How do Pew Research Center polls break down Alexandria Ocasio‑Cortez favorability by age and education in 2025–2026?
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Executive summary
The specific question asked for how Pew Research Center polls break down Alexandria Ocasio‑Cortez’s favorability by age and by education for 2025–2026, but the documents supplied do not include any Pew Research Center reports, so a direct answer from Pew data cannot be produced from these sources; instead the available polls in the packet point toward a clear pattern — younger and more highly engaged Democratic voters tend to view Ocasio‑Cortez more favorably, while national samples show a roughly split or net‑negative image for broad adult populations (reporting varies by poll) (see [4], [3], [2], p1_s2).
1. What the user is actually asking — and what the files allow
The user seeks Pew’s age and education cross‑tabulations for AOC’s favorability in 2025–2026, which is a narrowly defined request requiring Pew’s published tables or datasets; the materials supplied contain multiple public polls (Gallup, Emerson, YouGov/Economist, SurveyMonkey/Axios, Data for Progress, Yale youth poll, Statista summaries) but do not include a Pew Research Center poll or its tabulations for 2025–2026, so a faithful answer must either obtain Pew’s releases or report that those specific Pew breakdowns are not present among the supplied sources (the provided packet includes Gallup [1] [2], Emerson [3], Yale/undergraduate youth [4], Economist/YouGov [5], SurveyMonkey/Axios [6], Statista’s snapshot [7], and Data for Progress state‑level work [8]).
2. What a reader can infer about age from the available polls
Multiple supplied polls show a generational divide: the Yale Spring 2025 youth poll reported very high favorability among a sample skewed to 18–29 self‑reported registered voters (a 62% favorability figure is reported from that youth sample) indicating strong positive views among younger respondents [4], Emerson’s December 2024 national polling put AOC lower in overall national favorability but highlighted name recognition and stronger standing with younger or Democratic cohorts (29% favorable overall in that sample, with higher favorability among Democrats) [3], and Gallup’s 2025 reporting shows her national favorable rating in the low‑30s with a sizable unfavorable share — patterns consistent with younger Americans tending to be more favorable while the broader adult population is more mixed or negative [2] [1].
3. What the available materials say about education splits (and their limits)
None of the supplied snippets present a clear, consistent education‑level cross‑tabulation from Pew, and while some polls (for example the Economist/YouGov instrument and Data for Progress weighting notes) collect demographic controls including education, the packet does not include specific education breakdowns for AOC’s favorability that can be cited directly; Data for Progress’s New York primary work notes weighting by education among other demographics for its sample of Democratic primary voters [8], and large national polls typically collect education data, but the exact education‑by‑favorability numbers from Pew cannot be extracted from the materials provided [5] [8].
4. Reconciling different polls: methodology, samples and why numbers diverge
The polls in the packet use different populations and methods — a youth‑focused Yale survey of self‑reported 18–29 registered voters produces much higher favorability [4], Emerson’s broader national sample shows lower overall favorability and varied recognition [3], and Gallup’s national tracking finds improved name recognition but a net mixed image with roughly low‑30s favorable and higher unfavorable shares in 2025 [2] [1] — which explains why age‑specific figures (younger samples being positive) can coexist with national education and age mixes that produce a less favorable aggregate.
5. Bottom line, caveats and recommended next steps
A direct Pew Research Center breakdown by age and education for AOC in 2025–2026 cannot be produced from the supplied sources because no Pew reports or tables for those years are included in the packet; however, the available polls in the file consistently indicate stronger favorability among younger voters (Yale youth poll, Emerson) and mixed-to-negative views in broad national adult samples (Gallup, Statista summaries) while education‑specific cross‑tabs are not present in the excerpts provided [4] [3] [2] [7] [5] [8]. To answer the original question precisely, the Pew Research Center’s published reports or data tables for the relevant 2025–2026 field dates would need to be consulted directly.