Recent polling by Uruguayan firm Equipos Consultores found something that would have seemed improbable not long ago: among Uruguayans between 18 and 29 years old, a group that historically leaned left, ideological identification has reached equilibrium between left and right for the first time in a generation. File Photo by Raul Martinez/EPA
June 1 (UPI) -- Recent polling by Uruguayan firm Equipos Consultores found something that would have seemed improbable not long ago: among Uruguayans between 18 and 29 years old, a group that historically leaned left, ideological identification has reached equilibrium between left and right for the first time in a generation. The finding points to a broader shift underway across Latin America, one that is rewriting assumptions about youth politics in a region long associated with progressive movements.
A generation defined by frustration
Generation Z, generally defined as those born between 1997 and 2012, now accounts for roughly a quarter of Latin America's population, according to regional market research. Together with Millennials, they represent nearly half of the region's inhabitants. They are not a peripheral demographic. They are, increasingly, the political present.
