What Do Millennials Want?

By Amita Kelly

We know all the stereotypes about millennials and politics: they aren’t engaged, don’t vote, and are distrustful of Washington. But we also see another side to the generation — they care about issues like criminal justice, the economy and same-sex marriage.

A new poll of millennials from Harvard’s Institute of Politics (which surveyed young Americans 18-29 years old) finds some truth to those notions, and some surprises. Here are five things we learned:

1) They don’t feel politically engaged

Asked if they consider themselves to be “politically engaged or politically active” a whopping 79 percent of young Americans answered no.

2) But, they vote

Nearly 70 percent of respondents said they are registered to vote. And 60 percent said they voted in the 2012 election. That count is self-reported though, and the actual number of people 18-29 who voted is actually lower — around 50 percent, according to 2012 exit polls.

Still, that turnout is higher than their Generation X predecessors, which was around 40 percent.

Read More What Do Millennials Want? : It’s All Politics : NPR.