BRILYN HOLLYHAND: Three Ways Trump Can Build On His Triumph With Gen Z

President Trump achieved his successful political comeback in November due to his strong outreach to youth voters in modern ways no candidate had ever tried before.

After the recent special elections in Florida and Wisconsin, our party needs a wakeup call. Young people are trending our way, but the GOP needs a game plan to lock in Gen Z for 2026. Recent exit polls tell the story: 18-29-year-olds in Wisconsin split 48% GOP, 49% Dem—up from 36% GOP in 2020, which is huge, but not enough. Nationally, 46% of Gen Z backed Trump in 2024, a 10-point jump from 2020, driven by young men. Young women, though, leaned left, especially on abortion, with Planned Parenthood’s Wisconsin case firing them up. We held the House at 218 seats, but it’s a wake-up call. So, how does the GOP win Gen Z in 2026? Not taking our foot off the gas of our historically successful youth voter outreach.

Here are three ideas for the President and his team as he settles in to the White House:  First of all, there was a noticeable vibe shift over the summer in the race when Trump started joining popular podcasts across all genres for in-depth conversations up to three hours. It was real, relatable, and authentic and first-time voters loved it. Instead of the traditional cable sit-down interviews which would average a few million views at most, these conversations were averaging tens-of-millions and hundreds-of-millions of views every single time, and the audience was different than cable. Young Americans can barely afford eggs; they’re not concerned with a cable bill. That’s why streaming has seen an increase. Trump has met youth voters where they are, and it’s worked.