Younger candidates are finding it tough to break into Congress

By Claire Leibowitz, Joshua Feldstein, and Abigail Walker | The Hill

More than 100 Generation Z candidates launched bids this cycle to run for Congress, per Future Caucus, but few have been successful.

The attempts to run highlight how young adults are frustrated with partisan gridlock and want to enter the political sphere, even if their attempts are largely falling short.

One possible reason for the lack of wins, says Layla Zaidane, president and CEO of Future Caucus, is that Gen Z candidates are more likely to run outside the two major parties, which makes it statistically harder to win.

“That mirrors the growing independence of Gen Z voters, and more broadly, that there are more people who are registering as unaffiliated,” Zaidane told The Hill. “When it comes to election day, we’re just seeing more Gen Zers fail.”

She added that these younger candidates tend to have less access to wealth and fundraising compared to more established ones.

“A lot of Gen Zers are running based on enthusiasm or some grassroots energy, but they aren’t as well-funded as their opponents,” she said.

There has been a notable exception.

Melat Kiros, a 29-year-old democratic socialist, knocked off long-time incumbent Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) in a high-profile primary in Colorado’s 1st Congressional District earlier this year. She will almost certainly win the safely Democratic seat in November.

Unlike most other Generation Z candidates, Kiros had the money and the energy.

She fundraised more than $1 million, according to Federal Election Commission data, and boasted that her team made more than 500,000 calls and knocked on 100,000 doors while campaigning. DeGette still had more money than Kiros, as she had raised $1.6 million.

Adam Pennings, executive director of Run Gen Z, an organization that recruits and mentors young conservatives running for state government, told The Hill that it’s harder for Gen Z to break into high-level positions in Congress.

In addition to fundraising difficulties, young adults obviously lack the advantage of being incumbents.

Pennings said that Gen Z candidates can get on social media to raise awareness and money, but a broad social media following does not necessarily mean content will reach a specific constituent base.

Run Gen Z uses age to its advantage.

“You are a young person and that is a benefit because you’re going to live with the consequences of your votes for 40, 50, 60 years,” Pennings noted.

Zaidane said that in previous elections, 1 in 6 candidates were under the age of 45, but now, it’s 1 in 3. “It includes more younger candidates, and that enthusiasm, appetite and choice to run in the first place is something that has been steadily increasing,” she added.

Although the majority did not advance past their primaries, there are still some Gen Zers whose names will appear on the November ballot.

In addition to Kiros, 29-year-old former Iowa state Rep. Joe Mitchell (R) is running for Congress against Democratic state Rep. Lindsay James in Iowa. The seat is currently held by Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson, who is running for Senate. Mitchell also co-founded Run Gen Z in 2020.

GOP candidate Michael Alfonso is 26 and married to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s daughter, Evita Duffy. He is running in Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District, which is currently represented by Rep. Tom Tiffany (R), who is giving up his seat for a gubernatorial run.

And Riley Owen, a 27-year-old member of the Navy Reserve, is running as a Republican in Utah’s 1st Congressional District “to keep fighting for the American dream with results, not rhetoric,” according to his campaign website.

Joe Vogel, a 29-year-old Democratic delegate who represents Maryland’s 17th Legislative District, tried to run for a seat in the House in 2024. 

“Being a young candidate has allowed me to have a platform both in my run for Congress and my run for the Legislature and the work I’ve been doing,” Vogel told The Hill.

He credits his loss in the 6th Congressional District’s 2024 primary to Rep. April McClain Delaney (D-Md.) for making him a better legislator and giving him a broader perspective of the state’s communities. 

“One of the misconceptions that I think folks have about young candidates is that we only appeal to young voters, and that’s not the case,” Vogel said. “In both of my campaigns, we really built a multigenerational movement of folks.”

“We’re looking to turn the page and elect a new generation of leaders who would bring new ideas and a fresh perspective to the issues and a new sense of energy and enthusiasm for the work that needs to be done,” Vogel continued.

He argues that Gen Z has a chance to fix what older generations have done while giving future politicians something to look up to.

“Generations to come will look at this moment in time right now and ask, ‘What did they do, how did they meet this moment?’” Vogel said of Gen Z’s involvement.

Above all, this election’s losses have not discouraged young adults. Gen Z candidates have a sense of “I don’t need to wait my turn,” according to Zaidane.

When younger candidates come into the national spotlight, they’re often seen as having extreme positions. In reality, Zaidane said, they’re more passionate.

“The fact that so many of them are running outside the traditional true party system tells us that there’s a lot more nuance in their views and the issues that they’re running on than you might assume,” she said.

The Feed is a weekly scoop on Generation Z put together by three Generation Z editors at The Hill. We’re working to understand the ins and outs of our generation’s politics. Send tips or comments to [email protected], [email protected] or [email protected].