Most Americans think the federal government should increase spending on childcare, and one group of voters more than any other is in favor of that change: Gen Z.
Data from a new The 19th/YouGov poll found that 52 percent of U.S. adults overall think federal childcare spending needs a boost, including 73 percent of Democrats, 38 percent of Republicans and 50 percent of Independents.
Among Gen Z voters, support was more robust than other age groups. Nearly 60 percent of Gen Z voters favor increasing federal spending on childcare — more, even, than the 49 percent of millennials who said the same.
The 19th thanks our sponsors. Become one.
Currently, the United States spends about $12.4 billion on childcare annually, most of it to subsidize care for very low-income families. That shuts the vast majority of American families out of those benefits, leaving them with an average childcare price tag of $13,000 a year, and much more in certain states. Center-based childcare for two children is more expensive than the median annual rent payment in 47 states, and the median annual mortgage payment in 39 states, according to an analysis by the childcare advocacy group Child Care Aware.
In a midterm cycle that is undoubtedly defined by affordability, the high cost of childcare makes it one of the key policies Americans would like to see change on. Numerous Democratic campaigns are running with childcare solutions in their platforms this election cycle, and some Republicans in Congress are also embracing the issue. The 19th’s poll revealed that 38 percent of voters think Democrats are doing a better job at handling the cost of childcare; only 19 percent said the same about Republicans.
Last year, the issue played a role in the victories of candidates who championed childcare, most notably Mayor Zohran Mamdani in New York but also New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill and Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, all Democrats.
For Gen Z voters, for whom the economy, affordability and costs are a top concern, it’s clear childcare is part of the equation. The oldest Gen Z voters will turn 30 next year, and many are beginning to have kids or starting to think about it. People under the age of 30 were among the strongest supporters of more childcare funding in every category The 19th polled:
- Gen Z voters were the most likely to say they think the government and parents should split the cost of childcare (44 percent, compared with about 39 percent of those ages 30 to 64).
- They were also the most likely group to say the government should subsidize care for families in which both parents are employed. Nearly 60 percent of young voters said they were in favor of it, compared with 48 percent of voters overall.
- Gen Z women, specifically, are among the strongest supporters of universal childcare: 29 percent favor care for children under the age of 2 that is fully paid for by the government, compared with 21 percent of voters overall. Thirty percent of voters ages 30 to 44 also favor universal care.
Gen Z men were especially supportive of the government subsidizing care for families in which one parent is employed and the other stays home to take care of children. Some 60 percent of young men favored that idea, compared with 48 percent of Gen Z women and 45 percent of voters overall.
“The finding that Gen Z men were more likely to say the government should subsidize childcare when one parent stays at home is notable and perhaps speaks to the growing distance we see between Gen Z men and women with respect to parenthood,” said Melissa Deckman, the CEO of the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) and author of “The Politics of Gen Z: How the Youngest Voters Will Shape Our Democracy.”
Polls also suggest that Gen Z men are actually more likely than Gen Z women to prioritize having children as a goal in life, and data from PRRI found they’re also more likely to support government policies that encourage Americans to have more children.
Overall, Gen Z organizers told The 19th that childcare is motivating young voters who are looking to politicians to address concerns about rising everyday costs that could price them out of the future they’re envisioning for themselves.
“Childcare is a family planning question. For many young people, the question isn’t just, ‘Can I afford childcare?’ But, ‘Can I afford to have kids at all, and when?’ Many are delaying or reconsidering big milestones because of cost, and childcare is part of that math,” said Selasi Tagbor Morales, a spokesperson for the Alliance for Youth Action, a national group that works with local youth political engagement organizations.
In New York, Mamdani won 75 percent of the Gen Z vote. Sherrill and Spanberger both ran on lowering childcare costs and making affordable care more accessible. According to research by CIRCLE, a non-partisan research organization focused on youth civic engagement, both of their gubernatorial races drew an increase in youth voter turnout and each snagged about 70 percent of the vote from those under the age of 30.
Other national polling by the Associated Press and childcare advocacy organizations like the First Five Years Fund has found that lowering childcare costs resonates for voters across pretty much any demographic. And some policy solutions have broad-based support. According to The 19th’s poll, more than half, or about 58 percent of Americans, support a tax break for families based on how many children they have. That policy, known as the child tax credit, enjoyed majorities from voters of every party: 68 percent of Democrats, 58 percent of Independents and 53 percent of Republicans.
But Americans are more split on newer ideas, like paying stay-at-home parents who care for kids, an idea Republicans are pushing, or transferring the cost of care entirely to the government — making childcare fully universal — that Democrats favor.
Vice President J.D. Vance is championing a proposal that would send a portion of the money from the current $12 billion childcare pot that is reserved for working families to married stay-at-home parents. It’s an issue that has divided conservatives: some say it supports parents who want to stay home, others say it’s a government handout the likes of which the GOP has opposed for decades.
When The 19th asked Americans if the government should subsidize childcare for families in which one parent is employed and the other stays at home to care for children, 38 percent of Republicans and 62 percent of Democrats said they were in favor of the idea.
On universal childcare, only 21 percent of Americans said childcare costs for kids under 2 should be solely paid by the government. More Americans supported parents paying the full cost of childcare (26 percent) or splitting the cost between parents and the government (39 percent).
For pre-kindergarten covering children ages 3 to 5, only a slim majority of Americans preferred the government fully cover it (27 percent) as opposed to parents picking up the tab (24 percent). But, again, the preferred arrangement among nearly 40 percent was neither option: Childcare costs, they said, should be split between households and the government.
The 19th/YouGov poll was conducted online from September 18 to 24 among 2,357 adults, including an oversampling of 18- to 29-year-olds. The margin of error for the overall sample is ± 2.5 points.
