SAVANNAH, Ga. — David Shockley doesn’t understand his son Darius’ political ideology. Shockley, a longtime Savannah resident and aircraft mechanic instructor, was fumbling as he tried to explain his son’s ideals.
“It makes no sense,” said David, who is Black and plans to vote for former President Donald Trump for a second time. He admitted he was heartbroken to learn that he and his son, who identifies as a leftist, were planning to vote for the opposing candidate.
“Where did I go wrong?” he said. “Did I raise him wrong?”
They live in the same house, share similar hobbies, and love each other, but their opinions on who should be the next president could not be more conflicting.
The Shockley family represents a deep generational divide when it comes to politics, especially between parents and young adult children. In the latest NBC News Stay Tuned Gen Z poll from SurveyMonkey, more than half of Gen Z respondents ages 18 to 29 say they hold political views that differ from at least one of their parents. Masu. About a third say they are different from their parents.
But while the political opinions of those closest to Gen Z are important, polls show that 45% of the demographic pay more attention to the opinions of family, friends, and colleagues than to political leaders (36%) or their organizations. (31%).
However, young Americans are divided with other generations across the country about their hopes for the 2024 presidential election, with half of Gen Z planning to vote for Harris and one-third voting for Trump. Meanwhile, the latest NBC News national poll shows the race as a whole is effectively tied. .
Political experts say it is clear, but not surprising, that young voters prefer Harris.
In the 2020 election, 60% of voters between the ages of 18 and 29 chose Joe Biden, while 36% voted for Trump, according to an NBC News exit poll. Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama won this group by similar margins.
Darius said he plans to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris, although he is a reluctant Democrat who doesn’t think the party is progressive enough. Because she most closely aligns with his values of “compassion for fellow citizens.”
Darius, 25, who voted in his second presidential election, recalls the moment he broke away from his father’s political views. He overheard his father talking about Obama during his 2012 re-election campaign. Darius was 12 years old.
“I remember having that conversation and thinking, ‘What?'” Is there something wrong with Obama? ‘ said Darius. For the first time, Darius, whose mother is white, said he saw himself in President Obama, whose parents were both black and white. He said he could imagine himself running for president one day. At that time, he could not understand why his father did not and would not support him. Darius said she hopes Harris can be a similar role model for young women in the United States, especially girls of Black and Asian descent.
“I want more people to get involved in politics,” he said.
Understand generational contrasts
Experts say there is a long tradition of generational rifts in American politics, but scholars often disagree on how to understand them.
“While it has always been the case that young people express different political views than their parents, this trend may be exacerbated by the fact that media and news consumption is much more fragmented than in the past. “Support for Harris and Trump appears to be much broader than the population as a whole,” says the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. said Ben Waterhouse, a history professor.
Young Americans have turned Democratic in recent decades, often uniting around issues like climate change, gun reform and abortion, but critics say the country as a whole will become more progressive in coming decades. I’m cautious about how I look at it.
“Some experts believe that, when you put all this together, Gen Z and Millennials have the potential to join forces and lead America out of this deeply polarized era to the left.”Washington said Margaret Talev, director of the Institute for Democracy, Journalism, and Citizenship at Syracuse University. DC “However, some data indicates that Gen Z is slightly more conservative than Millennials, and the reshaping of the identities of both major parties will likely shift the loyalty of these voters in the coming years.” It shows that some things can be messed up.”
Daniel Potter, director of the Houston Population Research Center at the Kinder Institute for Urban Studies, said he is interested in seeing how this divide changes over the next few presidential elections.
“As Gen Z ages, will they follow the pattern of Gen “Are you going to keep voting?” he said. What is currently defined? ”
Darius is currently a graduate student in political science at Georgia Southern University, where he also earned a bachelor’s degree in political science. When discussing politics in the Shockley household, Darius said he relies on his political science background to pull out data points and history to frame discussions with his parents and younger brother.
“I tend to instigate conversations about politics,” Darius said. “Every time I read something on the news or hear something, I like to bring it up to my parents and ask them about it.”
Meanwhile, David confessed that he doesn’t usually read or follow the news much. When he gets into heated arguments with his son about issues ranging from candidate crowd size to abortion, Darius’ younger brother Will is often the one to say something outlandish to break the ice and change the subject. , he said.
David said his traditional, conservative values are rooted in his Christian faith. But he also doesn’t trust domestic politics in Washington, DC. We believe that central government is wasteful and too often exceeds local government spending. Local governments can better care for their communities, he said.
Darius, meanwhile, favors an approach that provides a large safety net to more people, including health care for all Americans.
And although the two often take opposite sides on most issues, they try to listen to each other’s views.
“I don’t agree with half of what he says, but at the same time I’m going to listen to him and give my opinion on it and my experience and let him continue to do what he has to do. ” said David.
David and Darius are black men from battleground states who represent a demographic of voters that Democrats and Republicans consider critical to success. Black men have historically supported Democrats by wide margins of 80% to 90% in presidential elections, but polling over the past few months has shown a softening within that group, presenting an opportunity for Republicans.
But Harris’ entry into the race and targeted campaigning has helped her win back some of that support. By developing an “opportunity agenda” and giving interviews with black male media outlets such as a radio town hall with Charlamagne of God and the podcast “All the Smoke” with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson. , in an effort to curry favor with black men, Ms. Harris has frequently appeared in places where black men are common in recent weeks.
Trump also befriended rappers like Kodak Black and Fivio Fallin (sometimes appearing on their songs), visited barbershops in Atlanta and the Bronx, and appeared on various shows. Because of this, she is leaning toward black men. A podcast to reach a larger audience of black men.
But David says neither party is prioritizing African Americans.
“I don’t think anyone supports either party,” he said, adding, “I think they’re all for their own selfish needs and desires.” But that being said, for me it’s not black and white. It’s not about a party. It’s about who’s saying what I want to hear nationally. ”
Despite their differences, the two are bonded over a shared love of Star Wars and ’80s bands.
“Despite the rift between our political views, we are still united in our cause,” David said, searching for the right words.
Darius jumped out and said, “We have something in common.”
