If one draws news simply from the mainstream media or what’s happening on Facebook, it’s safe to assume the belief is the vast majority of millennials are liberal, favored Hillary Clinton and despised Donald Trump as well as conservatism.

Think again, folks.

By election day, many attitudes had changed, a new survey finds.

In fact, note this as reported by the “Millennial Impact Survey” from the Case Foundation (founded by Steve Case, who launched AOL and now is an investor):

“The percentage of millennials who said they cast a vote for Donald Trump was nearly double the percentage that had said they intended to vote for him prior to the election.”

Millennials’ attitudes shifted tremendously over the course of the campaign, according to research firm Achieve, which surveyed hundreds of millennials ages 18-36 in multiple phases.

By election day, Clinton won 50 percent of millennial votes, but Trump’s share hit 40 percent.

This survey is of particular interest to the tech sector where so many workers are millennials and have been very active in political causes, such as taking on HB2 in North Carolina as well as anti-Trump/conservative sentiment in Silicon Valley and other tech hotbeds.

Changing priorities

The shift in voting followed a shift in voters’ priorities as election day neared.

“Millennials’ support of Hillary Clinton rose steadily throughout each month of our study, peaking in November when 59% said they’d vote for her,” the survey found.

The opposite was true for Trump.

“Millennials’ support of Donald Trump rose each month during Wave 1, then remained flat through August and increased to its apex of 23% in September before dropping a few points by the election.”

Then come election day when the percentages changed – drastically.

Why?

The survey’s findings don’t point to specific causes other than:

“Employment/wages became the #1 issue of concern for the first time since our research began.”

“Millennials voted for Donald Trump because of his business experience and new approach, and for Hillary Clinton because of her political experience and activism for minority groups,” the survey says. “Those who chose not to vote did so from a combination of apathy, distrust and dislike.”

The survey cited one “representative” pro-Trump response:

“He has the highest possibility for improving the economy, since he is a businessman.”

As for Clinton, a “representative” response was:

“She was the best suited for the job. She was experienced and intelligent and fought so hard for women and people everywhere.”

Jobs, jobs, jobs

The bottom line one could draw: As the importance of jobs and compensation grew, so too did Trump’s support.

“In Waves 1 and 3, survey respondents had ranked education, the economy and health care as their top three issues of concern,” the survey notes.

“Education reigned as #1 during the entire pre-election research period.”

Yet on election day, here’s how issues ranked:

1. Employment/Wages, 32 percent

2. Economy, 29 percent

3. Health Care, 27 percent

4. Education, 25 percent

Voter turnout among millennials also was much higher than the general population at nearly 80 percent.

As for their attitudes, almost half of this group identify themselves as conservative.

​Among those who didn’t vote or chose a third party candidate, however, two “representative” comments reflect that of many others who chose to skip the voting booth:

  • “Wouldn’t have made a difference due to the Electoral College.”
  • “Choosing a lesser evil is still choosing an evil.”

Read more about the survey at:

http://www.themillennialimpact.com/2016-report-webinar-wave-3/