2024 Election: Democrats are losing their long-held edge among young voters, thanks in large part to Generation Z’s startling support for Donald Trump.

Polls over the last year suggest a tipping point as Trump has risen to near-parity with Joe Biden among Generation Z, but this trend has been going on for years.

Because Generation Z is more racially diverse than previous generations, Trump receives more support from voters under the age of 25 as well as black and Hispanic voters. Young voters are also regularly more inclined to be concerned about Biden’s age, the economy under his leadership, and his pro-Israel stance.

A Harvard CAPS-Harris study of more than 2,000 registered voters found that 57% approved of the Republican’s job as president, while 41% disagreed.

When the data is broken down further, nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of voters in Generation Z—those aged 18 to 24—approve of Trump’s job as president. This demographic’s age range indicates that some respondents were children during Trump’s presidency, which lasted from 2017 to 2021.

Generation Z Love Trump

However, the results could serve as yet another danger sign for President Joe Biden’s reelection bid. According to Pew Research Center study, young voters played a critical role in Biden’s victory in 2020, with Generation Z and millennials supporting Biden over Trump by margins of roughly 20 points in record-breaking turnout.

According to the Harvard CAPS-Harris study, those aged 55 to 64 had the second-highest approval rating for Trump’s presidency (60 percent), followed by those aged 25 to 34 and 35 to 44 (both 58 percent).

Axios-Generation Lab issued a separate poll on Monday that showed Biden is only marginally ahead of Trump among Generation Z voters aged 18 to 34, with 52 percent selecting the president and 48 percent choosing Trump.

“We don’t know enough yet,” Neil O’Brian, a political scientist at the University of Oregon, told Axios. “But this concept that young people will continue to join the Democratic Party? There are various questions about that.”

Meanwhile, the Harvard CAPS-Harris survey reveals Donald Trump, the projected GOP presidential nominee in 2024, is leading Biden despite the Republican’s multiple legal concerns.

According to the poll, Trump leads Biden by six points (48 percent to 42 percent) in a head-to-head race, and by seven points (42 percent to 35 percent) when independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is introduced, who has 15% support.

Trump also leads Biden by nine points (42 percent to 33 percent) when independent candidate Cornel West and Green Party candidate Jill Stein are included in a five-person presidential shortlist.

Trumps Manhattan Trial Politically Motivated

Despite the fact that a majority of registered voters (56 percent) believe Trump committed a crime, the former president leads Biden in surveys. According to the study, 54% of Americans believe the criminal investigations into Trump are politically motivated, a charge the former president has repeatedly made.

Trump has pled not guilty to 91 criminal charges. His first trial, in which he is accused of fabricating business records, is scheduled to begin in New York in March.

According to the study, more than half (54 percent) of Americans believe Trump engaged in an insurrection against the US government while in office. Trump has pleaded not guilty to four federal counts stemming from the events surrounding the January 6 attack and his alleged unlawful attempt to overturn the 2020 election results.

The Supreme Court is also expected to rule on whether Trump can be removed from this year’s election ballots for violating Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which states that anyone who “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” after taking an oath of office to support the Constitution should be barred from running again.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has stepped up divisive rhetoric against Muslims throughout the election campaign, using some of the most harsh language of his decade in power to bash opponents and mobilize Hindu voters as his party seeks a historic third term.

Modi has referred to the country’s Muslim minority as “infiltrators” in a series of rallies since India’s general election began on April 19, likened his Bharatiya Janata party’s arch-rival Indian National Congress to the historic pro-Pakistan Muslim League, and accused Congress of attempting to “loot” wealth from Hindus and redistribute it to Muslims.

“Congress wants to take part of the rights of [lower-caste Hindus] and give it to their vote bank,” Modi said during a campaign event in Goa on Saturday. “And you know who Congress’s favourite vote bank is,” he added, making a thinly veiled reference to Muslims.

The same day, Anurag Thakur, the BJP’s communication minister, warned another crowd that Congress “wants to give your children’s property to Muslims”.

Modi’s intensification of aggressive rhetoric comes as the BJP seeks to rally support among Hindus, who account for over 80% of the population, in order to gain a super-majority and entrench its domination in national politics.

Modi Ups his Hindu Muslim Rhetoric

The BJP aims to win 370 of the 543 available parliamentary seats, up from 303 in 2019. The results will be announced on June 4, following six weeks of delayed voting.

However, observers who consider the Hindu nationalist BJP as the favourites believe this goal will be difficult to achieve, citing evidence of a dip in turnout during the first two rounds of voting and anti-incumbency feeling in portions of the ruling party’s northern heartland.

“I don’t think I have seen a prime minister speak such inflammatory rhetoric,” said Asim Ali, an independent political analyst, adding that Modi was attempting to “energise the Hindutva [Hindu nationalist] base”.

“Because the prime minister is saying this now, local level BJP operatives are free to take it up.”

The divisive turn has enraged Modi’s detractors, who have filed complaints with India’s electoral commission for suspected violations of the code of conduct. The body sent a notice to the BJP last week, but did not identify Modi and has yet to take action.

During a rally in Agra, home to the Taj Mahal monument erected by a Muslim Mughal ruler, Modi accused Congress of pandering to religious minorities.

“The politics of appeasement has divided the country into pieces,” Modi claimed, claiming that opposition parties are attempting to “steal” from Hindus. Muslims make up approximately 14% of India’s population.

India’s Rahul Gandhi Steps Up Pressure

Congress denies these allegations, accusing the business-friendly BJP of diverting government funding to billionaires while ignoring unemployment and inequality. It has promised to conduct a caste census, which it claims will help allocate resources to underprivileged communities.

Rahul Gandhi, a Congress leader and Modi’s most visible opponent, said on Friday that Modi appeared “very nervous”.

“Narendra Modi has snatched money from the poor . . . [and] given it to the billionaires,” he claimed. “We will give that money to the poor people of India.”

Because India has tight restrictions forbidding the publication of exit polls during the election, there is no confirmed information about any party’s standing.

However, many doubt that the BJP, which swept much of India in 2019, would be able to considerably increase its seat total.

Reaching 370 seats appears to be “a bit of a puzzle, as to where the extra seats are going to come from,” according to Ronojoy Sen, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore, who speculates that the objective may have been designed to motivate party cadres.

Both Hindu and Muslim voters in Agra expressed dissatisfaction with the campaign’s provocative tone. Rizwan Ahmed, 18, said there was “no such problem” between faiths, but “politicians just say things and then people twist the statements”.

“This kind of polarisation and communal rhetoric, of course it’ll appeal to your core voters,” Sen said in a statement. “But I’m not sure how well it works in expanding the core.”

Source: Financial Times

European Union authorities are investigating Meta because they worry that the firm has not taken sufficient measures to safeguard the next EU elections or address the issue of foreign disinformation on its platforms. This investigation could result in significant fines or other types of punishment.

On Monday, the European Commission revealed that the new investigation specifically focuses on management of fraudulent and foreign actors interfering in elections advertising. The investigation will also look into Meta’s decision to discontinue a tool that journalists and researchers frequently use to keep an eye on facebook’s platforms.

EU Investigates Meta Over Fears Of Election Interference And Foreign Disinformation

The probe represents the most recent instance of European regulators asserting their authority over US tech firms in response to implementing a series of new regulations to curb their power.

Authorities have stated that the inquiry brings attention to evident breaches of the Digital Services Act, Europe’s prominent legislation regulating internet platforms. If the crimes are verified, they might result in substantial fines amounting to 6% of Meta’s worldwide turnover.

As part of the investigation, officials are examining if Meta’s efforts to reduce the ranking of political information in users’ feeds may breach the transparency regulations of the DSA. Furthermore, Meta’s options for users to report illicit content do not seem to comply with the criteria of the DSA.

EU Investigates Meta Over Fears Of Election Interference And Foreign Disinformation

The probe follows Meta’s submission of necessary documentation to the European Commission last autumn, detailing its approach to addressing perceived hazards associated with its products. The probe conducted on Monday shows the European Union’s doubt that Meta has effectively mitigated such risks.

The study places a lot of emphasis on Meta’s decision to stop using CrowdTangle, a tool that civil society organizations had previously used to keep an eye on hot topics on Facebook and Instagram.

According to the European Commission, in the absence of it, users and researchers may encounter less transparency regarding the operations of Meta services, which could limit their ability to spot and address instances of foreign election manipulation.

The company announced earlier this year that CrowdTangle will cease to be accessible after August 14.

The European Commission has stated that discontinuing support for CrowdTangle without a suitable alternative could harm civic discourse and electoral processes. This includes tracking and identifying mis- and disinformation, detecting voter interference and suppression, and providing real-time transparency to fact-checkers, journalists, and other stakeholders involved in elections.

EU Investigates Meta Over Fears Of Election Interference And Foreign Disinformation

A spokeswoman from Facebook stated that the company will collaborate with the investigation.

The representative stated that our platforms have a firmly established procedure for identifying and reducing hazards. “We anticipate maintaining our collaboration with the European Commission and furnishing them with additional specifics regarding this project.”

SOURCE – (CNN)