Young voters who helped elect Donald Trump in 2024 feel disappointed by his choice to go to war with Iran. Some told The Washington Post they now regret their vote and may not participate in the 2026 midterms.
The frustration, reported by the Washington Post from a March focus group in North Carolina, centres on two key issues that attracted younger voters. These are Trump’s promises to prevent new foreign wars and his commitment to lower everyday costs. Participants told the newspaper they struggled to improve their finances and didn’t understand why the U.S. was involved in another conflict in the Middle East.
“I feel betrayed,” said Joshua Byers, a 26-year-old document clerk who voted for Trump in 2024. “I don’t know why we are fighting if we have never been attacked. I just don’t understand why.”
Lilly Burrow, a 23-year-old teacher from Charlotte who voted for Trump in both 2020 and 2024, expressed that the war changed her opinion of the president. “He said there would be no new wars, and he said that gas would be below $3 a gallon. I am not happy with him right now,” she stated.
Trump overperformed with young voters in 2024. But, @SarahLongwell25 writes, the focus groups that she runs show that these voters are souring on the president. “They notice when a politician like Trump promises to lower prices, and then doesn’t deliver”: https://t.co/P08WjaRpLx
— The Atlantic (@TheAtlantic) February 17, 2026
The Post noted that the feelings among these young voters echoed the criticism from online personalities who helped Trump connect with younger men during the 2024 campaign. Podcaster Joe Rogan mentioned on his show last week, “He ran on no more wars: End these stupid, senseless wars. And then we have one that we can’t even really clearly define why we did it.”
Polls mentioned by the Post highlighted the political risk for Republicans. A Washington Post-ABC-Ipsos poll released last month found that 70% of Americans ages 18 to 29 disapproved of Trump’s presidency, while 29% approved. The Post also reported that only 51% of Trump voters ages 18 to 39 were certain to vote in this fall’s midterm elections, compared to 77% of Kamala Harris voters in the same age group.
Some young voters are starting to regret their vote for President Trump: A WSJ Poll finds 58% of voters under 30 disapprove of the job he is doing as president https://t.co/g1V1mO9Htg
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) February 14, 2026
Reuters reported earlier this month that the conflict with Iran was already affecting Trump’s support among young men who helped him in 2024. Some still supported the military action, but others felt it strayed from Trump’s “America First” message and worried that the war lacked a clear goal. Analysts tracking the youth vote found that support was softening among young men who believed they had seen little improvement in their economic situation since Trump returned to office in January 2025.
Economic pressure has added to the discontent. The Associated Press reported that the national average gas price hit $3.48 a gallon on March 9, rising from $2.90 a month earlier, before the war. AP also found that a Quinnipiac poll showed around half of registered voters opposed U.S. military action against Iran, while about four in 10 supported it.
For Trump, the concern is not just anger but also disengagement. The Post indicated that several young voters were becoming disillusioned with politics as a whole. This shift could hurt Republicans if even a small number of Trump’s younger supporters decide to stay home in November.
Trump recently invited Jake Paul, who spoke at his recent rally in Kentucky, seemingly in an attempt to reinvigorate the support among young voters. However, the polling is damning for Trump and the GOP, who have the midterms in November.
