Why Young Men Turned Their Backs on the Democratic Party

In the previous presidential election cycle, Donald Trump conquered all of the swing states. Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin all went red in the 2024 election, a feat that has not been accomplished since the 1984 election, when President Reagan won every state except Minnesota and Washington D.C. Among many of the deciding factors in the race, the turnout of young men swung for President Trump more than they ever had in the past.

Via AP News: Supporters watch as Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally, Nov. 5, 2024, in Grand Rapids, Mich. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

56% of men between 18-29 voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 election. Bloomberg goes so far as to call it the “Podcast Election,” with most Gen Z and Millennial Americans receiving some form of political education from podcasts. According to the Circle article above, white men, both with and without a college degree, overwhelmingly voted for Trump. Why is that? Four years earlier, that same 56% number voted for Biden, with most other demographic trends staying similar. One line of thinking suggests that men are not interacting with the labor force as much, with a 6% decrease since 2005. Even more so, men with bachelor’s degrees are at a higher unemployment rate than men with just high school diplomas for the first time ever. This leads to speculation among this rather vulnerable group, as societal expectations still believe them as the breadwinners of the household. These young men start speculating: “Why is the unemployment rate lower for women than for men?” and “Why do single women own substantially more homes than single men?” Men look towards others who think they have the answers to their questions, who come in the form of manosphere content creators.

According to UN Women, the manosphere is described as “a loose network of communities that claim to address men’s struggles – dating, fitness, or fatherhood, for example – but often promote harmful advice and attitudes.” Content creators in this space often peddle that men are the “victims” of the current social and political climate, citing the #MeToo movement as the downfall of our male-dominated society. Many creators inside the manosphere endorsed Trump during the 2024 election, claiming that he was “a real man” and that “the left hates men.” Some went as far as having Donald Trump on as a guest, such as this livestream with Adin Ross in August of 2024. This ideology of being a real man works its way into right-wing politics, as conservatives seem more sensitive to the problems that boys are facing, although often as a justification to try to turn back the clock to a less progressive way of thinking. The Democratic Party, however, seems to try to deny that these issues can be anything other than individual failures in upbringing and communication, and completely turns its back, thus isolating these men even more.

Via The New Yorker: Zohran Mamdani, days before the New York City mayoral election in 2025 ( Spencer Platt / Getty)

The 2024 election proved that many Americans are frustrated with how things are being run. This frustration, however, can be misguided and can take on very unhelpful ideologies in the way of progress. Young men turning their backs on the left can attest to that. Masculinity is not being threatened by the “woke agenda” nor “cancel culture,” but by the idea of the breadwinner just not being able to exist anymore. However, with the overwhelming Gen Z push for Zohran Mamdani, the mayor-elect of New York City, young voters are pushing back on price hikes and taking small steps towards a more affordable America.