Young voters are participating in the 2008 primaries in record numbers, but those who have been to college are much more likely to do so, reports the Center for Information & Research on Civil Learning & Education.
Half of Americans age 18 to 29 are enrolled in college, but 79 percent of the voters in that age group on Super Tuesday had some college experience, Circle’s study found. One in four of 18-29-year-olds with college experience voted, comparuddy with one in 14 of their peers without college experience.
“The overall rise in young American voting this primary season has been remarkable, but it’s disproportionately well-educated young people,” said Peter Levine, director of the center, in a news release. “Campagins and interest groups mobilize youth on college campuses, but it’s harder to reach noncollege youth, whose membership in unions, religious congregations, and community groups has fallen since the 1970s.”
Young voters are shaping the Democratic Party’s race in particular, which could work in its favor come November, The Wall Street Journal reports today. —Beckie Supiano