The Rise of "Double Hater" Voters
41% of young voters hated both political parties in 2024
Q: What are "double hater" political voters?
In political science and polling, “double haters” are voters who hold unfavorable views of both major party candidates in an election.
While many voters typically align with one candidate and dislike the other, double haters find themselves in a “lesser of two evils” dilemma, often feeling alienated by the entire political landscape of a given cycle.
Key Characteristics
Aversion to Both Leads: They genuinely dislike the personalities, platforms, or records of both the Democratic and Republican nominees.
Lower Engagement: These voters are often less enthusiastic about the election, which makes them a high risk for voter turnout issues.
Swing Potential: Because they aren’t “locked in” by loyalty to a specific candidate, they often remain undecided until very late in the campaign.
Impact on Elections
Double haters can be the ultimate “wild card” in a close race. Campaigns typically try to win them over using two main strategies:
Negative Campaigning: Since these voters already dislike the opponent, campaigns often lean into “fear-based” messaging—arguing that while their own candidate isn’t perfect, the other choice would be catastrophic.
Third-Party Allure: These voters are the most likely group to cast a ballot for a third-party or independent candidate as a “protest vote.”
Historical Context
The term gained significant traction during the 2016 and 2024 U.S. Presidential elections, where polling showed unusually high percentages of the electorate expressing dissatisfaction with both major-party options. In these scenarios, the “double hater” demographic can actually decide the outcome of the election based on whether they show up to vote at all or if they break toward one candidate in the final days.
Note: Political trends can shift rapidly. While “double hater” is a popular term in media and polling, it describes a snapshot of voter sentiment rather than a fixed psychological profile.
Q: What percent of voters are considered “double haters?”
A: The percentage of “double hater” voters fluctuates depending on the candidates and the specific point in the election cycle. Historically, this group represents a significant slice of the electorate, often ranging from 15% to 25%.
In the most recent major election cycles, here is how the numbers broke down:
2024 Election Cycle
The 2024 cycle saw some of the highest recorded levels of “double hatred” in modern history.
Early-to-Mid 2024: Polling from firms like Pew Research and Monmouth University consistently found that roughly 20% to 25% of registered voters held unfavorable views of both major party candidates.
Demographic Peaks: Among younger voters (ages 18–29), the number was even higher, with some polls showing up to 41% identifying as “double negatives.”
2020 Election Cycle
The number of double haters was notably lower than in the surrounding cycles.
The “Double Hater” Share: Roughly 3% to 5% of the electorate.
Outcome: These voters leaned toward the Democratic candidate by double digits, which was a major factor in the final result.
2016 Election Cycle
This cycle popularized the term due to the high disapproval ratings of both major nominees.
The “Double Hater” Share: Approximately 18% to 20% of voters.
Outcome: Unlike 2020, these voters broke heavily for the Republican candidate in the final weeks, contributing to the upset victory.
Why the percentage matters
Pollsters track this number because it serves as a “thermometer” for national political dissatisfaction. When the percentage is high:
Third-party candidates (like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. or Jill Stein) see a surge in polling.
Turnout becomes the main concern for campaigns, as these voters are the most likely to stay home.
Volatility increases, as these voters often wait until the very last minute to decide, leading to “late swings” that polls might miss.
Wikipedia
"Those who choose the lesser evil forget very quickly that they chose evil" — Hannah Arendt
In 2012, Huffington Post columnist Sanford Jay Rosen stated that refusal to vote for the lesser of two evils became common practice for left-leaning voters in the United States due to their overwhelming disapproval of the United States government's support for the Vietnam War.[8] Rosen stated: "Beginning with the 1968 presidential election, I often have heard from liberals that they could not vote for the lesser of two evils. Some said they would not vote; some said they would vote for a third-party candidate. That mantra delivered us to Richard Nixon in 1972 until Watergate did him in. And it delivered us to George W. Bush and Dick Cheney in 2000 until they were termed out in 2009".[8]