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By Andrew Stanton
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Nearly 40 percent of Gen Zers believe political violence is justified at times, according to the new Harvard Youth Poll released on Thursday.
Why It Matters
The United States continues grappling with recent instances of political violence, including the assassinations of Democratic Minnesota legislator Melissa Hortman and conservative activist Charlie Kirk earlier this year.
Read More on Politics
Americans generally oppose political violence, according to polls. A Pew Research Center survey earlier this year found that 85 percent of Americans believe political violence is on the rise amid political polarization. The new Harvard Youth Survey showed that most Gen Zers also oppose violence, but that a significant minority do believe it can be justified at times. It also found that America’s youngest voters are skeptical of political institutions and parties.
What To Know
Thirty-nine percent of respondents told the Harvard Youth Poll that they believe there are at least some instances in which political violence may be justified. The poll asked whether they would consider political violence justified in five circumstances.
At least 29 percent said they believe violence would be acceptable in one or two of those circumstances, while an additional 10 percent said they think it would be justified in three or more of the scenarios, the poll found.
Twenty-eight percent of respondents said they believe violence would be acceptable when the government violates individual rights. Twelve percent said it would be acceptable when election outcomes are fraudulent.
Eleven percent said violence would become justified when somebody else encourages violence or when somebody promotes “extremist beliefs.” Ten percent said it would be justified when peaceful protests fail to accomplish their goals.
Five percent refused to answer, while 56 percent said violence would not be justified in any of those scenarios.
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The poll found widespread concern about American democracy. Only 6 percent said the U.S. is a “healthy democracy.”
Nineteen percent said they believe the U.S. is a “failed democracy,” while 45 percent said the country is “a democracy in trouble.”
Meanwhile, support for both capitalism and socialism fell in the poll compared to 2020. Capitalism received support from 39 percent of respondents, down from 45 percent in 2020. Twenty-nine percent supported democratic socialism, down from 49 percent, and 21 percent supported socialism, down from 30 percent in 2020.
The poll surveyed 2,040 adults aged 18 to 29 from November 3-7, 2025. It had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.94 percentage points.
Gen Z Feels ‘Betrayed’—Expert
Gen Z’s cynicism and attitudes toward political violence may be shaped by the fact that they “really felt betrayed by their government and political system in general,” Gabriel Rubin, a professor of justice studies at Montclair State University who studies Gen Z, told Newsweek.
“In general, Gen Z is very cynical about the U.S. political system and feels like nothing gets done, it’s divided, that politicians don’t represent them,” he said.
Rubin, who has been interviewing Gen Zers for years as part of a study, said he has heard that sentiment before. It could be more that individuals are “theoretically not opposed” to violence, even if they are unlikely to carry it out themselves.
Cynicism is fueled by issues including the fact that Gen Z does not see themselves in representation, the belief that nothing really gets done in the political system, and concerns about their economic outlook, Rubin said.
“When jobs become harder to get, when everything becomes as expensive as it is today, it makes optimism of youth seem foolish, almost,” he said. “Young people almost wish and many times compare being 40 years old to some kind of mystical thing. Like, ‘I don’t care if I turn 40’ or ‘How am I going to get there?’”
He said he has not seen any evidence of these attitudes changing in the short term, but that this cynicism could become “normalized.”
“One thing that could make a change is new political representation, new voices, new ideas,” he said.
Other Generations Less Supportive of Violence, Polls Found
The findings reflect a YouGov poll released earlier this year that found that Gen Z was more likely to support political violence than older voters.
That survey found that 19 percent of those between the ages of 18-29 believe political violence can sometimes be justified, compared to 14 percent of those 30-44, 8 percent of those 45-64 and 3 percent of those 65 or older.
That poll surveyed 2,646 adults on September 10, 2025.
A September poll from NPR/PBS News and Marist found that 19 percent of Gen Z “strongly agree” that Americans “may have to resort to violence in order to get the country back on track.” That compares to 14 percent of millennials, 9 percent of Gen X and 6 percent of baby boomers. That poll surveyed 1,477 adults from September 22-26, and results were statistically significant within plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
What People Are Saying
The Harvard Youth Poll report reads: “Traditional political identities (Democrat, Republican, Independent) do not explain political violence among young Americans, and ideological labels account for far less than underlying structural conditions. Advanced statistical testing confirms that partisanship and ideology are not significant predictors of support for political violence — a pattern consistent with academic research showing only weak correlations between these identities and openness to political violence.”
Montclair State University Professor Gabriel Rubin told Newsweek: “I think being heard is really what this generation wants. Their parents think they’re silly, and they hear over and over, ‘All you do is stare at phone and come up with weird gender identities.’ People are characterizing them and not listening to them. They’re people too. They’re very nice people. They’re very tolerant.”
What Happens Next
This is the first year the Harvard Youth Poll has asked about whether political violence can be justified, so future polls may provide further insight into how Gen Z’s attitudes toward violence may shift.
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