October 7, 2026

Poll: Young Texan voters express dissatisfaction with the country’s direction & are eager for meaningful change

Amid feelings of anxiety and frustration heading into the midterms, Gen Z voters recognize their power to influence the political and economic systems that are failing young people.

AUSTIN — 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 large national poll oversampled young voters in Texas, drawing key findings that offer a window into Gen Z Texans’ state of mind and decision-making.

Bucking the conventional “apathetic young voter” narrative, many young Texans are paying close attention to affordability, access to healthcare, and wealth inequality, and under the state’s new redistricting map, they view this year’s midterms with both skepticism and opportunity.

“Gen Z Texans are fired up about enacting change within our democracy, especially given the significant gerrymandering we’ve seen over the past year,” said Emma Wake, URGE Texas State Coordinator. “I work with young people across the state who are eager to make their voices heard. Young Texans may be frustrated and anxious about the direction of our country, but they aren’t disengaged. And they will be showing up at the polls in November.”

Key findings from the poll include:

Young voters in Texas are anxious and frustrated by the state of the country. A wide majority (74%) are dissatisfied with the country’s direction and see wealth and political power as concentrated against them. Young Texan voters are nearly unanimously (97%) concerned about the power of billionaires, and 45% 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 Texans’ emotions are overwhelmingly negative, with anxiety (44%), frustration (30%), and anger (28%) most common.
Economic security and affordability dominate young Texans’ concerns. From a long list of issues, housing costs rank as their top personal concern (96%), followed by deep worry about access to affordable healthcare (94%) and uncertainty about affording basic necessities (89%). Three in ten struggle to pay their bills, while another 49% make only enough to cover them.
The poll also finds young voters in Texas across the ideological divide are concerned about a broad range of issues, including reproductive healthcare access, ICE tactics, and discrimination against immigrants and transgender people. Notably, 88% of Texas’ young voters are concerned about laws restricting or banning abortion, and 82% are concerned about whether they and their loved ones will be able to access reproductive care amid the state’s ongoing fight over restrictive abortion laws and growing maternal health care deserts. 84% are concerned about discrimination against immigrants and 88% are concerned about ICE’s tactics. When asked about discrimination against transgender people, 85% said they are concerned.

“These findings show that Texas’ young voters are deeply concerned with the 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, Gen Z Texas voters are engaged and determined to create meaningful change. 82% say they are motivated to vote in the 2026 midterms, 98% say they are likely to vote, and 57% 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, and donating to causes. However, 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, building on URGE’s largest civic engagement year ever in 2024, URGE launched an ambitious effort to turn out young voters statewide. URGE will reach 50,000 young, low-propensity voters in rural Texas via a 4-piece mail series that equips them with voter information so they can make a plan to vote. State organizers are also texting young voters in central Texas to help them make a plan to vote and organizing local events, such as coffee chats, relational organizing, and a weekend of action, to equip young Texas voters with election reminders and information.

The survey included 557 registered voters aged 18–29 in Texas. The survey was fielded from June 24 – July 9, 2026, and the margin of error is +/- 4.08%.

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About URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity

URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity is a national nonprofit organization that works to build young people’s power around reproductive issues by centering the leadership of young people of color who are women, queer, trans, nonbinary and people of low income across the South, Midwest, and California.