1972 was the first presidential election when 18-20 year olds were eligible to vote. Since then, with but few exceptions (2008 the most notable), youth voter turnout has declined. For 18-24 year old citizens, turnout declined by 13 percentage points from 55% in 1972 to 42% in 2000. For 18-29 year old citizens, turnout declined by 12 percentage points from 58% in 1972 to 46% in 2000. Youth voting did increase in 2004 and 2008, but as a percentage of the overall electorate it remained relatively stable.
The following data was collected from CIRCLE - The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement
In 2004, 18-29 year-olds were 17% of the electorate, and in 2008, they were 18% of the electorate. While youth were not a significantly bigger portion in the electorate in those years, voter turnout did increase.
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