Voters under the age of 35 make up roughly 29% of eligible voters for the upcoming presidential election. Throughout each candidates’ campaigns, young people have been disillusioned by both candidates, making it no surprise that a majority of the estimated 67 million people who watched the debate live on television were above the age of 55. While this statistic fails to consider those among us who followed up on the debate after the fact through various media outlets and social media sites, this fact illustrates that the topics of the debate need to cater more towards younger voters. In order to win what will be a tight race, both campaigns have been making efforts to draw in younger voters for the past few months. Each campaign has tried to garner support through social media initiatives, but both failed to make a strong case to young voters on the debate stage. 

Some of the most salient issues on the ballot in November include the candidates’ age, the cost of living, the cancellation of student loans, the future of the housing market and the war in Gaza. With that in mind, let’s unpack how the candidates addressed some of the issues. 

The conversation surrounding age and ability, which hit its peak after President Joe Biden’s poor performance in the last presidential debate, has greatly shifted since he suspended his candidacy back in July, allowing his younger and more energetic vice president to step up to plate. Now the questions of age and cognitive ability have turned toward Trump. Harris’s energy and ferocity throughout the debate was a strenuous match for Trump, making the age gap between the two candidates all the more apparent. When Trump accused Harris of being as ineffectual as Biden, she made a point to say “what I do offer is a new generation of leadership for our country,” a possibility that Trump rebuked by calling up the Biden administration’s recent failures.

“She’ll never get the vote,” Trump said. “You know what it reminds me of, when they said they were going to get student loans terminated and it ended up being a total catastrophe.” 

Trump was referencing the Biden administration’s previous attempts to pass further student loan forgiveness, an act which was blocked by the U.S. Supreme Court in a 6-3 ruling earlier this year. Harris has already passed nearly $170 billion dollars in student loan forgiveness during her time as vice president, which is in stark contrast to Trump and his running mate Sen. JD Vance, who has previously stated that student loan cancellation needs to be countered “with every ounce of our energy.” While Trump criticized Harris for her lack of follow through on student loan cancellation, it was the Supreme Court justices that he appointed who issued deciding votes for the ruling in the first place. 

The topic of the economy as a whole was the biggest issue of the night. While the subject was particularly prone to derailment, conversation consistently returned to the strength of the nation’s economy during the candidates’ respective times in office. Concerning the current state of the economy, Harris acknowledged that “we have a shortage of homes and housing, and the cost of housing is too expensive for far too many people,” and then outlined a plan to offer support to young families and small business owners. 

Conversely, Trump’s rhetoric on the matter focused on the negatives of the Biden administration and positives of his own administration. He framed higher inflation rates seen during Biden’s presidency as a “country buster,” all the while citing the financial profitability of tariffs imposed on China during his time in office. After his brief comments on tariffs Trump switched into a fantastical depiction of how immigrants are eating the pets of people living in Ohio, a clear outlier from any productive discussion that night.

One of the most anticipated moments of the night came when the candidates were asked about the war in Gaza. While halfway across the world, young people and students have made the bombardment of Gaza a personal issue for them, participating in protests on campuses across the nation. While Harris made brief comments sympathizing with Palestinian suffering, her remarks were far from anything that would draw in young, uncommitted voters. Trump, when asked to comment, said, “She hates Israel. If she’s president, I believe that Israel will not exist within two years from now,” which quickly shut down any further talk of Gaza itself. 

The general consensus across party lines is that Harris won the debate, a relief for many after Biden’s poor performance during the last presidential debate. 

In terms of who came out on top for young undecided voters, the debate served as a valuable display of what each candidate brings to the table. When it comes to candidate personality, the newest generation of voters appears to care a lot about genuine moments of character, several of which came from Harris’ handling of the housing crisis and a woman’s right to choose. But her perspective on other topics, such as how to approach the war in Gaza, left much to be desired.

While younger audiences may not have been the focus of Tuesday’s debate topics, they are certainly feeling the ripple effects in its aftermath. Minutes after the conclusion of the debate, Taylor Swift released an official statement endorsing the Harris-Walz ticket. With this endorsement, Swift joins the long list of celebrities who have already made their presidential picks known for 2024. Harris already has a reputation as the “meme candidate,” showing her popularity among young people on TikTok. Clips of her debate performance, like many of her previous speeches, went viral soon after the debate — in particular, the facial expressions she made while her opponent was speaking.

No matter how you cut it, even if Trump’s performance didn’t lose him votes, it certainly didn’t earn him any. Being as close as we are to election day and with a second debate unlikely to happen, Harris’ momentum coming out from Tuesday could end up being the deciding factor for young voters. 

WSN’s Opinion section strives to publish ideas worth discussing. The views presented in the Opinion section are solely the views of the writer.

Contact Grayson Stotz at [email protected].