Clinton's margin with millennials is even bigger than Obama's was in 2012

After a dismal start with young voters, Hillary Clinton seems to have finally won them over. A new poll by the Harvard University Institute of Politics released Wednesday shows Clinton leading Donald Trump by 28 points with voters between the ages of 18 and 29, with 49 percent support to his 21 percent. That winning margin puts Clinton ahead of where President Obama polled with millennials at this stage of the 2012 election; Obama, who was historically popular with younger voters, led Republican nominee Mitt Romney by 19 points two weeks ahead of Election Day 2012.
"After eight years of a complicated relationship with millennials, in the closing days of the campaign, Hillary Clinton is closing strong," said John Della Volpe, the institute's polling director. "Her favorability with 18- to 29-year-old likely voters is up significantly since the summer, and the combination of her strong debate performances, and failure [of] both Trump and the third-party candidates to expand their bases, gives her a lead of 28 points."
Clinton is now 22 points ahead of where she was in a poll Harvard took in July among young voters, and her favorability rating has similarly soared. Clinton is now viewed favorably by 48 percent of young voters, compared to the just 22 percent who view Trump favorably.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Harvard's poll was conducted online from Oct. 7-17 among 2,150 U.S. citizens between the ages of 18 and 29. Its margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Christian extremism: Taking 'holy war' literally
Feature A self-proclaimed minister shot two lawmakers and kept a 'kill list' targeting Democratic officials and abortion providers
-
Iran: Is regime change possible?
Feature The U.S.-Israeli attack exposed cracks in Iran's regime
-
What to know about private equity in your 401(k)
the explainer BlackRock is making private investments available in employer-sponsored retirement plans
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US border
Speed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling
-
Thai court suspends prime minister over leaked call
Speed Read Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended, pending an ethics investigation
-
Senate passes GOP megabill after Alaska side deal
The pivotal yes vote came from Sen. Lisa Murkowski, whose support was secured following negotiated side deals for her home state Alaska
-
Trump sues LA over immigration policies
Speed Read He is suing over the city's sanctuary law, claiming it prevents local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities
-
Obama, Bush and Bono eulogize USAID on final day
Speed Read The US Agency for International Development, a humanitarian organization, has been gutted by the Trump administration
-
The last words and final moments of 40 presidents
The Explainer Some are eloquent quotes worthy of the holders of the highest office in the nation, and others... aren't
-
Senate advances GOP bill that costs more, cuts more
Speed Read The bill would make giant cuts to Medicaid and food stamps, leaving 11.8 million fewer people with health coverage