There is a forgotten voter in this election, and it’s the most important for the future of the country and each party: white, Christian young men. While many predicted Gen Z to be one of the most liberal generations in the country's history, they were only half right. Gen Z women voters have followed this prediction, but the men have started a change in the culture.
So why are so many young white men attracted to the conservative ideology? It’s because they have been lied to over and over again. Young men were told growing up to suppress their masculinity in a world that hates men. They were promised a future like their fathers and grandfathers had. But that future does not exist anymore.
The Democratic Party has proven it hates masculinity and Christians. Look at the Harris and Walz campaigns: A young white man yelled out religious phrases like “Christ is king” in response to a pro-abortion section in Harris’ speech, and she responded with, “You’re at the wrong rally.” It’s the same party that passed a New York law requiring government employee health insurance to pay for abortions, causing pain to those who didn’t want their taxes to pay for something they had a moral obligation to oppose.
The system around white men has been designed through liberal policy to discriminate against them. Look at the college admission process or hiring: If you are a straight white man, you know you are at a disadvantage when it comes time to any application. The same people that keep these systems running and discriminating against white men, are the same ones that will vote liberal time in and time out. DEI policies have proved to discriminate against white men. By trying to reach equity over equality, the system has been made to put qualified white men at a disadvantage.
This election, 49% of Christians are not expected to vote. While the Democrats have fully rejected Christians, the Republicans have worked to gain the Christian vote. Trump has promised protection of Christians in Armenia and to end the anti-Catholic bias in America. In my opinion, the person who supports Christians the most is the best candidate and the best human. Christians are the true backbone of America. The biggest charities in America are Christian-based. Instead of pandering to different groups, the best strategy for any candidate to win this election is to support the Catholic church.
Maybe the simplest way to describe why young white, Christian men are becoming conservatives is their own survival. The spirit of men is a fighting spirit. They want to have a bigger purpose in life. They want to have control over their own future. This is why more young men are going to the Catholic church, because over the last 2,000 years, many have tried to defeat the church, but it has always won and still stands. Men want to have this spirit, they see how society has come to suppress them and see conservatism as a way to beat this.
Sure, the White Dudes for Harris movement made noise, but their wives’ boyfriends’ votes will just cancel theirs out. I see men who vote Democrat as hypocrites and weak. Tim Walz is a prime example of this. Earlier in the campaign, he made an appearance at the opening of pheasant hunting season. He claimed to be a hunter all of his life and then didn’t know how to load the rifle nor use it. Same with Doug Emhoff. Democrats championed him as a woman’s rights activist, but in reality he cheated on his ex-wife and impregnated another woman. These are not the actions of high-testosterone men.
Men want masculinity and millennials failed to embrace this. Men want candidates like Trump who is a mega-billionaire flying on private jets, dating supermodels and speaking his mind, or people like Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is filming videos of himself bench pressing shirtless and doing falconry. Men are attracted to conservatism because it creates strong men. Men need strength and spirit in their life. While the Republicans have not been the best at offering this, it is completely a better alternative than what the Democrats are offering for young men.
This election shouldn’t be a hard choice for the forgotten class of white, Christian young men. The party that supports the deaths of over one million innocent children per year, or the party whose leader posts pictures of the Virgin Mary and promises to protect the Catholic church.
Lucas Sprung is a UF political science and international relations junior.
