Flathead, Montana see big increase in young voters

Voter turnout rates among Montana’s youth have swelled in recent years, from nearly 18 percent in 2014 to just over 42 percent last year in 2018, according to a report from the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, or CIRCLE.

The organization, which specializes in research on young people in the United States, looked at a combination of exit-poll data and then calculated state-by-state and national youth voter turnout using voter files to gather their data. All together, the report looked at 17 states for which voter file data first became available. Of those analyzed, every state increased youth turnout by at least eight percentage points from 2014 to 2018. The age range for youth is considered to be those 18 to 29 years old.

Montana saw the largest increase of almost 25 percentage points. Tailing close to Montana were Minnesota, Georgia and Nevada, all of which saw right around 20 percentage-point increases.

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