If you didn't know this, you haven't been paying attention. Right wing voices have gone hard at the young male demographic for years now. They've targeted kids in online games and social media, and groomed them for years all with the goal of shaping their world view and by extension, their politics. Lonely young guys looking at people who present themselves as successful, rich, and rolling in women, not giving a fuck about anyone but themselves, telling young boys that they just need to be more sexist and racist and that'll get them laid and make them feel fulfilled. Telling them that the world is wrong and they're not. It's been extremely successful, and all wide out in the open. That's why voices like Andrew Tate made it into the public zeitgeist.

Frankly, it's an absolute failing on all of the left for being completely unable or unwilling to see this or show an alternative world view. Too often, when I hear people talk about young white men's issues, I get crocodile tears from everyone who can't separate them from actual right wing provocateurs.

I wonder how much of a role tick tock and youtube could have had on this.

Incel dipshits that couldn’t get laid even if they had a 100 dollar bill sticking out of theirs pants.

Here's the results from that youth poll the Axios article doesn't mention:

The poll also finds:

A significant enthusiasm gap between young Democrats and Republicans, with 74% of young Democrats saying they will "definitely" vote, compared to 60% of young Republicans.

A widening gender gap, nearly doubling from 17 points in the Spring poll to 30 points now, with Harris leading 70% to 23% among likely female voters.

Harris outperforming Trump on key personal qualities and issues, with substantial leads in empathy (+33), relatability (+24), honesty (+22), climate change (+32), abortion (+31), health care (+26), and gun violence prevention (+25) among all young adults.

Harris's job approval as Vice President has significantly improved, increasing from 32% in the Spring poll to 44% now.

Strong support for progressive policies among young Americans, with 74% favoring capping prescription drug prices and 59% supporting a nationwide law to legalize abortion.

Overwhelming rejection of Project 2025 among young Americans, with only 6% viewing it favorably compared to 48% unfavorably. Even among Republicans, we find 14% viewing it favorably and 23% unfavorably.

The impact of social media, with 53% of young adults encountering memes about Harris online in the last month, 34% of whom say it positively influenced their opinion. Conversely, 56% have seen memes about Trump, with 26% reporting a negative impact on their perception.

https://iop.harvard.edu/youth-poll/48th-edition-fall-2024

Anyone curious about this trend should read this:

Men are lost. Here’s a map out of the wilderness.

Well, that's frightening.

Fucking young people never learn until they have a fall. When I was working 50 hours a week at a high paying job that I stumbled into by nothing but sheer dumb luck, I ACTUALLY believed that diligent hard work at a large corporation was the ticket to prosperity and anyone that for some reason couldn't succeed in life that effortlessly was a lazy liberal.

I then lost my job during Trump's presidency and my life never really recovered or got better. Fuck young people that think voting for a fascist is cool and hip. I guess we'll all have a chance to talk some sense into them when we meet in christofascist gulag.

I’d like to know the exact definition of “conservative.” I find it hard to believe that youn people are viewing the widespread woes of late game capitalism thinking “more capitalism will fix this.”

What I’ve seen are young men feeling isolated and lonely then being angry about it. Then they are told by Rogan/petersonesque types that being authoritarian to women as policy will get them an obedient wife.

Wait.. so the boomers aren't the ones who'll take country to dogshit? Now I'm confused - these kids need to get their message straight.

I see this in my purple state amongst my teenage kids peers, and it’s terrifying.

This is not that unexpected. There hasn't been much excitement in the democratic party since 2016 when Sanders movement was stampled. Young voters are still progressive, but there has been no good ringbearer.

Reality check: The youngest age group still appears to favor liberal positions on some issues as much as those ages 25 to 29, Anil Cacodcar, the student chair of the Harvard Youth Poll, noted.

In a poll earlier this year, the younger group was just as likely to say basic health insurance is a human right and government should spend more to reduce poverty.