EXCLUSIVE DECLARE YOURSELF ELECTION YOUTH SURVEY FINDS RADICAL TRANSFORMATION IN U.S. POLITICS

America's Youth to America: "We're Not Our Parents."

“Cost of Life” is biggest concern for future

LOS ANGELES, CA  – November 6, 2008 – Declare Yourself, the national nonpartisan, nonprofit youth voter initiative, today released the results of an exclusive survey of young voters providing powerful new evidence of the widening gap between young people 18-29--the so-called Millennials--and their parents. The survey offers compelling insight into how media, technology and young voter engagement are changing politics as we know it.

The scientific survey of 800 18-29 year olds, conducted by Declare Yourself and Luntz Maslansky Strategic Research on election night, found that young people voted primarily based NOT according to the candidate’s character --as their parents tend to vote-- but rather according to his position on the issues, . A full 47% of young respondents cited “the candidate who agrees with you on the issues” as their most important factor for their support. Only 11% of young respondents picked “the candidate whose character you most admire.”

“In every survey we have taken over the past two years, the candidates’ attributes and character have been a higher priority than where they stand on issues,” said Frank Luntz, CEO of Luntz Maslansky. “But with younger voters, it’s exactly the opposite. They represent the most issue-driven component of the electorate.” The survey has a margin of error of +/- 3.5%.

Young people also diverged sharply from their parents in their sources of news about the presidential election. 64% of the young people polled cited Internet media—traditional news websites, blogs and social networking sites—as their MAIN sources for news about the presidential campaign. Their baby-boom parents, on the other hand, primarily received election information from cable and traditional network TV. Even the type of news they’re paying attention to is evolving. 61% of young respondents said they viewed political video clips on the Internet at least once a week, and 66% said those videos influenced their opinions on the candidates.

As the nation faces an economic crisis, what most worries the young people we polled is “cost of life” (52%) and not just right now. Young people aren’t just concerned with the present; they also worry about the economy long-term. Near the top of their fears for the future was: “I won’t be able to afford to retire (25%).” Of national issues, the Iraq War was relatively low (8%) on the list; abortion (4%), terrorism (2%) and racism (1%) were of the least concern to the surveyed group.

“What these young people tell us is that the ‘cost of life’ dominates their concerns. And these kids aren’t worried about the luxuries, they’re worried about the necessities,” Luntz said.

The Millennials also asserted a new-found activism. 61% said they will likely be more active in the political process in the future. Similarly, 67% vow that they will participate in national service, if asked by the next president.

“This survey information demonstrates that Election Day was not the end; it was the beginning for an entire generation of Americans that has decided to get involved in the life of their country. And they’re not going away any time soon,” said Marc Morgenstern, Executive Director of Declare Yourself. “And we will continue to help these young people “declare themselves” as active citizens.”

“Politics as we know it is undergoing a radical transformation,” said Luntz. “This is only the tip of the iceberg.”

CLICK HERE FOR FULL YOUTH VOTE SURVEY

ABOUT DECLARE YOURSELF
Declare Yourself is a nonpartisan, nonprofit campaign to empower every eligible American, 18-to-29 years old, to register and vote in the 2008 presidential election. Through the power of strategic media partnerships, celebrity spokespeople, retail outreach, sports and, most importantly, digital technology and social media, Declare Yourself has created a campaign that embraces the landscape of youth peer and popular culture to lead young people to higher levels of true civic participation.

Declare Yourself’s massive outreach drew on the power of direct youth outreach and innovative sponsorships with entities such as MySpace, MTV, Google, AOL, Yahoo! and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. In this Election cycle, over 2.2 million young people either used Declare Yourself’s on-line registration tool or registered through its Ultimate College Bowl national contest. More than four million received text reminders on their cell phones to register and vote. Over 5.1 million people viewed Declare Yourself’s line-up of viral video and TV PSAs; Declare Yourself’s “Only You Can Silence Yourself” print and video campaign featuring Jessica Alba and Hayden Panettiere received more than 100 million media impressions through print outlets such as Rolling Stone, Time, Seventeen, Sports Illustrated and People.

In 2003, Declare Yourself launched its initiative with The Declaration of Independence Road Trip, a nationwide multimedia exhibit and tour of Norman Lear’s original copy of the Declaration. Led by Norman Lear, Declare Yourself has an advisory board of leaders from the political and media worlds including many influential figures with their fingers on the pulse of the 18-29 demographic, including NBC Entertainment/ NBC Universal Television Studio co-chairmen Ben Silverman, trend specialist Atoosa Rubenstein, online video expert James Kotecki, producer J.J. Abrams and television personality Tyra Banks.

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