In a close election, every vote matters.

But in the 2020 presidential race, there's a good argument that one group mattered more than others.

Young voters. Youth turnout increased 11 percentage points from 2016 to 2020.

And according to Pew Research, voters age 18 to 29 prefer Biden by 24 percentage points.

But this year, things seem much less straightforward.

Polling data shows President Biden's approval rating has tanked among young Americans.

Polls also show that he continues to be hounded by the perception that he's too old for the job.

And young activists are creating a public relations nightmare for the campaign, whether it's

protests for more direct action on climate change, or

demanding a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

So in a general election matchupup of familiar elderly candidates.

What can we learn about a critical demographic that's often talked about,

but less frequently spoken to.

The kids.

From the New York Times, I'm a Stet Herndon.

This is the run-up.

Understanding young voters can be hard to do. In a lot of polls, the

sample size of younger Americans, like millennials and Gen Z, is too small to

draw big conclusions.

So when I heard that NextGen America, one of the country's largest

Democratic groups dedicated to young voters, was doing a new

comprehensive look at the political attitudes of Americans aged 1835.

...