Gen Z’s Changing Political Ideology

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Welcome to Morning Consult’s newsletter on young consumers: We’ll put the headlines you’re reading about Gen Alpha, Gen Z and millennials into context with our high frequency survey data to help you better understand exactly how they’re spending their time — and their dollars. 

Back in July, I wrote about how Morning Consult Intelligence data was showing that Gen Zers have been becoming notably less liberal since the start of Joe Biden’s presidency. In light of Donald Trump’s decisive victory in last week’s presidential election — where he made substantial gains with young voters — we’re taking another look at this trend. Plus, a preview of findings from our upcoming influencer report, which will be published tomorrow at 5am ET. 

 📈 Generation moderation? 📈

As of October 2024, Gen Z adults were almost just as likely to identify as political moderates (29%) as the average U.S. adult (31%) — an eight percentage point bump from the 21% of Gen Zers who said the same in January 2021. Simultaneously, the share of liberal-identifying Gen Z adults dropped from 41% to 27%, and the share of self-described conservatives grew from 16% to 23%.

The changes in Gen Z’s political ideology have been occurring against the backdrop of low and stable overall interest in politics, evidence that they are being driven by shifts in the broader cultural conversation. 

So, just who is leading this conversation today? A new class of news, political and finance influencers it seems. The content created by these folks is more analysis than objective reporting and more entertainment rather than education, but it’s attracting young audiences, who continue to abandon traditional media, in droves. And many of the most popular so-called “jinfluencers” possess a conservative bent, which Donald Trump’s campaign leveraged to its advantage.

▶️ Morning Consult Intelligence customers can access our full Gen Z political ideology analysis here. If you are interested in learning more about our audience profile data, reach out to your Morning Consult contact or email [email protected]. 

💰 Young eyes turn to the economy 💰

As with most trends, Gen Zers’ pullback from liberal ideology can’t be explained by internet happenings alone. Another major factor underpinning the situation is, unsurprisingly, the economy. 

Between January 2021 and October 2024, the share of Gen Z adults who cited economic issues as their top concern when casting votes for federal officeholders grew from 31% to 42%, a figure that is 4 percentage points higher than the share of all U.S. adults who said the same.

Aside from women’s issues spiking in mid-2022 following the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, Gen Z adults’ reported interest in all other tested policy areas failed to come close to the economy.

Being at the early career stage means that Gen Zers’ are less likely to be employed full-time and making less income than the average U.S. adult. With these circumstances converging against a backdrop of persistent inflation, it makes sense that the economy was a political north star for young people this election cycle — and will likely maintain such a position moving forward.

▶️ To learn more about Gen Zers’ evolving beliefs, head here.

🤳Younger consumers are losing trust in influencers — and many other cohorts 🤳

While influencers played an important role in the 2024 presidential election, their increasing political involvement may be spurring some unforeseen negative consequences. 

According to our soon-to-be-released 2025 Influencer Marketing Guide, the share of Gen Z and millennials who said they trust influencers “a lot” or “some” dropped 5 percentage points between 2023 and 2024. It’s a notable reversal after a period of sustained growth, but marketers shouldn’t panic.

A majority (56%) of Gen Zers and millennials still say they trust influencers. Plus, the drop wasn’t isolated: Young consumers’ trust in every tested group fell during the period, and this movement was actually most pronounced for friends and family (-9 points).

Ultimately, influencers are still very important cultural arbiters for Gen Zers and millennials, even if trust levels ebb and flow in the short-term.

▶️ Make sure you’re notified when our full 2025 Influencer Marketing Guide is dropped tomorrow by signing up to get generational trend alerts here.  

What Else We’re Reading

• Democrats hoped the bros wouldn't show. But they did. (Newsweek)
• Trump, the manosphere and the marketer’s creator dilemma (Digiday)
• TikTok Sees Trump Victory As App’s Best Hope (The Information)

Coming Up

11/13  The 2025 Influencer Marketing Guide. In this report, we’ll look at how influencers fit into U.S. adults’ social media consumption and purchasing decisions, and where future influencers want to take the creator economy moving forward. Sign up for generational trend alerts here.

11/19 Upcoming Webinar: How Brands Can Succeed at Influencer Marketing in 2025. In this 1 hour webinar, we’ll unpack our most recent  influencer report. Register here.