Ignite Utah - Data Matters
Gen Z in Utah: The Data Behind the Movement
463,725 Gen Z voters registered in Utah. 544 surveyed directly. Every number on this page comes from real young Utahns or credible national research.
463K
Gen Z voters registered in Utah
Lt. Governor's Office, 2026
35.6%
Unaffiliated - the swing bloc
Neither R nor D - Lt. Gov. data
32.4
Utah median age - youngest state
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024
544
Gen Z voices surveyed
Grow Progress, Feb-Mar 2026
Policy Priorities
Who Cares About What
Civic Engagement
National Context
Education + AI
What should Utah's next member of Congress prioritize?
Grow Progress n=544
40%
Housing is #1
2x larger than any other single issue
62%
Housing + Jobs combined
Over half of all Gen Z priorities
78%
Top 3 issues combined
Housing, Jobs and Healthcare = 4 in 5

Click any issue card to expand real respondent quotes, demographic breakdowns, and national data.

Source: Grow Progress Survey, n=544 Gen Z Utahns, Feb-Mar 2026. Weighted, CD1-focused. Lt. Governor's Office Voter Registration Data 2026.
"I make over $100K, have no debt, no children - and I still don't know if I'll afford a house in Salt Lake Valley in the next 5-10 years."
White Woman, 18-34 - Grow Progress Survey open-ended response, 2026
Party affiliation - 463K registered Gen Z voters in Utah
Lt. Gov. data
Republican 41.1%, Unaffiliated 35.6%, Democratic 14.6%, Ind. American 5.2%, Other 3.4%.
Source: Utah Lt. Governor's Office Voter Registration Data, 2026. n=463,725 Gen Z registered voters.
Who chooses each issue - by race, income, gender and education
Grow Progress n=544
Filter by demographic to see how each issue segment compares:
Source: Grow Progress Survey cross-tabs, n=544, Feb-Mar 2026. Weighted data.
Income breakdown - % earning under $49K per issue segment
Grow Progress
Immigration 58%, Jobs 57%, Education 51%, Housing 46%, Healthcare 43%, Gun Violence 31%, Climate 22%.
Source: Grow Progress Survey - Household Income by segment, n=544, Feb-Mar 2026. KEY INSIGHT: Immigration and Jobs respondents are the lowest-income segments. Climate respondents are the highest earners by far. Housing is a cross-income crisis.
Education level shapes every priority
Grow Progress
High school or less
Some college
Bachelor's+
Source: Grow Progress Survey - Education by segment, n=544, Feb-Mar 2026. Climate (52% BA+) vs. Jobs (84% non-BA) - widest education gap between any two segments.
What would make your vote feel like it matters?
Grow Progress n=544

Voting apathy - "what would make your vote matter?"

Civic accessibility - "what makes participation accessible?"

Source: Grow Progress Voting Apathy and Civic Accessibility questions, n=544, Feb-Mar 2026.
Who or what connects Gen Z to Utah politics?
Grow Progress open-ended
Disconnected 26%, Social/news 25%, Friends/family 16%, Direct involvement 16%, Dissatisfaction 16%, Protests 8%.
Source: Grow Progress open-ended question, n=89 responses. 26% feel disconnected from local politics - yet 57% voted or participated in civic activities in the past 12 months.
Gen Z civic willingness vs. actual participation - nationally
CIRCLE 2026 n=5,549
Willing to vote 89%, definite intent 40%, talk to friends 88%, sign petitions 78%, protest 57%.
Source: CIRCLE / When We All Vote, The 50 Million, April 2026. n=5,549 ages 18-29. The gap between willing (89%) and definitely voting (40%) is the space Ignite Utah works in.
Utah Gen Z party affiliation vs. national Gen Z
Utah + National
Utah (Lt. Gov. data, 2026)
41.1%
Republican
35.6%
Unaffiliated - the decisive swing bloc
14.6%
Democratic
5.2%
Ind. American Party
National Gen Z (CIRCLE, 2026)
43%
No party affiliation - highest of any generation
57%
Still identify as Democrat or Republican
62%
Believe country is headed in wrong direction
84%
Say cost of living is top voting issue (Yale Youth Poll 2026)
Sources: Utah Lt. Governor's Office 2026 - CIRCLE / When We All Vote The 50 Million April 2026 - Yale Youth Poll Spring 2026
Our data vs. national data - how Utah Gen Z compares
Side by side
Utah - Grow Progress 2026National - CIRCLE 2026
Utah vs national comparison chart.
Sources: Grow Progress Survey Utah CD1 Feb-Mar 2026 (n=544) - CIRCLE / When We All Vote The 50 Million April 2026 (n=5,549)
Gen Z financial and housing trends - year over year
Deloitte + Redfin 2025-26
2024 / before2025-26 / now
Trends chart.
Sources: Deloitte Gen Z and Millennial Survey 2025 and 2026 (n=23,000+) - Redfin/Ipsos March 2026 - Gallup/Walton Family Foundation April 2026
Immigration and ICE - what young people say nationally
Yale Youth Poll 2026
ICE views - ages 18-29
44%
of 18-29 year olds favor eliminating ICE budget entirely
38%
say ICE agents make them feel safer (vs. 67% for local police)
48%
disagree that ICE makes communities safer
Utah context (Grow Progress)
5%
named immigration their #1 priority - but with key signals
35%
of immigration-priority respondents are Latino - highest of any segment
58%
of immigration-priority respondents earn under $49K
Sources: Yale Youth Poll Spring 2026 (n=4,100 registered voters) - Grow Progress Survey Utah CD1 Feb-Mar 2026
Gen Z and AI - from excitement to anger
Gallup / Walton 2026
51%
Use AI weekly
Growth nearly stalled - up only 4pp in a year
31%
Report anger toward AI
Up from 22% last year - sharpest shift
22%
Still feel excited
Down from 36% in 2025 - a 14pp drop
20252026
AI sentiment chart.
Source: Gallup / Walton Family Foundation / GSV Ventures - The AI Paradox - April 2026. n=1,572 ages 14-29.
Education and student debt - national picture
National data
AI in schools (Gallup 2026)
74%
of K-12 students now have school AI policies (up from 51%)
48%
of employed Gen Z say AI risks in workforce outweigh benefits
80%
say using AI tools now may make learning harder in the future
Utah context (Grow Progress)
6%
named education their #1 priority in our survey
84%
of education-priority respondents do not hold a 4-year degree
51%
earn under $49K - education as economic mobility issue
Sources: Gallup/Walton Family Foundation April 2026 - Grow Progress Survey Utah CD1 Feb-Mar 2026