Some Gen Z Trump voters switched sides over what one calls an ‘egregious betrayal’ on the economy and war

Ryan Wharton normally doesn’t vote.

But at a low point last year, the 28-year-old PR professional and freelance journalist found himself cashing in his pennies and quarters at a Coinstar machine for dollars he could spend on medication and groceries.

This time, the Texas resident voted for Democrats up and down the ticket. He told Fortune the economy under President Donald Trump had left him feeling completely hopeless. He struggles to imagine a future in which Gen Zers like him can live what he considers a “normal life.”

Texas delivered one of the biggest upsets of a wave election for Democrats. State Rep. James Talarico beat Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton by double digits, becoming the first Democrat to win a U.S. Senate race in Texas since 1988. Democrat Gina Hinojosa unseated Gov. Greg Abbott.

Across the country, Democrats flipped seven Republican-held Senate seats, including in Iowa, Ohio, and South Carolina, to take control of the chamber. In Kansas, Methodist pastor Adam Hamilton defeated Sen. Roger Marshall, the first time Kansans have sent a Democrat to the Senate since 1932.

Young voters led the shift. About 7 in 10 voters under 30 backed the Democrat in their local House race, according to The AP Voter Poll, a survey of more than 100,000 voters, after many in their generation supported Trump in 2024.

The economy was at the center. About 4 in 10 voters overall named it the top issue facing the country. Gen Z has borne the brunt of the affordability crisis, squeezed by inflation and rising costs just as they’re trying to build their lives.

In October, 91% of young registered voters told the Harvard Youth Poll that the cost of living mattered in their vote.

Fortune spoke to six young people across the country and across the political spectrum and heard the same core frustration: the future they were promised feels like it’s slipping further away, replaced by deep disillusionment with how the economy works today. Polling suggests that anger isn’t aimed only at Washington; young voters across party lines also say they’re........

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