A Romantic Recession: How Gen Z isn’t settling for love
Politics is more of a deal-breaker for American Gen Z than older people
Recent data from the United States shows there’s a big political divide between Gen Z American men and women. For decades young Americans have mostly voted for the Democrat party. But in last year’s Presidential election, that trend was reversed. Gen Z voted for President Donald Trump and his Republican party, but young men a lot more so - one analysis found that 18-year-old men were 23 percentage points more likely to support President Trump than 18-year-old women. That’s more than double the gender gap in other generations. So is this a problem for our romantic relationships? Is it possible to date someone across the political divide?
ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ journalist Jasmine Boykin explains the latest data. We hear from people who’ve dated across the divide - did it work out for them? And Maria Avgitidis, matchmaker and CEO of Agape Match, a matchmaking service based in New York City, tells us why this is a bigger issue for Gen Z compared to previous generations.
How can you make a relationship work if you have opposing political views? Jennie Rosier, a professor of communication in interpersonal relationships at James Madison University in the US, and the host of the Love Matters podcast, gives her advice.
Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld
Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk
WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6
Presenter: Iqra Farooq
Producers: Jasmine Boykin, Chelsea Coates, Emily Horler and Adam Chowdhury
Editor: Verity Wilde
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- Wed 2 Jul 2025 17:50GMTÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ World Service News Internet
- Thu 3 Jul 2025 02:50GMTÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ World Service East and Southern Africa, South Asia, West and Central Africa & East Asia only
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