Cash-Strapped Young Californians Shift Focus From ‘Social Justice’ To Economy: Poll

Economic concerns are dominating the priorities of young Californians, according to a new poll by Power California, a nonprofit dedicated to encouraging civic engagement among young people. The data shows the top issues facing young adults statewide are economic matters like tariffs and jobs.

The cost of living and inflation capped the list. This year’s results continue a growing pattern of the prevalence of economic concerns. The social justice issues that ruled responses in 2020, like police brutality and protecting immigrants, didn’t crack the top five.

“It’s not so much that young people don’t care about social issues — because they very much do — but because they’re living paycheck to paycheck,” explained Saa’un Bell, the executive vice president of Power California.

The poll, released last week, surveyed 1,890 Californians between the ages of 18 and 30 in late spring. Generation Z is considered those between the ages of 16 and 28 in 2025, although there isn’t perfect consensus. Power California has commissioned the poll in election years since 2018, and annually since 2023. Latino Decisions, a political opinion firm, partnered with Power California to conduct the survey. Hillary Clinton’s and Joe Biden’s presidential campaigns hired Latino Decisions to administer polls in 2016 and 2020.

The poll aimed to capture the top priorities of the state’s young adults, who increasingly wield more political weight, and their reaction to the first 100 days of the second Donald Trump administration. Gen Z and millennial voters are forecast to make up the majority of the American electorate by 2028.