New IFS Research: The Left Has a Family Problem

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Contact: Carter Skeel 

The Left’s Family Problem

Today, the Institute for Family Studies (IFS) released new research indicating that marriage and childbearing are cratering among liberal young adults, and that there is a growing Blue/Red state divide in the number of children that favors Red states. 

This new IFS analysis spotlights: 

• A growing (ideological) family divide: Divides around marriage and childbearing among young adults ages 25-35 are increasing between conservative and liberal young men and women, especially when it comes to childbearing.

• A happiness gap: This divide matters because even liberal young adults are happier when they are married with children, as the following figure shows.

• Blue states are losing ground: Finally, this divide has major societal implications for the Left’s presence in the culture and the political realm. As fewer left-leaning young adults get married and have children, the Left’s influence in American life may diminish politically and otherwise. For instance, states that voted for Donald Trump in 2024 have seen their child population rise by about 7% since 2000, whereas states that voted for Kamala Harris in 2024 have seen their child population fall by about 7% in that same period. 

“The United States is witnessing a ‘closing of the American heart’ where fewer young men and women are getting married and having children, but this decline is especially precipitous for those on the Left,” said Brad Wilcox, Professor of Sociology at the University of Virginia and Senior Fellow at the Institute for Family Studies. 

Wilcox added, “This ideological divide in family formation is important for two reasons: liberal young adults are happier when they are married with children, and we’re seeing Blue states lose ground, family-wise, to Red states in the number of kids who will lead a progressive future.”

Read the report here.