2025 Issues Survey
Whether it’s the press, pundits, or political operatives - what motivates young voters is often seen as some unsolvable mystery. With the specter of the 2026 Election looming in the distance, NewVote Nevada set out to lift the veil on the most important voting bloc in the Silver State: the youth vote.
The results of our survey tell the story of a generation in crisis. Young Nevadans are plagued by economic woes, pessimistic about their futures, but hopeful for better days - and most importantly: ready to fight for them.
The informal survey, conducted May 9th through June 4th reached 453 Nevadans aged 18-35 via SMS, Email, Social Media, and via word of mouth. Responses were collected via web form and participation was incentivized via sweepstakes.
Nevada’s got issues.
We asked Young Nevadans what issues were most important to them in 2025. The results were clear.
“Which of the following issues is the most important to you right now?”
Economic issues dominated the survey with the cost of living, and affordable housing representing the top issue for over 50% of young Nevadans. Respondents who chose the cost of living as their top issue overwhelmingly named housing as their second most important issue, and vice versa.
Respondents who chose a non-economic issue as their top choice almost always chose cost of living or housing as their second most important issue.
If the numbers themselves weren’t already clear, the qualitative responses from young Nevadans left no doubts:
“Barely can afford to live let alone buy groceries and pay for a car. I’m living off of $5 a week trying to survive with the price of rent nowadays.”
“It matters most to me because I want to be able to support myself and move out one day, but haven’t even been able to get a job”
“In a world where everything costs so much it’s hard to catch a break. I’m scared that following graduation I’m going to struggle to live comfortably without assistance”
“With the slow rate of growth for wages, and the increasing rate for the cost of living and home rates it becomes impossible to envision the American dream”
-27, Male, Sparks
Sense of Direction
We asked Young Nevadans what they thought about the direction of the country, and of Nevada specifically.
On the national level, respondents were overwhelmingly pessimistic with 75.5% saying the US was headed in the wrong direction, 18.2% unsure, and just 6.4% with a positive outlook.
On the state level things were far less clear: 47.6% were unsure about the direction of the state followed by 30.1% who thought things were heading in the wrong direction. 22.4% of Young Nevadans believe the state is heading in the right direction.
Is the United States heading in the right direction, or the wrong direction?
Is Nevada heading in the right direction, or the wrong direction?
Media Consumption
With so many ways to get information in 2025, and plenty of theories available on the best avenues to reach young voters, NewVote was curious to know how young Nevadans actually got their news about elections: so we asked. The results highlight the importance of short form video and social media, as well as the enduring importance of traditional news media and personal relationships in making decisions about elections.
Government websites, campaigns, and civic engagement organizations were among the least frequently cited sources of election information, highlighting the importance of meeting young Nevadans in the places where they already are.
Where do you get information about elections? Check all that apply.
While it’s a common trope to hear of social media posts about political issues as a form of nuisance, the reality is social media is a catalyst to action, and motivates young Nevadans to engage with their democracy in the real world.
Young Nevadans report being moved by social media to have conversations about the issues with their friends and family, turn out to vote, attend events and more. Telling of the moment we’re in, 1 in 4 young Nevadans admit to blocking a friend or family member because of their political posts.
In addition to learning where young Nevadans get their election information, we wanted to better understand how often young Nevadans were seeing political content on social media, and what if any effect that content had on their actions offline.
67% of respondents reported seeing political content on social media every day, with 1/3 of young Nevadans seeing it every time they open an app. About 27% reported seeing it a few times a week, 7.4% see it rarely, and 1.6% never.
Have political social media posts ever influenced you to do something?
Voting Habits
While largely (55%) identified as left-leaning or progressive, roughly a 1/3 (32.4%) of young Nevadans see themselves as centrists or are still deciding their political identity. A battleground within a battleground - lopsided swings in either direction from those groups represent opportunity for those willing to invest to reach them, and a liability for those who don’t.
Which of the following best describes your political views?
Very liberal or progressive - 29.1%
Somewhat liberal or progressive - 25.6%
Moderate or Centrist - 16.5%
I'm still figuring it out - 16.1%
Somewhat Conservative - 4.8%
Libertarian - 2.9%
Very Conservative - 2.4%
Other - 2.6%
How likely are you to vote in the 2026 Election?
Definitely Voting - 75.3%
Probably Voting - 12.6%
Unsure - 9.3%
Probably Not Voting - 2.6%
Definitely Not Voting - 0.2%
In spite of a pessimistic outlook on current events, young Nevadans are motivated to vote. With that in mind, candidates vying to earn their support cannot rely on enthusiasm alone and must present a vision that aligns with young Nevadans’ values, and speaks to their deep economic concerns to earn their votes.
Which of the following would most motivate you to vote in the 2026 election?
“We want bold action and strategy, not just talk”
-Male, 31, Las Vegas
Qualitative Feedback
In addition to multiple choice and select-all-that-apply questions we gave young Nevadans the opportunity to share open-ended responses. We asked respondents two questions:
In a word or two, how do you feel about the future?
What’s one thing you wish elected officials understood about people your age?
The word cloud on the right shows responses to the first question. Responses were overwhelmingly negative but with hope that conditions still have the chance to improve with time and change. Messages to elected officials reflected a severe lack of confidence and widespread feelings of disconnection.
Young Voters yearn for leadership that feels representative of their interests, responsive to their needs, and that demonstrates an understanding of their situation. The most effective messaging towards young voters will acknowledge that these are challenging times and offer bold solutions with a level of urgency that meets the magnitude of the perceived challenges.
“We are all broke and looking anywhere for hope”
“We just want to raise our kids in a safe and protected environment. We just want to be able to provide for our families.”
“We are hardworking but we cannot afford to live these days, and the job market is terrible.”
“Some of us actually know our stuff we aren’t just uneducated youngsters.
We have a voice and my generation isn’t afraid to use it.”
-Female, 19, Reno
Demographic Breakdown
Gender
Male: 50.9%
Female: 43.6%
Non-binary: 5.5%
Ethnicity
White/Caucasian - 45.7%
Asian - 10.7%
Hispanic or Latino - 28.6%
African-American - 6.6%
Native American - 2.6%
Prefer Not to Say - 2.2%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander - 2.1%
Other - 1.6%
What Comes Next?
Young Nevadans have spoken, and their voices were clear. They want change that matches the scale of the challenges they face. They want to be heard, respected, and represented by their elected officials. And they’re willing to step up to make it happen.
NewVote Nevada is committed to turning these voices into power. Our mission is to educate, empower, and inspire young Nevadans to realize their ability to make change and build a Nevada that reflects their values.
In 2024 we registered 750 young Nevadans to vote, sent over half a million voter information texts, and made 10,000 vote plans with first time voters and NSHE Students. The voters we spoke to turned out at a rate 23% higher than their peers. In 2026 we’ll do even more to grow Nevada’s Youth Vote Movement, and we hope you’ll join us.
If you’re a Young Nevadan, sign up here to get involved in your community. We’re looking for volunteers to start NewVote Chapters to organize on campus, in their cities, or even just around shared hobbies and interests.
If you support what we’re doing here at NewVote and want to make sure we have the funding to get the job done you can make a donation here, or reach out via email to mark@newvotenv.org
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