It’s one of those things we sort of take for granted in modern politics, but if you look back fifty or sixty years, the data tells a completely different story. Today, when we talk about the percentage of voters by gender, the conversation usually starts with a simple fact: women outvote men. They’ve been doing it in every single U.S. presidential election since 1980.
But 2024 threw a few curveballs. While the trend of women leading the charge held steady, the "how" and the "who" shifted in ways that political scientists are still untangling. Honestly, if you only look at the top-line numbers, you miss the real drama happening in the sub-groups—like the massive gap between young men and young women, or the surprising shifts among Latino voters.
The Big Picture: 2024 by the Numbers
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s official data released in April 2025, the overall turnout for the 2024 presidential election hit 65.3%. That’s about 154 million people casting a ballot. When you break that down by gender, the gap is clear as day.
66.9% of women showed up to vote.
63.7% of men did the same.
That 3.2 percentage point difference might look small on paper, but in an electorate of this size, it represents millions of people. In fact, the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) at Rutgers University points out that there were roughly 8.7 million more women registered to vote than men in 2024.
It wasn't always like this. If you’re a history buff, you know that for decades after the 19th Amendment passed, women actually lagged behind men in turnout. It wasn't until 1980—the Reagan-Carter-Anderson race—that women’s turnout rate finally surpassed men’s. Since then, it hasn't looked back.
Age Matters More Than You Think
If you want to understand the percentage of voters by gender, you have to look at age. It changes everything.
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Basically, younger people are where the gender gap is the widest and most volatile. In the 18-24 age bracket, the 2024 election saw a 7.1 point gap. That is the largest gap recorded since the Census started tracking this specific data back in 1996. For context, the previous records were in 2008 and 2012, but 2024 blew them out of the water.
The Youth Divide
Young women are consistently more likely to show up than young men. In 2024, the turnout for women aged 18-24 was roughly 41%, while for men in the same group, it was significantly lower, hovering around 34-36% depending on the specific dataset you use (Census vs. CIRCLE estimates).
But here’s the kicker: while women vote more, the way they vote has diverged even more sharply. Exit polls from 2024 showed women under 30 backing the Democratic ticket by a 24-point margin. Young men? They went the other way, backing the Republican ticket by 16 points.
The Seniors are Different
Interestingly, the gender gap almost vanishes when you get to the oldest voters. Among people aged 75 and older, turnout actually increased for both genders in 2024. In this group, men and women vote at nearly identical rates—often around 75-79%.
One interesting anomaly: 2024 was the first time since 2008 that women aged 65-74 outvoted men in their same age group. Usually, the "older" cohorts are where men have historically held their ground, but even that is shifting.
Race and Gender: The Double Intersection
You can’t talk about the percentage of voters by gender without talking about race. The "gender gap" isn't a monolith; it behaves differently depending on the community.
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- Black Voters: This is where you see the most consistent and largest gender gap in turnout. Black women consistently outvote Black men by significant margins. In 2024, Black women's turnout remained a powerhouse of the electorate, even as overall turnout dipped slightly from the 2020 highs.
- Latino Voters: This group saw some of the most discussed shifts in 2024. While Latina women still outvoted Latino men, there was a double-digit drop in turnout for Latinos of both genders compared to 2020. Specifically, young Latino men had some of the lowest turnout rates in the country, at about 27% according to CIRCLE estimates.
- Asian Voters: This is the only group where the gender gap is historically inconsistent. Sometimes men vote more, sometimes women do. However, in 2020 and 2024, Asian women took the lead in turnout.
Why Do Women Vote More?
Honestly, there isn't just one reason. Experts like Kelly Dittmar at CAWP suggest it’s a mix of social and economic factors.
Women are more likely to be college-educated now. Data shows that 82.5% of people with advanced degrees vote, regardless of gender. Since women now earn the majority of undergraduate and graduate degrees, that naturally pulls the female turnout percentage higher.
There’s also the "issue" factor. In 2024, abortion and reproductive rights were massive motivators. About 29% of women listed abortion as a top-three issue, compared to just 17% of men. When people feel like their fundamental rights are on the ballot, they show up.
On the flip side, men were more likely to cite immigration (34%) as a top priority. While both genders cared deeply about the economy and inflation—with 43% of all voters citing the cost of living—the motivation behind the vote often differed.
The Education Gap is the New Gender Gap
We used to think gender was the biggest divide, but education is giving it a run for its money.
If you have a bachelor's degree, the gender gap in voting basically disappears. Both men and women with high levels of education vote at very high rates. The real "gender gap" is actually happening among people without college degrees.
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Women with a high school diploma or some college are much more likely to vote than men with the same education level. This suggests that for men, a lack of a degree is a much bigger barrier to political engagement than it is for women.
What This Means for the Future
If you're looking for a "takeaway," it's that the electorate is becoming more polarized not just by who they vote for, but by who shows up.
The fact that young men are trailing so far behind young women in turnout—and moving in a different political direction—is a huge deal for 2026 and 2028. Political parties are starting to realize they can't just have a "women's outreach" program; they need a "young man" strategy too, or they risk losing a huge chunk of the population to apathy.
Actionable Insights for the Next Election Cycle:
- Check your registration early. Don't wait until October. If you moved for college or a job, your registration might be out of date.
- Look at the "Down-Ballot" races. While the percentage of voters by gender is usually measured by the President, local school boards and DAs often have a bigger impact on your daily life.
- Engage the non-voters. In 2024, non-voters were pretty evenly split: 44% said they would have backed Trump, 40% Harris. The "winner" of the next election might just be the person who convinces the "couch category" to stand up.
- Analyze the data yourself. Don't just trust a headline. Sources like the U.S. Census Bureau and Pew Research Center provide the raw tables that show the nuances of how your specific demographic is participating.
The 2024 election proved that the female lead in voting isn't a fluke; it's the foundation of the American electorate. Whether men will close that gap or the divide will grow even wider among the Gen Z and Alpha generations is the big question for the next decade.