ABSTRACT
The generational gap in American politics is to a considerable extent defined by race. The fact that the United States is a much more diverse nation than it was a half-century ago has important political implications. Among non-Whites, there is a minimal generation gap as most non-Whites regardless of age tend to strongly favor the Democrats. Among Whites, however, there is a stark generation gap. The polarization in contemporary American politics is in part a product of the nation’s increased diversity. As the non-White share of the electorate has grown, so has the racial divide between the Democratic and Republican coalitions. At the same time, younger generations have a different perspective than their older counterparts on issues regarding race and younger Americans have notably lower levels of racial resentment than older Americans. Undoubtedly, there have been significant growing pains in the nation’s increased diversity and perhaps the biggest demographic fault line in the coming decades will be the cultural generation gap—the lack of intimate connections between an increasingly diverse young population and the mostly White, older population.
