How the South's Youth Boom Could Change America

New data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that the South is the only region in the country where the number of kids and young adults is growing. Every other region — the Northeast, Midwest, and West — saw their young populations shrink between 2020 and 2025. This trend could have a big impact on the South's economy, culture, and politics in the years ahead. Experts say the change is being driven by people moving to the South and by immigration.

Across the whole country, the number of Americans under 18 dropped by 2.4 percent between 2020 and 2025. The West had the biggest drop, losing 5.7 percent of its under-18 population. The Northeast lost 4.1 percent of its young residents, and the Midwest lost 3.9 percent. Only the South saw both its under-18 group and its 18-to-24 age group get bigger.

In the South, the number of residents under 18 grew by 1.1 percent, while the 18-to-24 group grew by 5 percent. In fact, every age group in the South grew faster than in any other region. From April 2020 to July 2025, the South's total population grew by 6 percent. That is nearly double the national growth rate of 3.1 percent.

Demographer William Frey, a senior fellow at the Brookings Metro think tank, explained why this matters. He told Newsweek that the number of Americans under 18 has been falling since 2010. He added that the drop in young people has continued over the most recent five-year period. This means the South is going against a long national trend.

So why is the South growing when the rest of the country is not? During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people left big cities in the Northeast and on the West Coast and moved to Southern states like Florida, Texas, and North Carolina. They were drawn by cheaper housing, lower costs of living, lower taxes, more job opportunities, and warmer weather. This wave of people moving within the country gave the South a big boost.

That wave has slowed down since the pandemic ended, as many workers were called back to offices in big cities. Immigration has also slowed in recent years, making the South's growth less certain than before. Still, the South is doing better than every other U.S. region. Frey noted that Texas, Florida, and North Carolina are leading the way, while states like Mississippi and Alabama are not growing as fast.

Immigration plays a special role in keeping a population young. Frey explained that migrants tend to be younger than the people already living in a country, with many immigrants in their 20s and early 30s. These are prime years for having children, which helps keep a region's population younger. Florida, for example, has long attracted immigrants from South American countries like Cuba, Colombia, and Venezuela.

A younger population is good for a region's economy. Young people become workers and consumers — they buy products, use services, and fill jobs. Frey said companies depend on having young people who can learn new technologies, like computers and social media tools. As young workers grow older, they become more productive and contribute even more to the economy.

The political impact of a younger South could be just as big. A recent Harvard poll found that young registered voters choose Democratic candidates over Republican ones by a wide margin — 45 percent to 26 percent. The South has mostly voted Republican in recent elections, but experts say that could shift as the young population grows more racially diverse. Frey noted that the South's growing youth includes more Latino, Black, and Asian residents than ever before.

Some experts argue that immigration is the country's best tool for slowing down an aging population. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that deaths in America are expected to outnumber births by 2030. Frey said immigrants and their children are younger than the general population, which helps keep the country from aging too quickly. He believes more Americans need to understand why immigration matters for the country's future health and growth.