black men and young AAPI women, the cost of living is not the number one issue: healthcare is. Black college students of both genders are most likely to prioritize racism, and abortion is a top-three issue for all female college students—except young Black women. Young white men who are in college are more likely than other youth to prioritize issues like free speech and religious freedom.

As we explored in a previous analysis, young people’s issue priorities can also be linked to shifts in their political views. Overall, young college students are much more likely to say that they have become more liberal or progressive than more conservative. 35% of students say they’ve moved left, 14% say they’ve moved right, and 31% say their views have stayed the same. (The rest said they have moved toward the center or that their views have changed “in some other way.) College students are also much more likely to identify as Democrats (62%) than as Republicans (26%); 12% say they do not identify with or lean toward either major party.

There are also major differences in ideological shifts by race/gender that can shape electoral outreach to college students. Young AAPI men, young AAPI women, and young white women are the most likely to say they have become more progressive. Young white male college students are the most likely to say they’ve become most conservative, followed by AAPI and Latino men. Young Black men are the most likely to move toward the center, and young Latina college students to have their views stay the same. About half of young AAPI female students and young Black college students of both genders also said their views have largely stayed the same.

Young Students of Color Are Struggling; Need Support for Engagement

Young people with college experience tend to report a higher level of financial and overall well-being than youth who are not in school. But a significant number of current college students are still struggling in some way. One in four college students (24%) say that they are somewhat or very dissatisfied with their lives, and nearly half (44%) say that they sometimes or often have trouble meeting their basic financial needs. Both of these factors are associated with a lower likelihood of voting and lower feelings of political efficacy, which underscores that college students still need support.  

That is especially true for college students of color: 55% of Latino college students and 48% of Black college students say they sometimes or often struggle financially. More than a third of both Black (36%) and AAPI (34%) youth say they are somewhat or very dissatisfied with their lives.

By and large, young people say that the keys to improving their life satisfaction are more time and income to enjoy their interests, a stronger personal financial situation, and fewer problems in the country and the world. These trends are similar for youth who are and are not currently enrolled in college, which suggests that young people are mostly facing similar concerns and barriers to well-being.

Engaging young voters in and out of college is a critical task ahead of the 2026 midterm elections and for the long-term health of U.S. democracy. That requires understanding the experiences, barriers, and struggles of current college students; the diversity in their issue priorities and ideological shifts; and what different students are telling us would motivate them to participate more. Taking these insights into account, outreach strategies and programming in higher education institutions can more effectively reach students and broaden the electorate.