Trump won white working-class non-college degreed voters by a massive margin in 2024. Roughly two-thirds, about 66–67%, according to national exit-poll analyses. That’s more than any group.
This group accounted for 51% of Trump’s entire votes in 2024.
Working-class non-degreed Latinos also voted for Trump over Harris. They accounted for another 8% of Trump’s total votes.
Even 14% of Black working-class voters supported Trump.
Of all of Trump’s voters, 67% were working-class non-college-degreed, regardless of race.
Now, of course, people with college degrees aren’t better than anyone else.
I know plenty of amazing people doing incredible things who fall into the non-degreed category. One of my three adult children didn’t go to college and he’s killing it as a young energetic hard-working entrepreneur. And he’ll probably make more than my other two. Several very close friends don’t have college degrees.
But it’s been a head-scratcher why of all the voting groups, people who statistically have way less resources than doctors, lawyers, accountants, psychologists, engineers and the like put their trust in billionaires and elected officials who protect them.
More specifically, trust in billionaires who promote tax cuts for the rich.
The ones who oppose guaranteed health care. Who advocate for cutting Medicaid. Who vote against increasing high speed public transportation. Against free community college. Against childcare tax credits. Who voted against paid family and medical leave. The list goes on.
The 2025 reconciliation law signed by Trump, just by way of one of many examples, reduced federal Medicaid and SNAP spending while reducing federal revenues through tax provisions. The Congressional Budget Office concluded that the law will reduce resources for households toward the bottom of the income graph while increasing resources for households toward the top.
A large chunk of people who need it the most consistently vote against their own interests.
Then it dawned on me why recently.
Most of us who don’t grow up with resources. Who grew up in struggling families. Some living paycheck to paycheck. With bill collectors calling each week.
We think we can “get there.”
We look at the nice houses. The international travel. The cars. The clothes.
Then we say to ourselves, I can have that. I can have what they have.
I know that’s what I thought as a young kid in a family with no money.
Not unlike the football star on a high school team who might forego all other opportunities thinking he can make it to the NFL.
And lo and behold, a very select few people do make the NFL. Some people who grew up in struggle do “arrive.” They end up getting that car. The house. The nice stuff.
And so we look at those billionaires who just tell everyone to work hard sort of like unintentional idols. We aspire to be them. They must know what they’re doing, so we put our trust in them. We set aside that many of them started with small family loans of a few million.
Being a millionaire or billionaire doesn’t make someone bad. There are plenty of amazing wealthy people who advocate for fairness and equity. There are plenty who donate so much to help people. To advance science and cure diseases. To eradicate poverty. Provide scholarships for students in need.
Still, there are enough in power who aren’t there to protect people. They’re in it to protect themselves and line their own coffers.
Until the masses of people who are the ones who actually keep this country running understand that their best way towards financial security and upward mobility isn’t to prioritize the dream of fancy sports cars or making it to the NFL of life, but it’s first to support politicians and policies that remove the many obstacles preventing those sample people from getting there.
There’s nothing wrong with wanting financial security. To have plenty of resources to travel. Or to have that nice home. To aspire to build something.
Not at the expense of kindness or family and friends or doing good in the world, but it’s ok to like nice things.
Just not if it comes on the backs of most hardworking Americans trying to get by.