Voter turnout among white voters in U.S. presidential elections 1964-2020

Traditionally in the United States, voters who identify as white have the highest turnout rate of all major ethnic groups. Since the 1976 election, less than half of all eligible white voters under the age of 25 have participated in presidential elections, even falling below one third in the 2000 election. The overall participation among white voters gradually decreased from 1964 to 1996, before rising again in recent decades, and has fluctuated between 71 and 56 percent. The difference between white voters in the 25 to 44 bracket and the overall white turnout was relatively small in the 1960s and 70s, but has increased in the past three decades as voters over the age of 65 have brought the average up considerably. In the 1960s, white voters over the age of 65 were statistically less likely to vote than those aged 25 to 64, however, older voters have consistently had the highest participation rate in presidential elections since the 1996 election, with the margin of difference increasing steadily.