This piece looks at a new campus poll showing young adults’ growing sympathy for socialism over capitalism, explains why that shift matters, and argues a few blunt Republican-minded fixes for the problem inside higher education and voting policy.

Alas, THE Poll Proving that College Makes You Dumber

I grew up as a Ritalin kid, and whatever the current generation is taking or skipping, the result on many campuses is predictable: left-leaning groupthink and poor economic literacy. This poll doesn’t shock because the academy has increasingly rewarded ideology over rigor, and the results reflect that drift. If conservatives want to win ideas back, we have to understand how these attitudes form and change them at the source.

The late Charlie Kirk spent years trying to break the Left’s stranglehold on universities, and that fight mattered because campus culture shapes career-long views. His work energized people who wanted real competition in ideas where students live and learn, and his absence is felt now. The article’s tone and the stakes it outlines show how urgent the problem looks from a conservative perspective.

Socialism beats capitalism among U.S. college students, in a new Axios-Generation Lab poll.

67% of survey respondents say they hold a positive or neutral association with the word “socialism,” compared with 40% with the word “capitalism.”

Why it matters: Days before a nationally watched election that could make democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani New York City’s next mayor, the survey reveals Gen Z’s growing disillusionment with capitalism — fueled by high inflation, surging healthcare and housing costs, and the rising influence of billionaires in politics, tech and media.

It also highlights college students’ left-leaning politics — and sharp partisan divides within their generation.

By the numbers: 34% of surveyed two- and four-year college students say they have a somewhat or very positive view of socialism, compared with 17% who say the same for capitalism.

Negative views of capitalism outweigh negative views of socialism by an even greater difference: 53% v. 23%. One in three has a neutral view of socialism. One in four has a neutral view of capitalism.

Partisan differences are stark: 47% of Democratic respondents and 31% of independents — but just 5% of Republicans — react positively to socialism.

45% of Republicans but just 17% of independents and 7% of Democrats have positive reactions to capitalism.

Of the overall respondents, 46% identified as Democrats, 14% as Republicans and 40% as independents.

Those numbers are messy and revealing at the same time: two-thirds expressing positive or neutral feelings toward socialism while only 40% feel that way about capitalism is a red flag. Younger voters are reacting to real economic pressures — housing, healthcare, inflation — but the diagnostic jump to socialism suggests incomplete education about trade-offs and incentives. Colleges that promote grievance narratives over problem-solving make it easy for students to prefer slogans over sustainable policies.

Partisan splits in the poll confirm what conservatives already know: campuses and young voters aren’t monolithic, but institutions tilt left and that tilt matters. When nearly half of Democratic students view socialism positively and only a small fraction of Republicans do, you see an educational environment that reinforces one worldview. That environment shapes voting behavior, career choices, and what ideas get passed on into public life.

It’s time to increase the voting age to 21.

Saying that bluntly will rile a lot of people, but consider the implications: if campus atmospheres are cultivating strong ideological preferences before young adults have more life experience, then the electorate is being skewed. Raising the voting age gives people more time to build work history, pay bills, and encounter diverse viewpoints outside academia before they cast lifetime-shaping ballots. Critics will call it elitist or paternalistic, but the goal is a more informed and invested electorate.

Fixing the problem means winning back the classrooms with better intellectual diversity, accountability for partisan indoctrination, and practical civics taught alongside theory. Conservatives should push for charity scholarships tied to intellectual diversity programs and for parents and legislators to demand transparent curricula. Redistribution of influence in higher education won’t happen overnight, but targeted pressure can change incentives for administrators.

The poll isn’t just bad press for capitalism — it’s a warning light for anyone who cares about long-term national liberty and prosperity. If campuses keep turning out voters who favor slogans over systems, conservatives must respond with policy, organization, and a sharper presence in student life. The fight is for ideas, and losing it would have consequences beyond campus gates.