Millennials are now the biggest cohort of registered voters in North Carolina, but whether they will show up to the polls this year is an open question.
For the sake of this story, “Millennials” are people age 18-35. And that group now makes up about 28 percent of registered voters statewide.
But in the 2012 general election, only about 44 percent of those Millennials cast ballots. That's nearly 20 points lower than Generation X, and almost 30 points lower than Baby Boomers.
Millennials also voted at a lower rate than the national average that year.
So what's going on here? Is this a trait of the oft-maligned, stereotypical Millenial: a disengaged, self-centered generation?
Maybe. Maybe not.
Elon University political scientist Jason Husser says, more likely, the low Millennial turnout in North Carolina is a function of age.
“We've seen this pattern in the past where young generations are criticized for not stepping up to the plate,” Husser says, “but then once they got older, they got jobs, they got children, they became grounded in communities, they actually did.”
He says this trend goes back decades. So, as far as young voters are concerned, history may simply be repeating itself.
And looking ahead to Election 2016, Husser says he expects more of those Millennials at the polls.