Voter registration and voting attitudes of unhoused young adults in Los Angeles

Abstract

Historically, the United States has had a low voter turnout. This is evident with young adults, especially those who are experiencing homelessness. To understand how this unique subpopulation views voting, we conducted a research study that surveyed 79 unhoused young adults (18–26 years old) in Los Angeles. Our results indicated that of those eligible to vote, 56% identified as being currently registered. When asked if they were planning to vote in the November election, only 37% of those eligible to vote said yes. Young people identifying as LGBQ were significantly more likely to be registered as well as 4.5 times more likely to have a plan to vote. When participants were asked why they would not vote, reasons generally fell into four themes: apathy or confusion about the process, the perception of voting of having no change or impact, persistence of injustice, or active rejection of voting. Therefore, we suggest three policy recommendations to increase voter turnout among young adults experiencing homelessness: (1) encouraging voter registration and implementing targeted voter campaigns for young adults; (2) closing the gap in education and outreach, particularly at the local level; and (3) including unhoused individuals in local government and policy making decisions. These recommendations would encourage youth who are experiencing homelessness to vote, thus closing the gap and increasing voter turnout.