Poll: Young Alabamian voters are dissatisfied with the country’s direction, but politically engaged & seeking meaningful ways to make change
Amid frustration, young Alabama voters recognize their power to push back against the forces threatening their political voice and access to reproductive care
BIRMINGHAM — Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity (URGE), a national nonprofit working to build young people’s power, partnered with public opinion research firm HIT Strategies to survey young voters’ attitudes, perspectives, and priorities ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The poll oversampled young voters in Alabama, drawing key findings that offer a window into Gen Z Alabamians’ state of mind and decision-making.
“For years, we have worked with young people across the state who are eager to shape the future of their communities, even as they have faced growing barriers to reproductive and gender autonomy,” said Courtney Roark, Southeastern States Movement Building & Policy Director at URGE. “Young Alabamians may feel anxious, frustrated, and angry, but they aren’t disengaged. They’re paying attention and organizing around the issues that affect their lives.”
Key findings include:
- Young voters in Alabama are anxious and frustrated by the state of the country. A majority (80%) are dissatisfied with the country’s direction. They see wealth and political power as concentrated against them – nine in ten young Alabamians are concerned about the power of billionaires, and 44% say the influence of corporations and the ultra-wealthy makes them less motivated to vote, the leading reason for reduced motivation to vote in the midterms. When asked about the state of the country, Gen Z Alabamians’ emotions are overwhelmingly negative, with frustration (39%), anxiety (38%), and anger (31%) most common.
- Economic security and affordability dominate young Alabamians’ concerns: Among a long list of issues, housing costs rank as their top specific concern (95%), followed by deep worry about affording basic necessities (93%) and uncertainty about access to affordable healthcare (89%). More Gen Z Alabamians report struggling to pay their bills (35%) compared to Gen Z nationally (26%), and another 48% make only enough to cover them.
- The poll also finds young voters in Alabama are concerned about a broad range of issues, including rollbacks of DEI programs, ICE tactics, abortion restrictions, and discrimination against immigrants and transgender people. Notably, nearly 80% of Alabama’s young voters are concerned about the loss of DEI programming, as colleges and universities across the state eliminate programs designed to create safe and supportive spaces for all students. They also express similarly strong concern about ICE’s tactics (83%), discrimination against immigrants (81%), laws restricting or banning abortion (79%), and discrimination against transgender people (75%).
“These findings show that Alabama’s young voters are deeply concerned about issues shaping their lives and futures,” said Ashley Aylward, Senior Research Manager at HIT Strategies. “Their concerns about whether they and their loved ones can access reproductive care show just how personal these issues are and signal they will bring these issues to the ballot box. Young people are paying attention, and they want their voices to matter in the decisions that affect them.”
Despite deep anxiety about the state of the country, young Alabamian voters are engaged and determined to create meaningful change. Nearly eight in ten (79%) say they are motivated to vote in the 2026 midterms, 93% say they are likely to vote, and half (51%) believe Gen Z has significant power to make change on issues that matter to them. Many are also taking action beyond the ballot box by discussing politics, boycotting businesses, signing petitions, volunteering, and donating to causes. Yet their optimism is tempered by serious concerns that gerrymandering, misinformation, voter-roll purges, intimidation, and polling-place closures could prevent their voices from being fairly represented.
In the lead-up to midterm elections, URGE is launching an ambitious effort to turn out young voters across the Birmingham area, with organizers knocking on 100,000 doors to ensure young people have the information and support they need to cast their ballots. The campaign also includes targeted ads reaching students at Alabama A&M University, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Lawson State Community College, and Miles College. On the ground, URGE chapters at the University of Alabama and the University of Alabama at Birmingham are leading peer-to-peer education and outreach to mobilize fellow students to vote and make their voices heard.
The survey included 418 registered voters aged 18–29 in Alabama. The survey was fielded from June 24 – July 9, 2026, and the margin of error is +/- 4.95%.
Read more about the Alabama poll findings here.
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About URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity
URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity is a national nonprofit organization that builds young people’s power around reproductive justice issues by centering the leadership of young people of color who are women, queer, trans, nonbinary, and low-income across the South, Midwest, and California.
