Tipsheet

YAF's Fall Survey Reveals Young Voters' Thoughts on Free Speech, Jobs, and the 2026 Midterms

Amy Curtis
Amy Curtis  |  November 25, 2025 2:30 PM

Young America's Foundation (YAF) has released the results of its latest survey of young voters, conducted by Echelon Insights, offering some interesting insights into where young voters' minds and concerns are focused ahead of the 2026 midterms.

The survey focused on a wide range of topics, including political speech, jobs, the economy, pride in the United States, and the Congressional generic ballot.

Free Speech

A majority of young voters, 79 percent, believe political speech should be protected free speech, including "strongly conservative" viewpoints. Despite that, just 51 percent of young voters said they feel comfortable publicly speaking their minds about political issues, while 23 percent said they "rarely or never" do so. 

Some of that reluctance might be tied to views on expressing conservative viewpoints in the public sphere, including "negative statements" and "celebrating acts of violence," and the assassination of Charlie Kirk. Fewer than half of voters believed that "negative statements toward racial or ethnic groups" should be protected (42 percent) and 38 percent said they draw the line at "celebrating acts of violence." A majority (60 percent) believe those comments should be reported to a person's employer, and roughly 30 percent think "violence might be justified" to shut down those types of speech.

Unsurprisingly, a slim majority of liberal young voters  (53 percent) believe we are "better off when strongly conservative" political views are barred from the public square, and 31 percent of young voters overall agree with that sentiment.

Seven in ten agreed that "there is absolutely no justification for murdering someone over their viewpoints" when asked about the Charlie Kirk assassination. However, just under a quarter of respondents said they believed Kirk's viewpoints "brought the violence upon himself," and 42 percent of young liberal voters agreed Kirk's views led to his assassination.

We saw some of this in September, in the days and weeks following Kirk's assassination. At the time, YAF President Scott Walker sent a letter to every college and university in the country, asking them to protect conservative students and conservative speech on campus.

The letter from Walker read:

“The politically motivated murder of activist, husband, and father Charlie Kirk should serve as a wakeup call to the higher education community. It is beyond high time that colleges and universities acknowledge that they have a special responsibility to create a safe environment for the free and open exchange of ideas and open inquiry on their campuses.

This responsibility carries additional weight when it comes to conservative speakers and students, who face heightened risk to life and limb in the current political environment.

Public colleges and universities have a legal obligation to comport with the First Amendment’s constitutional protections for free speech and association. However, no institution of higher education—public or private—can be worthy of the name if it permits the assassin’s veto to silence free expression, inquiry, and association.
 
On behalf of thousands of students nationwide, Young America’s Foundation asks you and your institution to sign the Contract for Safe Campus Dialogue and commit to making your campus safe for conservative ideas and speakers.”

“Historically, Young America’s Foundation has sponsored more conservative speakers than any other group in the country,” Walker said at the time. “Now, we will join with every other conservative organization working on college campuses to ensure the safety of every student, speaker, and staff member while increasing the number of conservative speakers on campus. YAF has and always will have our students’ backs,” he added. “We will be stronger than ever.”

The YAF last issued a survey in January, and it shows a downward shift in young conservatives' comfort with expressing political views in public. At the start of 2025, 65 percent of young conservatives were comfortable doing so; in the fall survey, that number dropped 14 points to 51 percent.

On hot-button issues like Israel, 12 percent think a pro-Israel viewpoint should not be protected speech, and 23 percent believe that "misgendering" a trans person should not be covered by the First Amendment. Last month, YAF filed a civil rights complaint against Davidson College, alleging that the school discriminated against students Cynthia Huang and Hannah Fay over their pro-Israel views.

Jobs and the Economy

Young voters are more pessimistic about their personal economic situation than in January's survey. Jobs and the cost of living were the primary concerns, up 5% and 3%, respectively.

Current college students are more optimistic about the potential worth of their degree than those who have already graduated. 61 percent of current students believe their degree is worth the cost, while 38 percent of graduates do.

Nearly 60 percent of voters believe they're confident they will meet their financial goals, but 31 percent say otherwise. Another slim majority (51 percent) believes there are fewer opportunities to get ahead financially in America; 47 percent of young voters feel they have fewer opportunities than their parents. Of that group, white voters (21 percent) think they have fewer opportunities than their parents, compared with Black and Hispanic voters at 41 percent and 47 percent, respectively.

A recent poll of Florida voters showed housing costs and taxes were among the top concerns.

The Trump administration and Republicans also recognize affordability as a top issue for voters.

American Pride and Founding Ideals

Closely tied with their views of economic opportunity, a plurality of young voters (47 percent) said that America doesn't value hard work the same way it once did. 55 percent of young liberal voters say America isn't living up to its founding ideals, compared to 24 percent of moderates and 18 percent of conservatives. A narrow plurality (38 percent) of young voters say they are "rarely" proud of the United States, and only 35 percent said they are "pro-America always or most of the time."

When asked if they are proud of Americans in their generation, a majority (68 percent) said they are always or sometimes proud of their cohorts.

Of the issues that young voters are least proud of, "divisiveness and hate" were major responses, along with violence and crime. Despite that, 62 percent of young voters believe it's possible for "Americans to come together and move past current divisions," a view most popular among moderates and conservatives. Just 36 percent of young liberal voters feel such unity is possible.

The 2026 Midterms

Majorities of young liberal and young conservative voters are  "extremely" or "very" motivated to vote in the 2026 midterms. Young liberal voters have a slim advantage there, at 68 percent compared to 64 percent for young conservative voters. Young moderate voters are less enthusiastic, with just 39 percent sharing that same sentiment.

Among those young voters, however, there should be a red flag for Republicans. The Democratic candidate on the generic midterm ballot currently enjoys a 13-point lead, with 13 percent of voters still "unsure" about the upcoming election.

According to a recent poll, Democrats have a ten-point lead on the 2026 generic ballot.

This YAF poll helps put the finger on the pulse of America's young voters, both liberal and conservative. And Republicans would do well to put their finger on the pulse of where voters are going into 2026.