The Impact of the 2024 Election on Sleep, Psychological Well-being, and Political Cognitive-emotional Burden Among First-time Young Adult Voters.

Abstract

Objective: To examine the sleep, psychological well-being, and political cognitive-emotional burden of the 2024 US presidential election on first-time young adult voters.

Methods: First-time young adult voters ( N =186, mean age 20.57 years, SD=0.85) completed an 11-day daily diary and actigraphy protocol spanning the days before, during, and after the November 2024 US presidential election. Daily measures included sleep efficiency (actigraphy), positive and negative affect, distress, rumination, and political concealment. The majority of participants voted for Harris ( n =153); a smaller subset reported voting for other candidates.

Results: Across the full sample, sleep efficiency and positive affect declined, and distress, negative affect, rumination, and political concealment increased in the days leading up to the election. Negative health effects intensified on the day after the election, with non-Harris voters reporting better health than Harris voters during this period. Most health indicators returned to pre-election levels by the end of the study; positive mood, however, remained lower and negative mood remained higher than pre-election baselines.

Conclusions: The 2024 national election was associated with measurable, time-limited declines in sleep and mental health among first-time young adult voters, with election-day and postelection effects patterning by candidate preference. Most indicators recovered within days, but mood disturbances persisted beyond the study window, suggesting that elections function as acute political cognitive stressors with lingering affective consequences for newly enfranchised young adults.