Gen Z and millennials are running for Congress in record numbers, but few reach November

Gen Z and millennials hit a November ballot wall

*
* Newsletters
*
* Axios Pro
* Axios Live
* The Axios Show

Axios

Axios

6 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Congress' youth wave faces a brutal reality

* Russell Contreras

*
*
*

Add Axios on Google

Add Axios as your preferred source to

see more of our stories on Google.

Add Axios on Google

!Animated illustration of a rotating campaign button with a campaign design on one side reading "GEN Z" above "MILLENNIALS," and a grimacing emoji on the other.

*Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios*

Gen Z and millennials have launched their biggest bid yet to remake Congress, but roughly seven in 10 were out by early September, a new report finds.

**Why it matters:** These two generations are struggling to clear the first hurdles of a political system that rewards experience, fundraising and established party support.

**State of play:** A new report from Future Caucus, a nonpartisan nonprofit that works with younger elected officials, found that a record share of this cycle's congressional candidates came from the nation's two youngest political generations.

* The group identified 3,918 candidates who filed for Congress this cycle, 31% more than in 2024.

* Of candidates with known or estimated ages, 36.4% were millennials or Gen Z, up from 23.4% in 2024.
* The report counts everyone who filed and doesn't track how many were first-time candidates.

**Between the lines**: Many young candidates are trying to reach Congress without the political experience that helps candidates advance.

* Just 1.7% of Gen Z candidates and 9% of millennials have served in a state legislature.
* Among congressional challengers with age data, nearly 40% of those with state legislative experience reached the general-election stage, compared with 26.2% without it.

**By the numbers:** Only 21.2% of Gen Z congressional candidates remained in the race at the report's September cutoff.

* That figure rose to 30.2% for millennials, 41.1% for Gen X and 44.5% for Baby Boomers.
* Nearly 33% of Gen Z candidates failed to qualify for a primary ballot, compared with 18.3% of millennials and 9.4% of Gen X.
* Incumbents averaged 59 years old, nearly nine years older than challengers.

**What they're saying:** "They're done waiting for somebody else to fix the problems," Future Caucus President and CEO Layla Zaidane tells Axios.

* Zaidane said Gen Z candidates running outside the two major parties face steep hurdles: raising money, recruiting volunteers and building name recognition without party infrastructure.

**Zoom in:** Women make up just 17.1% of Gen Z congressional candidates, compared with 26.6% of millennials and 30.7% of Gen X.

* Younger men withdrew or failed to qualify for the primary ballot at higher rates than women in their generations.
* Younger candidates are disproportionately Democrats, even as President Trump's GOP competes for young voters.

**Yes, but:** Young candidates are scoring *some* wins.

* In Colorado, 29-year-old democratic socialist Melat Kiros ousted 15-term Democratic Rep. Diana DeGette in the primary for a heavily Democratic Denver seat.
* In Iowa, 29-year-old Republican Joe Mitchell, a former state lawmaker, captured his party's nomination for an open House seat.

*
*
*

Add Axios on Google

What to read next

*
*
*
*
*
*

Smarter, faster on what matters.

Explore Axios Newsletters

* About Axios
* Advertise with us
* Careers
* Contact us

* Newsletters
* Axios Live
* Axios HQ

* Privacy policy
* Terms of use
*

Axios Homepage

Axios Media Inc., 2026