29-year-olds set to form first Gen Z class in Congress

Three members of Generation Z are expected to be sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives this fall, a group that would constitute the first full class of representatives from that demographic cohort in congressional history.

The cohort includes Maxwell Frost of Florida, who has served in the House since 2022. Two additional candidates are projected to win their races on Tuesday: Melat Kiros of Colorado and Michael Alfonso of Wisconsin. If they hold their districts, the total number of Gen Z representatives will rise to three.

Frost, a 29-year-old Democrat, currently serves as the only representative from this generation. Kiros, also 29, is the favored candidate in Colorado’s 1st district, a seat that historically leans Democratic. Alfonso, a 26-year-old Republican, is expected to carry Wisconsin’s 7th district, which is heavily Republican.

Alfonso would be the first person born in the 2000s to serve in Congress. He is a political newcomer endorsed by President Trump. His father-in-law is Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who represented the Wisconsin district from 2011 until 2019. In an interview with Wisconsin Public Radio earlier this month, Alfonso described his age as his greatest advantage, citing shared values with constituents regarding hard work, faith, and family.

Running for Congress as a young person remains rare. The minimum age to serve in the House is 25, meaning the oldest members of Generation Z only became eligible this year. According to Future Caucus, a nonpartisan organization, only 4% of congressional candidates nationwide this cycle are part of Gen Z. This makes them the least likely generation to advance past the primary stage.

The political party breakdown of these candidates is uneven. Future Caucus data indicates that a majority of Gen Z candidates filed as Democrats this year. Fewer than a third ran as Republicans, while 16% ran as independents or third-party candidates. This distribution contrasts with the higher number of young progressive candidates who ran during recent Democratic primaries.

Conservative organizers are working to build a larger bench of young candidates. Adam Pennings, executive director of Run Gen Z, noted that young people need representation in government. His organization announced endorsements for more than 220 Gen Z and millennial conservatives in late October. This list includes candidates like Joe Mitchell of Iowa and Riley Owen of Utah, who are running in competitive or difficult districts.

Mitchell, a 29-year-old former state senator, is vying for Iowa’s 2nd congressional district. He has the endorsement of President Trump and advocates for term limits and a ban on congressional stock trading. Owen, a 28-year-old Republican, is running for Utah’s newly redrawn 1st district, which favors Democrats. Both candidates cite voter frustration with the political system as a driving force for their campaigns.