Piper* and her boyfriend of two years, Louis*, share everything: a rent payment, a turtle, the weekly grocery bill, and, sometimes, the same soap in the shower. There is one thing they don’t share, though. “He is definitely more… moderate,” Piper, a 23-year-old Ohioan who describes herself as “progressive as f*ck,” tells Her Campus. “I’m pretty sure Louis voted for Trump last election. I don’t know — we didn’t talk about that.”
In Her Campus’s 2026 election survey of Gen Z women — predominantly college students and recent grads — 73% of respondents said they’re at least somewhat aligned with their partner’s political beliefs, with 39% describing them as “very much aligned.” But what about the other 27% of respondents who aren’t necessarily on the same page?
Historically, there has been a gender divide in political ideology — and according to the 2025 NBC News Stay Tuned Poll, the partisan gender gap is wider among Gen Z than in any other generation. Just 33% of surveyed Gen Z men identified as Democrats, compared to the 52% of Gen Z women who say they’re Dems — the largest concentration of any age and gender group within one political party.
Given the numbers, it’s not shocking that there are young couples with mismatched political beliefs. But how, exactly, are Gen Z women — who make up one of the most progressive groups in history (as evidenced by the 62% of Her Campus survey respondents who identify as very or somewhat liberal) — navigating these political-gap relationships, especially during election season?
I’ll cancel his vote out, probably, but we never talk about who we vote for on Election Day. So, you never know
Leah*, a 21-year-old student at the University of Colorado Boulder who identifies as “more liberal,” says she realized her partner, Joseph*, was “more conservative” early in their relationship. “I never straight up asked him, ‘Where do you stand politically?’” Leah says. Instead, the differences naturally surfaced as their conversations grew more serious. “We talked about various current topics, and I realized we didn’t completely align.”
Politics don’t come up often in their relationship, and some of that is by design. Abortion, for example, is one of their biggest points of tension: Leah describes herself as “pro-choice,” while Joseph, she says, is “pro-life.” To Leah, it’s not worth the argument to bring it up. “I think we agree to disagree, and he understands why I believe what I believe,” she says.
Piper says politics don’t come up a ton in her relationship with Louis, either, but her political beliefs aren’t something she’s necessarily scared to bring up. The two have had discussions — “not fights,” she clarifies — about the current election cycle, such as Louis’s support for Vivek Ramaswamy, a Trump-backed Republican running for governor of Ohio. “It kind of gives me the ick,” she admits, but ultimately agrees to disagree. “I’ll cancel his vote out, probably, but we never talk about who we vote for on Election Day. So, you never know.”
Piper holds out some hope that she can help change Louis’s mind. After all, it’s happened before. Through their conversations, Piper says that Louis has “come around” to supporting abortion rights — something the two initially butted heads on. “He was raised super Catholic, so I think he was in an echo chamber when it comes to things like [abortion]. Now, he’s pretty pro-choice,” she says, though he still cites “late-term abortions” as something he “cannot support.” (Note: “Late-term abortions” is a non-medical term. Abortions later in pregnancy [at or after 21 weeks] are rare, accounting for roughly 1% of all U.S. abortions.)
I value the aspects that we align on more than the political issues that we don’t necessarily align on.
While Piper and Leah are both pretty open to their partners’ differing beliefs, they still have their dealbreakers. For Leah, what matters most is her boyfriend’s willingness to understand her perspective. She says his views on abortion are shaped by how he grew up, but their conversations have helped him better understand why the issue matters so much to her. “If he was completely closed off to these conversations,” she says, “I think it would be a different story.”
While there are some issues that result in larger conversations to understand the other’s perspective, there are some that are total black-and-white dealbreakers. Due to the number of queer folks in her circle, Piper says that Louis being anti-LGBTQ+ would definitely end their relationship. “I want my queer friends to feel comfortable around my partner,” she says. “And if any one of them were to tell me they feel unsafe, I would end the relationship right then and there.” (Piper notes that Louis has always been “extremely supportive” of LGBTQ+ rights, citing his support for queer couples to marry.)
Of course, not all political-gap relationships are destined to survive. A 2024 survey by the dating app Coffee Meets Bagel found that 83% of respondents would consider ending a relationship because of different political views. Additionally, 37% of female respondents said they refuse to date someone with differing political views — with 22% of women having ended a relationship over political differences.
Despite their political gaps, both Leah and Piper say they align with their partners on other aspects of their lives — namely, their support for one another and mutual respect for their political beliefs — and that’s what matters most to them. “I know [Joseph] is a good person,” Leah says. “I value the aspects that we align on more than the political issues that we don’t necessarily align on.”
Piper feels similarly, saying that Louis’s support for her having her own political beliefs speaks volumes. At the end of the day, she says, his respect for her is what matters most. “The world is very polarized right now when it comes to politics,” she says. “So, I think it’s cool that he supports me in believing what I believe and doesn’t try to change my mind — even if we feel differently.”
*Names have been changed.